What It's Really Like To Do Senior Financial Analysis After College in The San Francisco Bay Area

Having a background in Accounting or Finance (or both) from college helps out a lot when looking for a Finance role. I was a Business Major with an Accounting concentration from Cal Poly. I knew I didn't want to be in Accounting my whole life so I went toward the direction of Finance. I was able to utilize contacts to get an interview at a Wealth Management Firm. The interview process is intense but one common thing I noticed about everyone who got a job similar to mine was that they were really personable. It doesn't matter what you are on paper if you can't look at someone in the eye across the table from you and have a good conversation. Those are the people they remember and hire. After being in Wealth Management for awhile I got word of a position that was open for a Financial Analyst through a friend. I have run into so many people that are where they are because they are a friend of a friend or some other coincidence. That's the most important thing to leverage. Don't be afraid to reach out to friends, fraternity brothers (or sorority sisters), family, etc to ask about their company and see if they can refer you to a position if you apply to it.

Living in San Jose (South Bay) is definitely a change from say San Diego or Orange County. San Jose is located approximately 50 minutes south of San Francisco. The nightlife isn't as great and it's not the best demographic. The weather is great though and there is plenty of outdoor activities really close to where we are. It's weird, when you cross the bridge from San Francisco to South Bay, the weather gets exponentially better: it's clear, sunny and warm most of the year. San Jose is also a lot closer to many of the larger technology companies. Tons of programmers and engineers make up the vast majority of the population here.