My Review of BreakingIntoWallStreet
Sometime ago I bought the BIWS Financial Modeling Fundamentals course. I didn't really look at it until school ended (didn't have time during exam weeks/end of semester). I already completed many of the lessons and I thought I would give a brief review of the course.
The course is divided into many topics, such as basic accounting, LBO models, Valuation, Mergers models...etc etc. Each topic has many different lessons, each covering an aspect of the topic. A typical lesson consists of a video, some sort of reference material and excel sheets.
What I really like:
- Brian takes time to explain the things he does. Rather than saying things like "copy this into the cell here", he would actually explain why he was doing so & the concept behind it.
- He frequently uses analogies to explain the financial concepts, which I find very helpful.
- You can access the videos online for life and you can download the videos onto your own hard drive.
- Below every video, you can ask questions and, judging by the previous questions, the BIWS team responds very quickly and with great detail.
- At the end of every topic, Brian dedicates one lesson (one video) on possible interview questions and how you should tackle them.
- I think they lowered their price. When I first become aware of BIWS, the fundamentals course was $197. Now it's just $97.
Somethings to be aware of:
- I feel like this course is designed for someone who has at least SOME financial knowledge. Brian does go through basic accounting (e.g. what is an accounts receivable) in the beginning, but I think it's a lot easier if you actually took some basic accounting courses in school. Thus, if you are a complete noob, read some accounting stuff before you take the course.
- Someone mentioned before that Brian incorporates the Excel course into the modeling course. However, I don't think that's the case. The Excel course is a separate course that you must purchase.
It's only been a couple of weeks since I bought this course. I can safely say that I did indeed learn quite a bit. I already knew a lot of the basic stuff so perhaps that's why the course was easier for me. I haven't watched the mergers/LBO stuff yet, which I assume would be much harder.





Thanks for the review - I
Thanks for the review - I have been looking into the different programs myself.
Good review thanks!
Good review thanks!
Where did you find it for
Where did you find it for $97? On their website it says its going for $197.
SmokeyG: Where did you find
Where did you find it for $97? On their website it says its going for $197.
I bought the interview guide as well, and as a a result I go a "discounted pricing". The advanced modeling course shows up on my screen as $197, whereas the regular website shows it as $247.
I think that's how it works. If it's not, feel free to correct me.
I haven't finished the
I haven't finished the advanced course yet but I'm not a huge fan of the beginners one. Maybe it's because I already work in capital markets, so have a good grasp of concepts, but I get a little annoyed by all the analogies which in my opinion waste time and even confuse the point he's trying to illuminate (e.g. the costs of buying a house as a way of explaining EV). Also, I don't think he goes into any depth on why he uses some of the numbers he does (amortization of intangibles in M&A, for example).
Was thinking about getting Wall Street Prep's bankruptcy modelling course.