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Each day billions of dollars in financial transactions occur across the United States and the globe. People purchase goods and services, and companies accept funds from buyers. Manufacturers purchase supplies and provide their workers with paychecks. The world runs on a monetary-based system, and banks and financial service companies provide needed monetary services.

The industry can be divided into two large segments: banking services companies and investment services companies, although there is some overlap between the two segments. In general, though, banks focus primarily on providing their customers with traditional banking services such as checking and savings accounts, credit cards, and similar services, while financial services companies focus more on investment products and asset protection.

Common Financial Services Specialties

Banking & Finance

American banking entities are going global and growing internationally, especially in Latin America and Asia. Many major banks actively hire U.S.- educated Asians and Latin Americans to develop banking business overseas. The Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union (in which 16 European countries have merged their individual currencies into a single new currency, the euro) was created in 1999; many feel it will encourage highly favorable business conditions and opportunities throughout Europe for American banking institutions. Banking and financial services professionals who have specialized language skills, a desire to travel, and knowledge of these emerging markets will advance quickly.
As banks continue to compete with investment firms, they will seek out finance professionals who can develop products for the corporate market. Investment products and mutual funds are a booming part of commercial banking. This will continue to grow as pending deregulations attempt to remove barriers between commercial and investment banking.

stock exchange

Investment Banking

What is investment banking? Is it investing? Is it banking? Really, it is neither. Investment banking, or I-banking, as it is often called, is the term used to describe the business of raising capital for companies and governments and advising them on financing and merger alternatives. Capital essentially means money. Companies need cash in order to grow and expand their businesses; investment banks sell securities (debt and equity) to investors in order to raise this cash. These securities can come in the form of stocks, bonds, or loans. Once issued, these securities trade in the global financial markets.

Investment banks act as intermediaries between an issuer of securities and the investing public, distributing an offering through their dealer networks or direct sales to clients. Services offered, in addition to underwriting, typically include asset securitization, structuring corporate mergers and acquisitions, and arranging private placements of debt or equity securities. When working with clients, an investment banker offers his or her expert advice and counseling on pricing securities to be offered for sale, filing the registration documents with government agencies, managing the sales distribution syndicate, and communicating periodically with the investor community.

umbrellas

Insurance

The insurance industry comprises companies and people who develop insurance policies and sell, administrate, and regulate them. Some insurance companies offer investment products and employ people who develop, sell, administrate, or service these products. Insurance is about managing risk, for both the insurance company and its customers. The company must make sure it collects enough money in premiums to offset customers’ claims while still maintaining a profit. Customers use insurance to minimize risk to their finances in the case of lost or damaged property, lawsuits, illness or accident, business interruption, or premature death.
Today, there are few items of value that can’t be insured. The most common insurance policies are business insurance, car/vehicle insurance, health insurance, home/rental insurance, life insurance, and other property/casualty insurance policies.

IFM – Analyst, Sustainable Investment/Clients & Strategy

IFM Investors is a private markets manager, with a focus on infrastructure and capabilities in unlisted and listed equity, private equity and debt. IFM was founded by pension funds. It’s still owned by pension funds today. Our clients are stewards of …

By Yale Office of Career Strategy
Yale Office of Career Strategy
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STEM PhD Pathways: Career Paths in Quantitative Research

Watch the 60‑minute seminar session with Dr. Tong Liu and Dr. Joshua Surya (watch video here with NetID).

OCS invited two Yale‑trained scientists who now build data‑driven investment strategies to illuminate paths from advanced research to quantitative finance and analytics. On January 20, 2025, Tong Liu (Quantitative Researcher, …

By Qi Yan
Qi Yan McDougal Career Fellow
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M&A Case Interviews

If you’re new to case interview prep and/or haven’t yet tackled a Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) case, the RocketBlocks newsletter below features a wealth of content to help build your M&A skills.

What’s the deal with M&A cases?

RocketBlocks: Interactive, …

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Denise Byrnes Associate Director of Employer Relations
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Job Search Resources

Employers hiring for investment banking internships recruit based on the timelines that work for their company. Internships after the junior …

Explore Job Market InsightsIn partnership withLightcast logo

Search continually updated U.S. market trends to learn about job types (job functions), growth trends, and desired skills. The results will include general information about each job (functional area), employment trends from the past two years and projections for the next 10 years, employers that have that role, desired education level, skills for the position, and more!

TWO WAYS TO SEARCH:

  1. Find Career Data by Selecting Keywords: Enter keywords of various job titles and choose a state or search nationwide to learn more about that job.
  2. Filter by Industry and Occupation: Search by industry and choose among popular occupations/job titles within that industry.

First, choose an industry of interest, then filter for occupation. (If you'd like to see data for a specific location only, filter by state.)

Type in a keyword to select a relevant occupation. (If you'd like to see data for a specific location only, filter by state.)

YC Career Outcomes

The Office of Career Strategy collects information about Yale College graduates. This tool allows users to search outcomes by year and major. Please visit Statistics & Reports for more information on our data collection.

  • First Destination summaries are based on the Knowledge Rate of graduate outcomes six months after graduation according to National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) guidelines.
  • Knowledge Rate, defined by NACE, includes direct survey responses and basic employment or graduate school information confirmed through LinkedIn. Yale’s information below on Starting Salary and Time of Year Offer Received is based only on direct survey responses.

Helpful Tips for the Interactive Tool:

  • There is no Enter or Submit Button, results will appear automatically
  • The default is ‘All Years’ or ‘All Majors.’ Choose specific years or majors for more granular results. Uncheck the selected major(s) to reset your search.
  • The tool returns results with at least five responses. For small majors, choose ‘All Years’ to show results
  • To ensure confidentiality, results are reported in the aggregate
  • If you require additional information contact the Office of Career Strategy

Most Recent Class Overview: Class of 2024

Knowledge Rate Employed or in Graduate School Mean Starting Salary Top Five Industries
91.4% of those graduating between July 1, 2023-June 30, 2024.

  • Survey Responses: 1,227 (80.6%)
  • Confirmed through LinkedIn: 299 (19.4%)
93.5% employed or in graduate school within six months of graduation $90,097 among graduates employed full-time in the United States Financial Services, Education, Technology, Consulting, and Healthcare

 

  • First Destination
  • Top Employers
  • Employment Industry and Function
  • Size of the Organization
  • Starting Salary
  • Time of Year Offer Received
  • Internships, Research, and Study Abroad Experiences
  • First Destination Locations
  • Top Universities
  • Advanced Degrees Pursued

First Destination

First Destination refers to the postgraduate plans of Yale College graduates six months after graduation. The pursuits of Yale graduates include employment, graduate school, independent research, military service, and more.

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