Couple of questions

Hey guys,

Long, long, LONG time lurker first time poster.

A little bit about myself: I went to a somewhat target school (it's well known in the northeast) and I double majored in accounting and finance (graduated May 2010,). I'm looking to get a job in IB.

My school didn't have a strong emphasis on valuation or modeling, infact I wasn't offered a single lesson in excel. Although my working knowledge of accounting and finance is decent, I feel as though I am behind my peers and I woudln't do well if I got a interview or job in banking.

About a year ago I bought the book Investment Banking: Valuation, Leveraged Buyouts, and Mergers & Acquisitions by Rosenbaum and Pearl. http://www.Amazon.com/Investment-Banking-Valuation-Leveraged-Acquisitions/dp/0470442204/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1294009744&sr=8-1

I’ve heard a lot of great things and read great reviews about this book as it teaches you the fundamentals and is a great place to start. I’ve also heard great things about BIWS premium course and WSO’s technical and behavioral interviews guide.

I was wondering if the BIWS course was a good choice or if there are better resources that I could spend my money on. I mainly want to buy the BIWS course and use the Pearl book to learn modeling and valuation AND EXCEL (I seriously don't know any excel whatsoever). Also, how long does it take to complete BIWS course?

My plan is to finish the IB book, then complete the BIWS course and buy the WSO guides when I need to study for rounds. I’ve been pretty unlucky getting any interviews at places that I’ve applied so far but I have a few things in the mix (I’ll probably be posting a resume to be critiqued shortly).

I was hoping a few people here might comment on some of the things that I listed.

Thanks! :D

4 Comments
 
Best Response

I personally used WSP to learn modeling (as my target didn't offer modeling courses either). WSP was great in the sense that it offered step by step guidance on modeling (operating model, DCF, LBO, and etc.). Though I thought some of the models could be slimmed down a little.

I've never used the modeling courses for BIWS, but had the interview guide which I thought was fantastic! I can imagine the courses are of similar quality.

As for the banking book, it's a good background reading, but you can't really build and complete understand the ins and outs of modeling from it.

I would definitely recommend a combo of WSP / BIWS + the book.

 

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