In this week of ISM I began my search for professionals to interview and finalized my idea for what I am studying this year. I have faced some unique challenges in my search for a mentor that have to do with the topic I am studying, which may lead my 'official' topic of study to not be set in stone.
One of the best ways to connect with professionals is through LinkedIn. In ISM, many students use LinkedIn to connect with professionals and obtain interviews. However, LinkedIn has been somewhat faulty for me. Because LinkedIn's connection system works based on 1st, 2nd, and 3rd connections to people who you are connected with, I am unable to reach many professionals in my area. When I look to search for people in hedge funds the majority of the people appear as "LinkedIn member" and I am unable to connect with them. This challenge has led me to search for interviews through other means. I have reached out to a friend of my brother who interned at a hedge fund during the summer and asked him if he could refer me to anyone in the company and ask if they would be willing to be interviewed. He told me he would make some calls, and I am currently awaiting a further response. Additionally, I have reached out to two ISM alumni and I am currently awaiting response to see if I can interview them.
My hope is that I will be able to get an interview through any of the people who I have contacted. If I am unable to get an interview, I will have to broaden my topic and continue my search. Since finance is a large field with plenty of subsets, I am sure that I would be able to find an area that I find equally interesting as hedge funds. Although it is not ideal, it is a challenge that I will take on head first. I see it as another learning opportunity, and a chance to learn even more about the field as a whole. By the end of the week I hope to have gotten replies from everyone I've reached out to as well as having interviews scheduled with them. I also hope to have submitted a finalized idea for my original work and gotten approval from Coach Goff to begin working on it.