Apollo skips on-cycle recruiting for its 2028 associate class, a second year in a row
Apollo told prospective 2028 associate candidates Thursday it will skip on-cycle recruiting this calendar year, as it did for the 2027 class. Its memo hopes more firms join the delay, after General Atlantic and others paused last year.
The Board Room · Leadership desk
Apollo will not recruit its 2028 associate class this calendar year, waiting until candidates are closer to one full year of experience. Its memo hopes other private equity firms delay too. Last year General Atlantic also paused after Apollo CEO Marc Rowan said the firm would delay.
- Who has to decide decision Apollo Will not recruit its 2028 associate class this calendar year, claim 1
- Who's exposed exposure Investment banking candidates Apollo will wait until they are closer to completing one full year of professional experience, claim 2
- Who has to decide decision Other private equity firms Apollo's memo hopes the delay convinces them to delay their process too, claim 3
- What it sets up precedent General Atlantic Also decided to pause last year, after Apollo CEO Marc Rowan said the firm would delay, claim 4
| Who | How | Kind | Claim |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apollo | Will not recruit its 2028 associate class this calendar year | decision | 1 |
| Investment banking candidates | Apollo will wait until they are closer to completing one full year of professional experience | exposure | 2 |
| Other private equity firms | Apollo's memo hopes the delay convinces them to delay their process too | decision | 3 |
| General Atlantic | Also decided to pause last year, after Apollo CEO Marc Rowan said the firm would delay | precedent | 4 |
What happened
- The memo, signed by David Sambur and Antoine Munfakh, says Apollo will wait until candidates are closer to completing one full year of professional experience.
- Apollo's stated aim is to convince other private equity firms to delay too, so candidates and employers can make better decisions.
- On-cycle recruiting means hiring private equity associates from investment banks a year or even two ahead, and it crept earlier after the pandemic until 2025.
- Business Insider reports that Apollo's 2027 pause set off a chain reaction that pushed associate recruiting well into this year.
Why it matters
- Who has to decide decision Every other large private equity firm now has to choose between opening its 2028 process on its usual timetable and holding off while Apollo waits.
- Who's exposed exposure Apollo carries the cost if rivals recruit early anyway: it would be the firm arriving after candidates already hold offers, with its memo's promise of continued contact as its only hedge.
- What it sets up precedent A second solo pause makes the delay a standing Apollo practice, one it has now explained to candidates in writing two years running.
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Apollo keeps meeting candidates while it waits. The memo says the firm will "continue to spend time with many of you, introduce you to our platform and share the diverse array of career opportunities available at Apollo" [11]. When formal recruiting does begin, the memo said, Apollo intends to give candidates "ample time to prepare, interview and consider their offers" [12].
The pause is a bet on what other firms do, and the memo says so. "We were encouraged that others in the industry took similar steps, and we hope more firms will do the same this year," the memo said [5]. Business Insider's report rests on Apollo's email, and it does not identify another firm that has said it will hold off on the 2028 class [13]. If a rival recruits early anyway, Apollo is the firm that arrives after candidates have offers in hand. Last year Apollo moved without knowing who would follow. This year it can point to General Atlantic and others that paused after CEO Marc Rowan said the firm would delay [4].
JPMorgan is the other explanation for last year's slowdown. After rumblings that recruiting could start before some students had graduated, the bank adopted a policy that incoming analysts could be terminated for accepting future-dated private equity offers [10]. Business Insider notes that its CEO, Jamie Dimon, has been a big critic of the process and has called it "unethical" [9]. In that account Apollo's pause came after the JPMorgan policy [6]. We think the two worked together. The penalty raised the cost to candidates of signing early, and Apollo's pause took a private equity giant out of the early market [1].
The timing question reaches other firms now, while candidates who began banking over the summer are still short of a full year of experience [2]. A firm that opens its 2028 process early undoes a delay that, by Business Insider's account, carried well into this year [6]. A firm that waits ties its own calendar to Apollo's.
What to watch
- Whether any firm besides Apollo says publicly that it will hold its 2028 associate process, and whether General Atlantic repeats its pause.
- Whether JPMorgan or other banks restate or enforce limits on analysts accepting future-dated private equity offers.
- When Apollo sets a start date for formal 2028 recruiting, which the memo ties to candidates nearing one full year of experience.
Clarity's read
What the record supports and how the coverage leans. The claims behind it follow.
Reality
- Evidence75
- Adoption
- Not scored
- Hype gap+10
- Incentives
- Not scored
- Confidence72
Claim ledger
Ranked by verification strength, evidence, and original report placement.
- [1]
Apollo, the private equity giant, told prospective candidates on Thursday afternoon that it will not recruit its 2028 associate class this calendar year, according to an email obtained by Business Insider.
- [2]
The memo, signed by David Sambur, co-head of Private Equity, and Antoine G. Munfakh, deputy global head of Private Equity, says the firm will wait until candidates who started their investment banking careers over the summer are "closer to completing one full year of professional experience."
- [3]
The memo says the hope is that the delay will convince others in private equity to delay their process so that candidates and employers can make "better decisions."
- [4]
Last year, after Apollo CEO Marc Rowan said the firm would delay on-cycle recruiting, others such as General Atlantic also decided to pause.
- [5]
"We were encouraged that others in the industry took similar steps, and we hope more firms will do the same this year," the memo said.
- [6]
Apollo then paused its on-cycle recruiting for 2027 associates, setting off a chain reaction that delayed associate recruiting well into this year.
- [7]
The memo says Apollo wrote to prospective candidates for its Associate Class of 2027 last June to explain why it would be delaying its recruiting process.
- [8]
On-cycle recruiting is the controversial process of recruiting private equity associates from investment banks a year or even two in advance, and it moved earlier and earlier after the pandemic, up until 2025.
- [9]
JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon has been a big critic of on-cycle recruiting, calling it "unethical."
- [10]
After rumblings that on-cycle recruiting could take place before some students even graduated from college last year, JPMorgan rolled out a policy that incoming analysts could be terminated for accepting future-dated private equity offers.
- [11]
The memo says: "In the meantime, we will continue to spend time with many of you, introduce you to our platform and share the diverse array of career opportunities available at Apollo."
- [12]
The memo says that when Apollo's formal recruiting process begins, it intends to approach it thoughtfully and give candidates "ample time to prepare, interview and consider their offers."
- [13]
Business Insider wrote that questions had swirled over whether on-cycle recruiting would start early again for the 2028 class, and that with this move Apollo appears to be trying to slow the recruiting timeline across the industry again.
Sources
2 independent publishers whose own reporting we read for this story.
- businessinsider.comApollo is delaying its junior talent recruiting cycle again — pushing the industry to abandon its chaotic ritual
1 article · October 15, 2026
- news.bgov.comApollo Delays Recruiting Banks’ Newest Trainees for Second Year
1 article · October 15, 2026
Topics and entities
Topics
- Private equity recruiting
- On-cycle recruiting