Nalin Sayal, who just graduated in December 2014 from the International MBA tells us about his experience with this Global Firm.
How did you find out about this job opportunity?
The Career Management Center hosted an event for Credit Suisse on campus in Dec 2013. I had some friends who had gone for the presentation and had informed me about it. I applied for it online the same week.
How did the CMC and your IE experience help you during the recruiting process?
Apart from the various tips and advice which we got for interviewing, I believe the MBA experience was particularly helpful with the numerous presentations one had to present at different stages, especially since presentations were a part of our daily routine at IE. One of the main tasks of the internship towards the end was to make a presentation in front of 10 people from the senior management of the bank and I feel I was at ease primarily due to the practice I had got during the MBA.
How was the recruiting process: stages, tests, interviews, etc.?
The recruiting process was for the internship and consisted of 3 stages. I first flew to London for the day in late January to participate in a case study workshop, followed by 1-on-1 interviews. I recall the experience as being quite strenuous especially because I had a midterm exam back in Madrid the very next day, so for me time management was the challenge. After this interview, I was informed I was through to the next round. I then had 2 more interviews over videoconference (which was conveniently organized) at the Credit Suisse office in Madrid, close to campus on Calle Velazquez – both with the Zurich & Dubai teams. Round 1 was basically gauging your depth of knowledge on the financial markets and asset classes in general, and getting to know the candidate personally, while the other rounds were more to do with finding the ‘fit’. I recall making an elevator pitch for a particular situation when interviewing with the Dubai team, which came across as a surprise to me. The 10 week internship in Zurich itself was the real test, as you were working closely with different teams, and it was important to be consistently performing well and to be reactive/curious rather than just being proactive. I was given an offer in September 2014 for the Zurich, Geneva and Dubai offices, and eventually chose Dubai for personal reasons.
Would you want to share any tips, advice with current student interested in applying to Credit Suisse?
I believe applying early was helpful and I really do recommend tapping into any network (friends, family, acquaintances) you have at these banks/firms who can give you critical insights. It’s a small effort, which goes a long way, especially if it can help differentiate you from the others applying.
Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @ieBusiness #ieIMBA #LifeatIE #GoBeyond
About the author