Trip to NYC - The details..
What a week it was!! Extremely tiring - but lots of fun. Dunno where to start.
The trip - "Week on Wall Street" was organized by the Finance Club. There were presentations organized at almost 10 firms. Each firm had their recruiters and some representatives talk about life at the firm, different career tracks etc. Most firms had a very interactive session where you could mingle with the representatives over cocktails. One was able to get substantial time with senior people within the firm.
It is so exciting being able to listen to and exchange ideas with people who have worked in the industry. I am extremely passionate about the financial markets. So, these interactions left me very happy.
I spent substantial time on the trading floors of Wall Street. Interacting with people over cocktails/lunch/small groups is very different from having a one-on-one conversation. The people I met were happy to give me their time and share their thoughts. In most cases, our discussions went on for much longer than intended. Eg. In one firm I had 2 appointments of 30 minutes each - but ended up spending about 3 hours but still wasn't done. I hope to return there again. At another bank, the idea was to talk to people for about 1 hour, but I ended up making 2 visits spending over 3 hours in all talking to 4-5 people.
A friend of mine I hadn't seen for almost 7 years was instrumental in arranging meetings for me at a place where we didn't have a formal presentation set up. Extremely senior people spent time with me advising me on how to make career choices and talking about what their groups did. Again, I cannot be grateful enough for these gestures. The best part was when one MD looked at my resume and asked "So, how was Etah?" That made a connection like nothing could!
At NY, I stayed with a friend of mine who is also my neighbor at my hometown. So, I was going home each night to a space that I was comfortable in.
Over the week I did some touristy things too - visited Times Square, 5th Avenue, Central Park, Battery Park. Wanted to take the ferry to Staten Island to get a close dekko at the Statue of Liberty - but didn't have the time. Wanted to watch "Bombay Dreams" on Broadway - but didn't feel wealthy enough to afford it :-D.
The last day was the highlight of the trip. Getting together after 7 years to know that we haven't changed at all feels awesome. Helped the friend move into his upper east side apartment and then grabbed a dinner while we had some great conversation. Our thoughts on long term goals seemed to be totally in sync. Both of us felt very lucky to be present in a time when India is undergoing a structural change. Also, each of us has had the fortune of having a strong foundation and being exposed to the western world. Combined with our passion to make an impact in India, we agreed it was incumbent on us to plan out our careers so that we don't waste this golden opportunity to make a difference. Time will tell whether we are able to translate our hopes into reality.
The trip to New York confirmed to me that there exists a strong network of alumni from my alma mater on Wall Street. Each of them is happy to assist in every way possible. Add that to the fabulous Tuck network and I need to be an idiot not to get an internship of choice!
posted by Tagad_Tale @ 11:50 PM
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