Goldman Sachs' canceled information session indicative of changes in hiring trends

Wharton seniors hoping to get a full-time job with Goldman Sachs after they graduate may have missed an opportunity to familiarize themselves with the company.

Earlier this semester, Goldman Sachs canceled its full-time information session at Penn and reduced the number of interviews available to students.

According to Barbara Hewitt, senior associate director of Career Services, Goldman Sachs’ cancellation may be indicative of a trend in hiring by research, technology, banking, finance and investment management companies.

This trend, Hewitt explained, centers on the fact that many of these companies are increasingly hiring college graduates who have previously held an internship with the organization where they are applying, rather than those who have had no prior experience with the company.

While hiring from intern pools is not abnormal, “this year was a little bit more pronounced” than in previous years, Hewitt said. Companies are “moving in the direction of trying to hire from their summer internship pools.”

Companies are able to ensure that they have a “good fit” by hiring previous interns, she added.

A Wharton senior and former Goldman Sachs intern — who wished to remain anonymous due to company policy — said her experience has revealed a similar trend.

“All U.S. banks are really interested … in finding the right fit,” she said.

For Goldman Sachs, Penn is “one of the largest feeder schools for their analyst programs,” Hewitt said, adding that about 90 Penn students interned with Goldmach Sachs last summer.

Although the senior plans to work for a different company after she graduates, she said many of her former co-workers will remain at Goldman Sachs.

While the senior said she came into contact with students from many different schools during her internship, she noticed that Wharton was “one of the most well-represented schools.”

Due to the economy and job market, more interns are likely to stay with the company at which they worked full-time after graduation, Hewitt said. From her experience, seniors are less likely to shop around for jobs today as they were in 2006 and 2007, she added.

Regardless, the senior believes Wharton remains an important talent pool from which Goldman Sachs can pull.

“I think [Goldman Sachs] may have scaled back their recruiting events, [but] … Penn overall is still one of the most important schools to any investment banks’ recruitment,” she said.

The Wharton Undergraduate Finance Club hosted an informational visit from Goldman Sachs last month. According to Wharton junior Bridget Chaudhry, the group’s vice president of corporate relations, the event was “extremely well attended.” Chaudhry also believes that Goldman Sachs will continue to visit Penn in the future.

“I am confident that Penn will still be very well represented next year with full-time hires, and they will be back on campus to recruit for interns in the spring,” Hewitt added in an email.

Goldman Sachs canceling one information session is “not [a] huge issue,” Hewitt said, adding that Penn is “still going to have plenty of people on Wall Street.”

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.