Students stay positive despite crashing market

A mortgage crisis, the demise of some historic financial institutions and a recent stock market tumble have forced some in the Kelley School of Business to reevaluate their internship and job prospects.

But Kelley leaders say they have not yet experienced any major effects of Wall Street’s troubles.

“We’re cautiously optimistic at this point,” said Susie Clarke, director of undergraduate career services.

In the past few days, investment bank Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy; financial management firm Merrill Lynch sold itself to Bank of America, and the government spent $85 billion to bail out insurance giant AIG.

But Clarke said the school has not seen any ripples from these events, which shook up the stock market.

She attributed it to the strong relationship the University has with companies looking for interns and hires.

Sophomore Garrett Schmidt said he thinks internships and jobs will be hard to get for finance and accounting majors because the few investment banking internships and jobs are given out at schools such as Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania.

“I think I can get one, it’s just a matter of getting a prestigious one,” he said.
He said he’s casually looking for an internship in the investment management field. 

Sophomore Katie Lashley said she’s nervous about finding an internship this summer. Because so many companies are in trouble, they might not have the time and resources to find interns, she said.

She said because she’s a marketing major, she’s probably not as affected as a finance or accounting major.

Those in charge of helping students find internships and jobs are holding out hope.
Clarke said the only time there was a real decrease in hires was during the dot-com bust.

Since Enron’s accounting scandal was publicized in 2001, the government increased accounting standards, she said, creating a need for more accountants. When Bear Stearns collapsed earlier this year, she said alumni working there were able to either find jobs at J.P. Morgan, the company who bought Bear Stearns, or find a job elsewhere.

“They’ve been successful in landing their feet in other organizations,” she said.

Clarke said there might be a need for more risk analysts or other related positions.
Undergraduates might have an easier time finding jobs than MBA students because their lack of experience means companies can pay them less, Clarke said.

While Clarke always urges students to have a backup plan, it’s more important in the current climate, she said. There’s still a lot of opportunity, and companies will probably still hire interns, she said, but they might send out fewer offers than in past years.

So far no companies have canceled appearances at upcoming career fairs and interview sessions, Clarke said.

“I keep expecting to hear about a cancel,” she said, “and I haven’t heard any.”