Need advice for MBA and Career Goals

Hello tonyjyoo

An MBA will definitely help. This answers your question (albeit crudely) 'Why MBA'. The second part is 'Why Now?' (fresh into a new job and not a year or two later after learning more)
If you have a good answer for this then go ahead

Best
Varun Sharma
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Hi Tony,

Since you have just accepted a new position, ideally you should spend some time there, show good progress and then plan for the MBA. That will give you the time to perform in a new job. Hedge Fund jobs and jobs in alternative assets in general typically require an MBA, so investment banking could be a preferred career path post-MBA. But either way, a demonstration of excellence in the new job will take you a long way when applying for the MBA and beyond.

It would make sense to wait a year since you're so new to this job, especially if taking it involved changing firms. The adcom is wary of someone who took a new job at a new firm right before submitting a b-school app because it makes them question your commitment. In their mind either you were not honest with the new boss/co (since it would be extremely unlikely someone would hire you knowing you plan to leave in a year. It takes about a year for you to even really start to show them an ROI). On the flip side, they will worry that you might not be serious about b-school if you just took a new job. And like you point out, you won't have much to say about this new job at this point anyway since you'll be too new in it to include anything meaningful on your resume or in an essay.

That said, I think the bigger issue is your statement that you "assume" you'll need some IB experience & an MBA. B-schools want to see that you've really done your homework & have a rock solid argument for why this MBA is absolutely CRITICAL to success in your goals. They want to know what you plan to accomplish in your post-MBA career and why this is your passion, AND they also want to see that you know exactly what skill gaps you need to fill in b-school. So you are definitely going to want to do your homework there. Do you some informational interviews with people who work at hedge funds in the types of role you hope to one day get. If you can speak to someone who went to a b-school you have in mind, even better. Then you can mention that when you apply & specify what you learned from them that supported your belief the xyz school is the perfect fit to prep you for those goals.

So spend this next year getting some accomplishments under your belt in this new role & definitely do your homework so you can articulate some strong clear goals, the impact you hope to have via those goals and WHY that matters to you, and exactly why the MBA is critical to your success in achieving them.

So is it possible to work in a hedge fund post MBA? With no prior IB experience?

Thank you for this, a lot of new tips I haven't thought about regarding what I can put in my application.

Just wondering, where could I get in touch with people to interview who worked at hedge funds? Also, the main school I'm hoping to attend is NYU Stern. I suppose I could research alumnis to speak to?

It's definitely possible to work in a hedge fund post-MBA without prior IB experience. Many people go to b-school to make a career switch. And when you are making a career switch you can definitely come up with a strong list of skill gaps that you need to fill in b-school!

in terms of how find people who are willing to do an info interview I'd do two things: 1) reach out to the school & see if they can put you in touch with any current students or alumni who work at hedge funds who might be willing to speak to you so you can learn more about how the school has helped them in their career 2) Reach out to your own network. Look on LinkedIn, ask friends if they know any friends or friends or friends who work at one, etc. Put out the word that you are trying to find some info interview contacts in this area & I'm sure you can come up with at least 1 or 2 if not more! And when you do speak to someone, you can always ask them at the end of the call if there's anyone else they'd recommend you speak with to help you gain an additional perspective.

I hope that helps!