How to get a job at Morgan Stanley: don’t fake it
Morgan Stanley is a bit like Holden Caulfield, the narrator of JD Salinger’s novel Catcher in the Rye: The Bank Doesn’t Like Fake News. So if you want to get a graduate job there, it is imperative that you be yourself in an interview. This probably doesn’t apply if you’re a really lazy and self-interested person, but if that’s the case, you might not be interviewing Morgan Stanley anyway.
When I spoke at the Grad Fest last week, amy walshe, Morgan Stanley’s EMEA Head of Investment Banking Recruitment said the most important thing the bank’s recruiters want to see during interviews is a candidate’s “authentic self”. A selection of the bank’s current juniors supported this. “Try not to conform to a stereotype of how you think people are in an investment bank,” he said Tashaan Daniel, Finance Trainee who started with an industrial internship. “JJust be yourself,” he intoned Mahek Vara, analyst in the investment banking department – “Treat the interviewer like a friend.”We want individual personalities to complement our existing team,” said Bryan Fong, analyst on the real estate team. Whatever you do, don’t pretend to be someone you are not.
Being relaxed and talkative might not come naturally when you’ve passed the resume submission and Morgan Stanley psychometric test, when you’ve passed the phone screening, and when you’ve finally made it made it to the interview, but juniors at Morgan Stanley said the bank’s interviewers were honestly nothing to be afraid of. They’re human and understanding and “loveable,” he said Laavaniya Srithar in Market Risk. “I had a moment where I messed up the mental math for a brain teaser I had.” srithar added. “The person who interviewed me said don’t worry, take a minute…they wanted me to go through the formula instead of the math.”
The most successful interviews seem to have evolved into two-way chats rather than terrifying interrogations. When interviewed for her IBD role, Vara said she received some great advice on how to get up the real estate ladder. “Enjoy the interview,” she added; it’s a conversation.
Even if you are authentic, you can still prepare. What the bank really wants to see is that you are genuinely interested in doing the job you applied for and are specifically interested in doing it at Morgan Stanley. To do this, you need to know something about the bank and the role. It really helps to understand Morgan Stanley’s core values before the interview, Daniel said. Try to coordinate your answers to the bank’s interview questions with them. “Don’t memorize the answers, but try to relate them to the values,” Vara repeated.
If the interviews go well, the next step depends on what you applied for. Off-cycle interns are invited to further interviews. Summer interns are invited to an assessment center. Daniel said she is still friends with the people she met at her assessment center and that talking to them that day helped calm her nerves. After all, they’re in “exactly the same position as you,” she noted; Being honest about your feelings is a good way to feel comfortable about it.
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