Truly Driven

Firms Are Still Recruiting!

April 01, 2009 - by Kanishka Kelshikar

Last Friday, I had an interview with an economic and litigation consulting firm for a research analyst position in their Washington D.C. office. This development is testament to the fact that some firms, although few in number, do have a spring recruiting process. Now, I don't know how you can find out which firms have such a process, but I definitely recommend not eliminating any options before you ultimately contact the firm.

With regards to the position, a research analyst's typical tasks might include:

• Analyzing companies and markets
• Building financial, economic, and operational models
• Conducting statistical analysis, running regressions, and estimating cost of capital
• Providing in-depth research, summarizing documents, and communicating with project team members at all levels
  
• Adapting economic theory to apply to real life questions and problems

So, considering that I am studying Mathematics and Economics, it sounds like something right up my alley. Also, I like the fact that this is a small sized firm that pays a lot of attention to the professional development of their employees.

Now, this is the tough part: even though you are working towards an ideal opportunity, you have to recognize the environment around you (the weakened economy, increasing competition because of rising unemployment...) and be realistic about your expectations. There is a possibility that you might not get that ideal job right now, which is why you need to keep all of your other job search efforts active. Simply said—don't put all your eggs in one basket, because we are working with a very fragile basket at the moment.