How is every last kid going into Investment Banking?

[Anonymous]

It's absurd. Every kid I know personally is aiming for this. Every kid on Reddit. Every kid on here.
My own children are at an Ivy, a LAC and a state school and every kid they know is aiming for Wall Street as well.
Ok, maybe a bit of an exaggeration but it's pretty universal.

The reality is that none of them can even get into the investment CLUBs at their schools.
1% acceptance rates.
Getting competitive internships is even more insane.
And then easily 50-75% of the Wall Street jobs that the colleges brag about are nepo hires (the applicant's dad or uncle is in banking at a high level).
The closer I come to this through my kids I more I realize that 90% of jobs that a college brags about "10 to Goldman Sachs!" are based on who a kid's parents are and have absolutely nothing to do with grades, merit, etc
What is going to happen to all these kids? Is the job market going to absorb them?

[Anonymous]

That is your little piece of the world. You must be quite wealthy to know so many kids who want to go into investment banking.

When I was hanging with a possible billionaire and other possible decamillionaires, some of their kids were into investment banking. In the normal world, it's more rare. The kids probably want the lifestyle they grew up with...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That is your little piece of the world. You must be quite wealthy to know so many kids who want to go into investment banking.

When I was hanging with a possible billionaire and other possible decamillionaires, some of their kids were into investment banking. In the normal world, it's more rare. The kids probably want the lifestyle they grew up with...

+1 This. At my Ivy league undergrad I-banking was popular for rich male econ majors and STEM majors who wanted to remain rich. Other people did other things. The friends I had in state schools barely had people in I-banking at all, from what I saw.

[Anonymous]

No it's all the smart, FGLI (first gen low income) kids on Reddit too. Take some time and read--they ALL want to go into investment banking.

The in vogue career path has turned from computer science to econ/banking in the first gen/immigrant crowd.

The reality is that few of these kids will make it as it's not a meritocracy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's absurd. Every kid I know personally is aiming for this. Every kid on Reddit. Every kid on here.
My own children are at an Ivy, a LAC and a state school and every kid they know is aiming for Wall Street as well.
Ok, maybe a bit of an exaggeration but it's pretty universal.

The reality is that none of them can even get into the investment CLUBs at their schools.
1% acceptance rates.
Getting competitive internships is even more insane.
And then easily 50-75% of the Wall Street jobs that the colleges brag about are nepo hires (the applicant's dad or uncle is in banking at a high level).
The closer I come to this through my kids I more I realize that 90% of jobs that a college brags about "10 to Goldman Sachs!" are based on who a kid's parents are and have absolutely nothing to do with grades, merit, etc
What is going to happen to all these kids? Is the job market going to absorb them?

Huge exaggeration. Huge. Your world is very small. And so is your Reddit interpretation

[Anonymous]

It’s cool to say you’ll be an IB millionaire. Todays average college students all think they’ll start at $100k right out of school. They’re wrong too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's absurd. Every kid I know personally is aiming for this. Every kid on Reddit. Every kid on here.
My own children are at an Ivy, a LAC and a state school and every kid they know is aiming for Wall Street as well.
Ok, maybe a bit of an exaggeration but it's pretty universal.

The reality is that none of them can even get into the investment CLUBs at their schools.
1% acceptance rates.
Getting competitive internships is even more insane.
And then easily 50-75% of the Wall Street jobs that the colleges brag about are nepo hires (the applicant's dad or uncle is in banking at a high level).
The closer I come to this through my kids I more I realize that 90% of jobs that a college brags about "10 to Goldman Sachs!" are based on who a kid's parents are and have absolutely nothing to do with grades, merit, etc
What is going to happen to all these kids? Is the job market going to absorb them?

Huge exaggeration. Huge. Your world is very small. And so is your Reddit interpretation

No offense, but I really don't think my world is small. I have kids in 3 different types of colleges. They came out of a very large public school. My spouse and I go to a large church and work in very economically diverse settings (not in banking). We ourselves attended top100 schools but nothing elite.

[Anonymous]

A few things to note:

1. Every kid going to work at a big bank will claim they are "investment bankers." Many of them are actually in middle office or back office.

2. I am very skeptical about AI. But AI will soon be making the demand for these roles less, as a lot of it is timely grunt work that is perfect for AI.

3, These stupid finance or banking clubs at schools are glorified ponzi schemes that make my skin crawl. I wish Wall Street (I work on Wall Street but don't do much hiring) would purposely hire kids not affiliated with them and go back to just hiring smart, well-rounded kids who might not have as strong of a finance background but will work hard to figure it out then stick them in a training program and they will be caught up with all of the finance club dorks very quickly.

4. Working on Wall Street right out of college is a great way to make good money, get a crash course in finance and how the business world works, make connections and interact with smart people. One must go in being willing to leave quickly. And go for the best fit in terms of personalities and type of work. Don't just chase "prestige."

It is also often best to start away from NYC where the hours tend to be better, apartments etc. are more affordable and teams are smaller. You might not do the super high profile deals but you will learn a lot and actually might be a more attractive candidate for grad school if that's what you end up wanting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No it's all the smart, FGLI (first gen low income) kids on Reddit too. Take some time and read--they ALL want to go into investment banking.

The in vogue career path has turned from computer science to econ/banking in the first gen/immigrant crowd.

The reality is that few of these kids will make it as it's not a meritocracy.

Few of these kids will make it in any highly financially or socially rewarding career. Very few kids will achieve anything significant in sports yet many parents are spending like crazy on travel sports. Ditto for the performing and visual arts. What’s your concern exactly?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's absurd. Every kid I know personally is aiming for this. Every kid on Reddit. Every kid on here.
My own children are at an Ivy, a LAC and a state school and every kid they know is aiming for Wall Street as well.
Ok, maybe a bit of an exaggeration but it's pretty universal.

The reality is that none of them can even get into the investment CLUBs at their schools.
1% acceptance rates.
Getting competitive internships is even more insane.
And then easily 50-75% of the Wall Street jobs that the colleges brag about are nepo hires (the applicant's dad or uncle is in banking at a high level).
The closer I come to this through my kids I more I realize that 90% of jobs that a college brags about "10 to Goldman Sachs!" are based on who a kid's parents are and have absolutely nothing to do with grades, merit, etc
What is going to happen to all these kids? Is the job market going to absorb them?

Huge exaggeration. Huge. Your world is very small. And so is your Reddit interpretation

No offense, but I really don't think my world is small. I have kids in 3 different types of colleges. They came out of a very large public school. My spouse and I go to a large church and work in very economically diverse settings (not in banking). We ourselves attended top100 schools but nothing elite.

Well, you seem to have reached adulthood without learning that your experience isn't universal. And you are taking reddit as a source of data. So there's not much i can say to you, since you have a flawed view of reality.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No it's all the smart, FGLI (first gen low income) kids on Reddit too. Take some time and read--they ALL want to go into investment banking.

The in vogue career path has turned from computer science to econ/banking in the first gen/immigrant crowd.

The reality is that few of these kids will make it as it's not a meritocracy.

Few of these kids will make it in any highly financially or socially rewarding career. Very few kids will achieve anything significant in sports yet many parents are spending like crazy on travel sports. Ditto for the performing and visual arts. What’s your concern exactly?

How so? They are going to top20 universities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's absurd. Every kid I know personally is aiming for this. Every kid on Reddit. Every kid on here.
My own children are at an Ivy, a LAC and a state school and every kid they know is aiming for Wall Street as well.
Ok, maybe a bit of an exaggeration but it's pretty universal.

The reality is that none of them can even get into the investment CLUBs at their schools.
1% acceptance rates.
Getting competitive internships is even more insane.
And then easily 50-75% of the Wall Street jobs that the colleges brag about are nepo hires (the applicant's dad or uncle is in banking at a high level).
The closer I come to this through my kids I more I realize that 90% of jobs that a college brags about "10 to Goldman Sachs!" are based on who a kid's parents are and have absolutely nothing to do with grades, merit, etc
What is going to happen to all these kids? Is the job market going to absorb them?

Huge exaggeration. Huge. Your world is very small. And so is your Reddit interpretation

No offense, but I really don't think my world is small. I have kids in 3 different types of colleges. They came out of a very large public school. My spouse and I go to a large church and work in very economically diverse settings (not in banking). We ourselves attended top100 schools but nothing elite.

Well, you seem to have reached adulthood without learning that your experience isn't universal. And you are taking reddit as a source of data. So there's not much i can say to you, since you have a flawed view of reality.

+1 Your top 100 school didn't teach you much about how to analyze information.

[Anonymous]

Well if it makes you feel better, I think GS is to be avoided.

The GS people I've met have been highly-educated and bright, to be sure, but not exactly pro-social. I could give examples of greed, lying, and failing to prioritize family and interests outside of work. But I've found readers are not shocked and don't really care.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's absurd. Every kid I know personally is aiming for this. Every kid on Reddit. Every kid on here.
My own children are at an Ivy, a LAC and a state school and every kid they know is aiming for Wall Street as well.
Ok, maybe a bit of an exaggeration but it's pretty universal.

The reality is that none of them can even get into the investment CLUBs at their schools.
1% acceptance rates.
Getting competitive internships is even more insane.
And then easily 50-75% of the Wall Street jobs that the colleges brag about are nepo hires (the applicant's dad or uncle is in banking at a high level).
The closer I come to this through my kids I more I realize that 90% of jobs that a college brags about "10 to Goldman Sachs!" are based on who a kid's parents are and have absolutely nothing to do with grades, merit, etc
What is going to happen to all these kids? Is the job market going to absorb them?

Huge exaggeration. Huge. Your world is very small. And so is your Reddit interpretation

No offense, but I really don't think my world is small. I have kids in 3 different types of colleges. They came out of a very large public school. My spouse and I go to a large church and work in very economically diverse settings (not in banking). We ourselves attended top100 schools but nothing elite.

Well, you seem to have reached adulthood without learning that your experience isn't universal. And you are taking reddit as a source of data. So there's not much i can say to you, since you have a flawed view of reality.

+1 Your top 100 school didn't teach you much about how to analyze information.

+100 It's like the parents who don't vax their kids because they did their own "research" and made their own conclusions. There's just no discussing anything with them, because their minds are made up and it's like trying to provide info to a brick wall.

[Anonymous]

Reason #847 why I’m not sending my child to private HS or college. The world view is so skewed and bizarre. I don’t want them in these circles.