Just like in many other fields, when it comes to the financial industry, graduates with a finance degree or an MBA are a dime a dozen. If you are one of them, this does not imply that you will be unemployed, but your dream job might be less attainable then you might imagine and don’t be surprised when applying for a job at a bank you might see someone else hired who studied in other fields than finance.
What financial institutions are looking for when they hire is that little extra edge that will make the candidate a great asset for the company. The field of study is less important, banks are not hiring at entry-level jobs based on knowledge — no recent graduate knows how to do the job. What they are looking for is a proof of a keen interest in the field of finance that is present outside the classroom too: investing or trading (stocks, CFDs or futures) with their own money or virtual money, participating in trading competitions and investment clubs, having a blog or a Twitter feed about finance, etc.
These will all look good on a CV and come handy at an interview but nothing beats a great internship. Not just another random internship where you are totally ignored and people want you gone ASAP because you represent more work for them and they are already overworked.
Find an internship that comes with hands-on experience, an internship where your mind is challenged and your eyes are open to aspects of finance that are not taught in school. An internship has to come with a great mentor, a person who knows how things work and direct you to the path that is right for you. If you find a well-connected person, you might be able to leverage these contacts and land a job after the internship.
Enter the IOTAF Financial Markets Internship
Here at IOTAF, we developed an internship program for people like you, the Financial Markets Internship (FMI), a unique mentorship program that will offer relevant career experience in a specific area of interest, whether it is quantitative finance, analysis and research, financial journalism or trading.
First, we will start by making sure that you have a good grasp of the theory required for the work you will be doing, in the first two weeks you will be learning a lot about macro fundamental analysis and central bank monetary policies and how to apply them to quantitative and qualitative modellings, to help forecast financial market assets like stocks, bonds, commodities or forex currency pairings.
The second part of the FMI consist of a rotational assignment program to gain relevant investment banking experience. Assignments include daily forecast and expectations, macro and central bank research, prop. trading and quantitative modellings and more.
Upon completion, you will receive a Financial Market Internship Certificate from IOTAF, you will be integrated into the IOTAF alumni/community and we will help you with job placements through our network.
The next session begins on July 8, 2019!