Let’s talk the reality of career resources

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DS #1 graduated in 2023 from an Ivy, and DS #2 graduated in 2024, also from an Ivy. Both are still looking for work, and according to them, the career center didn't do much to help them. One of their cousins was a recruited athlete at another Ivy, who received a lucrative banking job after graduation in 2024, without ever showing up at the career center.

What did DS#1 and DS#2 do on their own initiative? How much effort was expended on their part? Majors? Academic performance while in college? Undergraduate internships or experience? This is not a one-variable equation yielding binary outcome (employed or not employed). There has to be more to this anecdote. Not trying to be critical just understand context better to divine insight in your comment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DS #1 graduated in 2023 from an Ivy, and DS #2 graduated in 2024, also from an Ivy. Both are still looking for work, and according to them, the career center didn't do much to help them. One of their cousins was a recruited athlete at another Ivy, who received a lucrative banking job after graduation in 2024, without ever showing up at the career center.

Please identify the three Ivy League schools to which you refer. It would be helpful.

Also would help to know majors and career field desired.

Thank you in advance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DS #1 graduated in 2023 from an Ivy, and DS #2 graduated in 2024, also from an Ivy. Both are still looking for work, and according to them, the career center didn't do much to help them. One of their cousins was a recruited athlete at another Ivy, who received a lucrative banking job after graduation in 2024, without ever showing up at the career center.

School #3 (recruited athletes' school) sounds like Dartmouth.

schools #1 & #2 may be Cornell & Brown.

[Anonymous]

No one “receives” lucrative banking job after graduation. You have to “seek” it and that even applies to recruited athletes, too. Yes, sales and trading desks at major IBs are favorably disposed to recruited athletes from Ivy schools but one has to actually seek it and not passively “receive” it by the career center. The idea that jobs are offered up like a box of chocolates by career center is f’n crazy. What firm wants to hire an entitled person with unrealistic expectations and zero initiative? Prior post has to be fake because no parent can be that clueless, can they?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No one “receives” lucrative banking job after graduation. You have to “seek” it and that even applies to recruited athletes, too. Yes, sales and trading desks at major IBs are favorably disposed to recruited athletes from Ivy schools but one has to actually seek it and not passively “receive” it by the career center. The idea that jobs are offered up like a box of chocolates by career center is f’n crazy. What firm wants to hire an entitled person with unrealistic expectations and zero initiative? Prior post has to be fake because no parent can be that clueless, can they?

Different Poster.

Yes, some do receive lucrative IB offers before, at, and/or after graduation. Happens for athletes, family connections,and frat brothers with Dads in a position of authority at an IB or other financial firm.

Sorry to say, but you are the clueless one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No one “receives” lucrative banking job after graduation. You have to “seek” it and that even applies to recruited athletes, too. Yes, sales and trading desks at major IBs are favorably disposed to recruited athletes from Ivy schools but one has to actually seek it and not passively “receive” it by the career center. The idea that jobs are offered up like a box of chocolates by career center is f’n crazy. What firm wants to hire an entitled person with unrealistic expectations and zero initiative? Prior post has to be fake because no parent can be that clueless, can they?

Different Poster.

Yes, some do receive lucrative IB offers before, at, and/or after graduation. Happens for athletes, family connections,and frat brothers with Dads in a position of authority at an IB or other financial firm.

Sorry to say, but you are the clueless one.

This does not happen in 2024. True 25 years ago. Today, anyone “receiving” this kind of job it’s typically a non-substantive client-facing role that is offered as a favor to a candidate that would never be on real long-term track. This kind of person is gone within 18 - 24 months because they were never a real hire, anyway. Ok, they make some money in the 18 - 24 months but they get weeded out pretty quickly and suffer from massive imposter syndrome. Follow these people through time and you will see. It’s a curse, not a blessing because most of them are stranded by 28.

[Anonymous]

I graduated from an Ivy. The football and basketball players got amazing wall street finance jobs after graduation, even the weakest students. They werent writing cover letters- There is a strong ivy alum job pipeline for athletes. I assume it's the same at other schools as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No one “receives” lucrative banking job after graduation. You have to “seek” it and that even applies to recruited athletes, too. Yes, sales and trading desks at major IBs are favorably disposed to recruited athletes from Ivy schools but one has to actually seek it and not passively “receive” it by the career center. The idea that jobs are offered up like a box of chocolates by career center is f’n crazy. What firm wants to hire an entitled person with unrealistic expectations and zero initiative? Prior post has to be fake because no parent can be that clueless, can they?

Different Poster.

Yes, some do receive lucrative IB offers before, at, and/or after graduation. Happens for athletes, family connections,and frat brothers with Dads in a position of authority at an IB or other financial firm.

Sorry to say, but you are the clueless one.

This does not happen in 2024. True 25 years ago. Today, anyone “receiving” this kind of job it’s typically a non-substantive client-facing role that is offered as a favor to a candidate that would never be on real long-term track. This kind of person is gone within 18 - 24 months because they were never a real hire, anyway. Ok, they make some money in the 18 - 24 months but they get weeded out pretty quickly and suffer from massive imposter syndrome. Follow these people through time and you will see. It’s a curse, not a blessing because most of them are stranded by 28.

Maybe some of what you wrote is accurate, but I assure you that this system is alive and well in 2024 (at least at Dartmouth College & at Duke University).

Can you elaborate on your statement: "stranded by {age} 28" ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No one “receives” lucrative banking job after graduation. You have to “seek” it and that even applies to recruited athletes, too. Yes, sales and trading desks at major IBs are favorably disposed to recruited athletes from Ivy schools but one has to actually seek it and not passively “receive” it by the career center. The idea that jobs are offered up like a box of chocolates by career center is f’n crazy. What firm wants to hire an entitled person with unrealistic expectations and zero initiative? Prior post has to be fake because no parent can be that clueless, can they?

Different Poster.

Yes, some do receive lucrative IB offers before, at, and/or after graduation. Happens for athletes, family connections,and frat brothers with Dads in a position of authority at an IB or other financial firm.

Sorry to say, but you are the clueless one.

This does not happen in 2024. True 25 years ago. Today, anyone “receiving” this kind of job it’s typically a non-substantive client-facing role that is offered as a favor to a candidate that would never be on real long-term track. This kind of person is gone within 18 - 24 months because they were never a real hire, anyway. Ok, they make some money in the 18 - 24 months but they get weeded out pretty quickly and suffer from massive imposter syndrome. Follow these people through time and you will see. It’s a curse, not a blessing because most of them are stranded by 28.

Maybe some of what you wrote is accurate, but I assure you that this system is alive and well in 2024 (at least at Dartmouth College & at Duke University).

Can you elaborate on your statement: "stranded by {age} 28" ?

The PP wrote that "This does not happen in 2024."

He/She must be living under the rock because it is alive and well in 2025. There are so many athletes from Ivies in my division that I lose count. Almost all of them admitted that they are here because of who they know, and bypassing so many qualified candidates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, the math/cs field is not doing great right now, the WSJ had an article about it today. Job postings are below pre-pandemic levels.

I will say, I’m my experience, the best career centers are those within flagship business schools. My husband was a Michigan Econ grad and didn’t apply to Ross because he wasn’t interested in majoring in Business. He was eventually able to get a finance job, but it was a lot harder because Ross only helped their own students. My niece is at business school at Wisconsin and was able to get an internship before her senior year without connections by utilizing on-campus resources.

Finally, to the poster at Brown with a kid in Environmental Science - I’m in the field and entry level positions are very competitive. There’s also a big push for diversity right now, which hurts other applicants. I know lots of people with MEM degrees from “elite” universities who don’t make much. So I think it’s more Brown helping to place students at companies that actually hire many kids that pay decent wages.

Do you have a link to this article?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No one “receives” lucrative banking job after graduation. You have to “seek” it and that even applies to recruited athletes, too. Yes, sales and trading desks at major IBs are favorably disposed to recruited athletes from Ivy schools but one has to actually seek it and not passively “receive” it by the career center. The idea that jobs are offered up like a box of chocolates by career center is f’n crazy. What firm wants to hire an entitled person with unrealistic expectations and zero initiative? Prior post has to be fake because no parent can be that clueless, can they?

Lucrative banking jobs are the easiest jobs to apply for and just require training and the right pedigree. Everyone applies for them at Yale, because it just requires dropping your resume, a few demographic questions, and a hirevue. DD dropped physics, because research took so much work to get- various letters of rec, long personal statements, sometimes a resume AND CV, multiple interviews, etc. If you can join a consulting club or IB club, you can get these jobs at 1/2 the work other majors have to for their jobs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DS graduated from W&M in 2022. He visited the career center his junior year and most interactions with them were virtual (Fall of 2020, Spring of 2021.). They had multiple career fairs and meet and greets with various companies but it was extremely challenging because most of them were virtual. At the meet and greets, the company would put on a presetation - selling their company, talking about their benefits, work culture, etc. Then they would have queues you would go into to meet a rep from the company. Trying to "talk" to people in a virtual setting was frustrating but he slogged through it. Before and after Covid, the meet and greets were more informal "cocktail reception" type events.

The career counselor he was assigned worked with him on his "elevator pitch" and his resume. The counselor advised him how to network and he started by contacting one of his fraternity brothers who had graduated a couple of years earlier. That first networking phone call led to other calls. Fall of his senior year, companies started visiting campus in person and he again went to everything. He ended up receiving four job offers by early November '21. The job he accepted was with a company he actually only interacted with virtually.

My DS felt the career center was excellent but he did admit he had to be proactive with them.

It's not clear from your description but from their website it looks like they still have the on-campus recruiting process set up so students can apply for jobs via their portal and interview 1:1 on campus also, in addition to the general meet & greets, etc.

I graduated many lifetimes ago but I found the Career Center to be incredible, had multiple interviews every week with a broad range of companies and government and at least 3 job offers by Christmas. If that's not a standard service that every college provides, that's something my 11th grader needs to pay closer attention to because I had assumed it would be even better at more prestigious and expensive schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I graduated from an Ivy. The football and basketball players got amazing wall street finance jobs after graduation, even the weakest students. They werent writing cover letters- There is a strong ivy alum job pipeline for athletes. I assume it's the same at other schools as well.

You oddly picked he most under-represented of Ivy athletes on Wall Street, which makes me think you are talking out of your ass.

In fact, basketball has the weakest alumni network...by far. Combination of small teams and many players not coming from wealthy families to start.

LAX is the most represented sport on Wall Street...again, by a large margin...followed by Crew and other niche sports. Football has lots of players, but punches way under its weight since once again, it doesn't pull as heavily from prep schools/wealthy families as other sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DD is at Brown too and she gets bombarded with emails from department heads and other areas about research opportunities, internships, and even job opportunities. Your kid must not be responding to these. Handshake is widely used at Brown.

Kid at Penn, same. No way OP ‘s kid is dialed in

Agree, i have a 2023 Penn grad and another is 26. 23 grad and peers did extremely well in job or grad placement and they all credit faculty or alumni (via career center) connections. None are slackers though, they chased every lead and most started working on resume as sophomores

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I graduated from an Ivy. The football and basketball players got amazing wall street finance jobs after graduation, even the weakest students. They werent writing cover letters- There is a strong ivy alum job pipeline for athletes. I assume it's the same at other schools as well.

You oddly picked he most under-represented of Ivy athletes on Wall Street, which makes me think you are talking out of your ass.

In fact, basketball has the weakest alumni network...by far. Combination of small teams and many players not coming from wealthy families to start.

LAX is the most represented sport on Wall Street...again, by a large margin...followed by Crew and other niche sports. Football has lots of players, but punches way under its weight since once again, it doesn't pull as heavily from prep schools/wealthy families as other sports.

+1
The nonathletes at my kids ivy did far better than the athletes