Early every weekday morning, hundreds of twentysomething financial worker bees load onto the subways of New York and head for work. Many of them will not get home until late in the evening, perhaps even the next day. Maybe three or four days every week are spent on the road.

After seven years in the investment business and several promotions later, Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette's Curtis Dickinson doesn't quite put in the hours he used to, nor does he travel as much.

Mr. Dickinson takes the superlative "ambitious Bermudian'' to a new level. At only 35, he is now the senior vice-president of DLJ's Global Media and Communications Group. The Berkeley Institute graduate is also the highest-ranking black employee in the company's New York office and second nationally. Mr. Dickinson left Bermuda recently after speaking at the graduation dinner of his alma mater. In an interview with The Royal Gazette , he explained his profession and gave advice to young Bermudians wishing to pursue a similar career path.

After graduating from Berkeley, Mr. Dickinson attended Morehouse College in Atlanta, continuing on to a management training programme at Equitable Life Assurance Society in America. In 1991, Mr. Dickinson began his MBA at Columbia University's business school.

He admitted he had never even heard of investment banking in high school.

"In college I knew nothing about it but suddenly in business school the lights went off,'' he said.

"I like where I work. When I decided I would do investment banking I knew it would be difficult work with long hours, so it was important for me to have people that I enjoyed, to work with.

"I think I have stayed with the firm because it has been very supportive of my efforts. I rose quickly in the firm.'' Mr. Dickinson's area of DLJ deals with financing new telecommunications companies.

"We deal companies in their early stages, small to medium with a value in the market of anything from half a million to $1 billion.

"I'm not a broker. I interface directly with companies doing the preparatory work crafting the story and organising the legal side of their business. I then can help the sales force who are the brokers.

"It's all about packaging and marketing to get the best execution for the client so that they can secure the best price on the market and gain the broadest possible distribution.'' `No such thing as a free ride' Putting into perspective the commonly held image that investment bankers lead a luxurious and glamorous lifestyle, Mr. Dickinson said it comes through hard work.

And he said Bermudians wishing to enter the field would have to remember that there was "no such thing as a free ride'' and that it takes simple hard work to succeed in the business world.

Pointing out that he used to work almost 24 hours a day, he said that he was always available for his clients and the firm. And while he has been happily married to his high school sweetheart Lisa for nine years, he noted the sacrifices he's made in order to achieve his success.

"We do not have any children because of the lifestyle I lead and my views that as a parent I would have to be available for them,'' he said.

"There have been several times that my wife and I have had to cancel planned vacations because something has come up with work,'' he added.

But the payoff for the time spent working is high. Mr. Dickinson said that he earns six figures.

"Pay is linked to performance,'' he said, "both of the firm as of the individual, so if the firm does well you get a bonus and if you do well you get a higher bonus.'' According to Mr. Dickinson, managing directors take home between $3 and $5 million a year. Trainee investment analysts, who are lowest on the investment banker totem pole, earn about $40,000 and can usually expect a further $40,000 as a bonus.

"In order to be successful, you've got to be prepared to work,'' he said.

"(Being an investment analyst) is a rite of passage that everyone goes through. You're also learning, and if you knew how to do everything the first time around, it wouldn't take you so long to do it.'' "There's a trade-off involved,'' he said.

"There are the hours, but then you're going to get a lot of money and you have the pick of business schools to go to.'' Contrary to popular perception, not all graduates entering formidable Wall Street investment banks have studied business or finance at the undergraduate level.

Mr. Dickinson said that only half of DLJ's recruited trainees had majored in business, while the remaining half had either studied engineering or liberal arts subjects.

"This isn't rocket science,'' he said.

"You just need to be smart and committed. If someone is relatively intelligent and has a willingness to work hard, they can learn how to do this.'' He said that while grades are important, a personality is just as essential.

"The interview is very important,'' he said.

"The most important characteristic recruiters are looking for is enthusiasm for the opportunity and good communication skills. We have something called the airplane test. We travel a lot, and if we're stranded in an airport, will we be able to hold a conversation with this person?'' "My job involves a lot of client socialising, and we don't spend the whole time talking about financial statements. You need to know what is going on in the world. Some of the stuff you study in high school may not seem relevant, but when you're talking with people, they might make reference to a book that you should have read. If you don't know what they're talking about, you look like an idiot.'' Mr. Dickinson said that business school was where many trainees ended up after their brief stints on Wall Street.

"An MBA is very important for long-term career prospects and most firms require them,'' he said.

"The choice of business school is important. The better business schools attract the best students. Recruiters go to the places where they know they can get the smartest students.'' "However, I've had friends who didn't go to one of the top ten schools and who became successful investment bankers.'' Mr. Dickinson is also director of minority recruiting for DLJ and heads up the firm's effort to target African Americans and others who may not be aware of the career prospects on Wall Street. "We don't change the requirements for minorities, we just try to be active in the recruiting of people. Many minorities don't know of the opportunities that are available to them on Wall Street.'' Planning to retire "well before 65'' Mr. Dickinson said he would like to spend some time teaching.

"The experience I have is unique and I think it is incumbent on people like me to present the industry to other children,'' he said.

In the fast lane: Curtis Dickinson