Quote :

"also i get one in jun for hitting 4yrs of Active Duty."

should be picking up LT soon, then, which is a gigantic raise!

12/9/2009 1:04:00 AM

I would have to have a job in order to get a raise or bonus. On the same token, I'm up for a 1000% raise just because I feel like it.

12/9/2009 2:50:46 AM

I'm still in school and my job is PT, but my boss gave everyone a card that lets us take a day off work no questions asked. Except in order to use it we have to wait till Feb 1st. And we have to plan it two weeks in advance.

We can already take a day off if we request it two weeks in advance.

I'm about to yell at her.

12/9/2009 6:43:03 AM

i got a $500 cash bonus!

12/9/2009 6:57:48 AM

Quote :

""Wall St loves engineers! They are commonly hired in modeling, analysis, and even trading""

It's true - its mostly a matter of having an "in". I came up to NYC from Raleigh to work for Morgan Stanley for 2 years. I jumped ship at the very beginning of the credit crisis but I'm still in Financial Services. I'll probably be heading to a Hedge Fund or boutique IB in a couple of years, its just a matter of building up your network and reputations. Clearly something that's a lot easier with that Ivy League parchment but something that's not too hard to do if you have patience and can prove yourself.

The biggest part about getting "in" on Wall St. is having great people skills. It's not a place you can make it if you're a typical introverted or socially awkward engineer. Particularly if you don't have the pedigree.

[Edited on December 9, 2009 at 7:18 AM. Reason : uhm yeah]

12/9/2009 7:16:01 AM

A bonus? That's laughable.
A raise? No one gets one here... ever. Well I exaggerate. There's been one 3% raise in 4 years. I'm certain no one will be getting a raise in the next year either, so that will be 3% in 5 years. That's not laughable.

I sure can pick 'em. I figure minimum wage will catch up and force these guys hands someday.

12/9/2009 7:41:23 AM

Last year we got a sizable bonus, this year may be a little smaller, but better than nothing amirite?

12/9/2009 9:05:41 AM

Quote :

"It's true - its mostly a matter of having an "in"."

I absolutely agree scud. That has been the hardest part for me so far in trying to get into Wall St. Are you around this area now or still in NYC? Id love to ask you questions if you have the time.

Perlith its pretty common for engineers to head to Wall St. A simple google search will provide a ton of articles on the desire of IBs to hire engineers with analysis and quantitative skills, but like scud mentioned above, its not the easiest position to get hired for without really good networking and someone who can vouch for your skills.

12/9/2009 9:21:29 AM

Nice bonus in September at year end ... Raises are a little more tough to come by right now.

Glad to have a job, still get to work 25k in overtime on saturdays, and benefits have not been totally wiped out, although they are changing for the worse.

12/9/2009 9:53:42 AM

Anyone interested in the investment banking world should read: http://www.leveragedsellout.com/

It is a pretty humorous satire about the world of high finance.

I think I saw somewhere in there that even though entry level workers get bonuses >$100k they work so many hours (100 hr/ week) that their hourly rate is pretty close to a typical McDonalds employee.

12/9/2009 10:11:39 AM

Getting into investment banking is about knowing the right people, and sometimes getting lucky. For example, Ive worked at a inv banking firm for two years and have a degree from NCSU in pol science and a minor in accounting. Not to mention i was living in a different state and they flew me up for an interview. So with that said, other than the fact that I interview really well, I was lucky.

For those thinking of getting into investment banking, think long and hard about the hours you want to work. A workday of 8-8 is not uncommon, and sometimes weekends. I like to work out, so i get up at 530am to gym from 6-7, to be at work at 8. Then staying there till 7-8pm at night makes for a very long day and can get old fast. I'm not in NY, but I hear its even worse up there, working 8am to midnight on a saturday it not out of the ordinary. You are compensated well, especially in NY, but you sacrifice much of your free time.

12/9/2009 11:21:33 AM

^ what part of investment banking do you work in with a poly sci/acct degree? Marketing/sales? A boutique firm or big bank?

If you dont mind me asking

[Edited on December 9, 2009 at 11:48 AM. Reason : a]

12/9/2009 11:45:01 AM

^^^i doubt a typical mcdonald's employee is getting ~20 bucks an hour (100,00/5200 work hours in a year if you do 100 hours per week). i know you are just repeating what you heard though...

and thats just talking about a bonus, not taking into account their salary as well

[Edited on December 9, 2009 at 11:57 AM. Reason : ]

12/9/2009 11:56:19 AM

i missed christmas bonuses at my job because ive only been there 5 months, even though i got a promotion within those 5 months, i cant get a salary adjustment or a bonus because they dont touch salaries until after 6 months.

lame.

ive been promised a re-look around march/april though

12/9/2009 12:33:32 PM

Quote :

"I think I saw somewhere in there that even though entry level workers get bonuses >$100k they work so many hours (100 hr/ week) that their hourly rate is pretty close to a typical McDonalds employee."

if that was in there then they would have had to have been exaggerating as you couldn't even force the numbers to come close no matter how hard you manipulated the numbers. Even working 100hrs/wk, they would have to only be making $40,000 total (not counting any bonus, and assuming they work 100hrs every week for 52 weeks) to come close to a similar $/hr wage as a McD's employee. The bonus alone, without looking at salary would be more than 2x an avg McD's wage like ^^ stated.

12/9/2009 12:42:04 PM

everyone in my company gets a bonus in March, which is 15-25% of your yearly salary (depending on position). i get a 15% bonus.

my yearly review is in September and this past September i got 3.5% - and they've already announced that they fully intend on paying our bonuses on-time and in full come March.

12/9/2009 12:51:59 PM

we got em last year and will get em this year

12/9/2009 12:54:42 PM

Quote :

"I would assume the girl at GS is very book smart and went to a good school."

right on both accounts. Apparently, she also "interviewed well", i.e. she's bubbly and hot.

12/9/2009 1:16:37 PM

10% raise and about $1k bonus.

12/9/2009 1:18:51 PM

Here is the article I was talking about: http://www.mergersandinquisitions.com/investment-banking-salaries-mcdonalds/

12/9/2009 1:27:27 PM

That article is pretty far off from what you were originally stating

In order to get to the value they used to compare to McD's wage, they assumed the employee worked 140 hours a week for 52 weeks straight. That is 20 hours a day, every day, for a year straight. That is a ridiculous, nearly physical impossible hypothetical number. They also assumed a bonus of $0, and what you had stated, was even including "bonuses >$100k...." They also were using US $ for the salaries and Australian $s for McD's wages which don't translate the same. If you simply convert the McD's wages back to US $ it defeats his claim, regardless of the fact that the hours/wk he used are nearly impossible.

I will however state that I understand the spirit of his article, even if the comparisons he used were bogus. I would NEVER enjoy that kind of environment. Working 90-100 hours a week for months at a time? I'm willing to put in the OT when needed, but I would MUCH MUCH MUCH rather make less money and have more time to enjoy it.

[Edited on December 9, 2009 at 1:51 PM. Reason : ]

12/9/2009 1:50:40 PM

It is alot of work initially but the payoff is well worth it in the future. Once you move up to portfolio manager and onwards the amount of work is far less (though the decisions you make become way more important), but you also make more money. Its a high risk/high reward career.

12/9/2009 1:57:59 PM

Oh I understand that is how people look at it. Regardless its not a lifestyle I am interested in. But you see that going on in lots of careers/industries. In many, that lifestyle is kept up for a pretty long period of time, or even when the hrs/week come down, they are still putting in 70-80 hrs a week.

12/9/2009 2:08:14 PM

While I doubt I'm getting any kind of bonus or raise, I'm finally being put on as a 'permanent' employee, meaning I'm getting health insurance. Woohoo!

12/9/2009 2:12:25 PM

I'm getting a raise at the first of the year, does that count?

12/9/2009 2:30:28 PM

sure my paycheck on christmas will have a bonus.

If you consider 20 hrs of overtime a bonus.

12/9/2009 2:41:36 PM

State Employee= No raise or bonus. Used to get a Gift Certificate for $50 but that disappeared last year.
Part-time job = No raise in 3.5 years, but usually get $50-$100 at the Christmas party. Can't complain about that.

12/9/2009 3:17:17 PM

[^ what part of investment banking do you work in with a poly sci/acct degree? Marketing/sales? A boutique firm or big bank?

If you dont mind me asking]


I work in M&A advisory of financial institutions, and capital raises. I do financial modeling, market analysis, etc. I worked in corporate finance as a financial analyst before I-banking though, so I had some experience in accounting/financial modeling, which is basically all it is. I work for a ~120 person firm, but we have full trade desk, etc.

If your starting out with little experience and not a stellar resume, a boutique firm is your best bet. NY is going to require successful i bank track record or great resume (school, grades, internship, etc)

12/9/2009 3:49:32 PM

I expect a small bonus but I'm only 50/50 on a small raise this year. Got a small bonus last year but didn't get any raise...

12/9/2009 4:13:51 PM

this thread makes me depressed that i won't even see a salary for another two years, much less bonuses or raises

and does anyone work in the health field? how do bonuses work there?

12/9/2009 4:29:38 PM

I'm expecting anther 2-3% raise and 3% bonus, but those won't come til like April-May...

does my 6 week paid Paternity leave count as a bonus though? i'm looking forward to that next year.

12/9/2009 4:59:23 PM

I don't want to start a new thread:

Suppose there is clear evidence that you were responsible for bringing in X amount of incremental profit for the company, what is a reasonable percent of X to expect as a raise/bonus? ( supposing X >> your salary)

12/11/2009 6:24:43 PM

$3,500 raise starting jan 1

12/12/2009 10:59:21 AM

My company is telling it's employees that times are tough, blah blah, BUT they are handing out bonuses and raises like it's candy (to managers and directors of course).

AMERICA FUCK YEAH.

[Edited on December 12, 2009 at 11:08 AM. Reason : d]

12/12/2009 11:07:23 AM

I clean fish tanks, hopefully some of my clients feel nice enough to tip me.
I am getting a raise soon though

12/12/2009 6:52:50 PM

we usually don't get Christmas bonuses

but we do get annual raises in February

12/12/2009 7:05:57 PM

0% Raise (boo)
2% gross bonus (gladly take it, less than thrilling)

12/12/2009 10:26:19 PM

turns out we got a $25 gift card to walmart with today's pay stub afterall. its the thought that counts i suppose.

12/15/2009 11:00:17 PM

Quote :

"Whats a bonus? (Hooray working for state gov't)"

[Edited on December 16, 2009 at 12:07 AM. Reason : actually they took money from me this year with the furlough. At least I have a job...]

12/16/2009 12:06:44 AM

well they dug up some money and we did end up getting bonuses at the party last weekend, although smaller than in the past but yay!! i am thrilled to get anything

12/16/2009 12:58:33 AM

I work for the federal government and we usually get a cost of living increase at the beginning of the year, which is typically between 2-3%.

12/16/2009 7:16:48 AM

I got a bonus this year of $250 dollars That might not seem like a lot; however, we laid off 20% of people in June and I was pleasantly surprised. My review is in Jan. and am due for a raise. I guess I will have to see if I actually get it.

12/16/2009 7:51:43 AM

I just found out yesterday I'm getting a bonus of $1500 on Friday

12/16/2009 11:17:40 AM

no bonus

haven't heard about raises yet, but there should be one at the beginning of next year

12/16/2009 12:19:07 PM

Self employed, so no.

12/16/2009 12:22:13 PM

No bonus, but any bonuses we receive generally aren't tied to year-end financials since I'm project based. If a bonus comes, its generally upon project closeout. But paid overtime for a job I enjoy doing is good enough for me!

Hoping raises go through as planned early next year though.

12/16/2009 1:10:50 PM

been waiting on a bonus from the 3rd quarter for a patent issue.

methinks it wont get processed till next year however, for ledger reasons.

we'll find out about our annual bonuses and raises in february.

i'm hopin for a promotion around the same time, and grade level effects bonus distrobution

fingers crossed

12/16/2009 1:17:53 PM

Federal Civilian getting 2% cost of living increase, gov't doesn't issue bonuses but Obama is giving us 4 hours of paid leave on Christmas Eve LOL

12/16/2009 1:47:01 PM

45k bonus

12/16/2009 2:45:02 PM

haha I wish

12/16/2009 2:48:23 PM