The Internship Hunt

Unlike KV and a slew of others, I have yet to line up an internship for the summer. The investment management field is a bit, well, stodgy for lack of a better word. It's no wonder so much $$$ has seen its way run towards hedge funds, who try to think different - or so at least some of them do.

There aren't a ton of spots available on the buy-side, so it is a bit of a struggle. It also justifies the "stodginess" to an extent, so I will cut the recruiters a little bit of slack on that line. With that being said, one of the interesting things is that typically analysts and Portfolio Managers are doing the interviewing for the roles I interview for. Are they qualified to actually know what to ask in personnel interviews? Or how about evaluating important criteria? It brings up an interesting point. Nevertheless, it's the game I am stuck in so I must play it. I'd prefer to go to a hedge fund that isn't trapped by rules and investing styles, since those rules tend to be what causes them to be worse-than-average investment vehicles, on average. However, if I feel like I will get the chance to learn from one or two far-better-than average types of PM's I would cherish the opportunity. So far I still have 17 potential places with applications that haven't been rejected (I've only received 2 official rejections but have had a few companies neglect to get back to me while interviewing other classmates). Not all of the 17 are buy-side jobs. One of them has to hit, right???? Right????

Oros Speaker - Steven Burrill - Biotech Venture Capital

We had our first "John J. Oros" speaker on Thursday. Steven Burrill, founder and CEO of Burrill and Company came to talk about his experiences in his field - biotech venture capital investing. Most importantly, though, he tried to remind us that risk taking is encouraged. I loved hearing him talk about his former Starbucks addiction, sleeping only 3 hours per night, and trying to find the next great biotech revolution that will cure cancer or alzheimer's.

On a scale of 1 to 10 I give the talk an 8.5. It was motivational, interesting, and, at times humorous. Steve's bio sure is interesting, and it goes to show how strong the business school alumni network is.

Being wrong is ok...

Wow - I was amazed at how poorly the 'Hawks played. Worst SB performance I have ever seen...preseason form. Doesn't work vs. a good team like the Steelers.

Congrats to the Bus!