Correction appended
After months of dressing up in suits and ties, making their way to New York or the Nassau Inn and trying to impress panels of interviewers with their technical and social skills, juniors applying for summer internships in finance and consulting can now reap the benefits of their work: elaborate "sell days" to convince them to accept the job.
"They paid for two nights at a fancy hotel in New York," Neel Gehani '07 said of the most lavish pitch aimed at him.
"They rented out a museum and had a cocktail party, and then rented out the VIP room in a nightclub in SoHo." The company later sent him chocolates in the mail.
"It was extravagant and completely unnecessary," Gehani said.
And, for him, ineffective. "I didn't take the offer," he said.
He met one student, though, who was convinced by the experience to join the company. "I guess he was into the whole lifestyle," he said. The weekend "definitely influenced some of the people there."
End of a process
The sell weekend is the final step in a process that many University students undergo. From the Class of 2005, 40 percent of employed graduates took jobs in financial services, according to the Career Services exit survey.
The process began with information sessions in the fall, mostly held at Nassau Inn. Recent University alumni often come to reduce the stress, but students still feel required to make a good impression and "ask intelligent questions," Aditi Shrivastava '06 said.
After submitting their applications, some students are invited for interviews, which often include evaluative meals or drinks in addition to trips to see the company.
"We bring them to our office to get a good feel for our headquarters here in New York," said Tara Udut, head of U.S. campus recruitment for the investment banking division of Barclays. "There is some forum during the visit, usually a lunch, which is a chance for them to get to know us on a more personal level and for us to answer questions."
Gehani, who is also a Daily Princetonian columnist, said the firms often take applicants out to dinner at the Alchemist and Barrister or Ferry House. "If that's before you get the offer it's also a little awkward, since the whole dinner's part of the interview," he said.
But for the companies, the applicants' behavior in a social atmosphere may be an important consideration. "The wanted to see if I was a social fit for the company before giving me the offer," Meera Krishnan '07, who was taken out to drinks the day before she received an internship offer, said. "They told me, 'This other kid came and sat and stared at his hands; we're glad you're not like that.' "
The offer
Soon after the interview process, companies release their offers, and students have more wining and dining awaiting them.
"Even if you're underage, they don't care," Shrivastava said. "I know this one person who got tipsy, but you're always being tested so a lot of people just get a Coke."
Janet Raiffa, co-head of U.S. campus recruiting for Goldman Sachs, explained that even in events following offers, students should "continue to make a good impression."
"We frequently say that a summer internship is a '10-week interview' and summer offerees and interns should focus on the longterm goal of being offered a full-time position," she said in an email.
Besides restaurants and open bars, students often stay in hotels that cost $300 to $400 a night. "I only got a double bed and bath, but my friend got a whole suite to herself," Krishnan said. "When they spend hundreds of dollars on you, you feel a connection."
When finally making a choice, however, students said that the most important factor was seeing the company in person. "The most effective way was when they set up a meeting for me at the company site, so that I would be able to talk to a bunch of different people regarding the job, as well as the summer internship itself," Calvin Chan '07 said in an email.
"I actually got to see the inner workings of the company and what the people who worked there were like. The observed environment was pretty much what made the decision easier for me."
In the end, the extravagance of the financial sector does not stop students from looking into other options. "Engineering firms I interviewed with don't have banquets, don't take you to drinks," Shrivastava said.
They do have info sessions, she said, but "you don't have to stress out. You can go there looking sloppy but if you can program, you're good."
Correction
A quote in the original version of this article mistakenly left the impression that firms may have encouraged students to get drunk. The individual to whom the quote was attributed said that there was no such pressure.Read More
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