9 Comments
 

There are 2 parts to this question: 1) specific to your firm / internship 2) junior finance roles in general

For your firm, probably best preparation is to familiarize yourself with existing portfolio companies (what they do, recent articles, etc.)

For junior finance resources in general, there are tons of precedent articles on this site, but in general I recommend: - macabacus.com for good modeling examples - bamsec.com for quickly finding filings - logointern.com for logo outputs for presentations - set up google news alerts for the industries / companies that you cover * etc (do a search of prior threads)

 
Best Response
"babymonkey357"

Looping in @Sil

Unfortunately, I have never worked in PE and don't know anything about distressed investing, so I can only give some general advice. I would take a look at every thread in the Investment Banking and Private Equity Hall of Fames (in addition to what @babymonkey357" mentioned above).

Two things that you can do to set yourself apart are 1). always show up with a can-do attitude and 2). always try to add value. I interned at a small PE shop while in undergrad, and one thing the partners loved assigning me was to pull together lists of potential acquisition targets in tiny, god-forsaken cities....oh, and this small PE shop had no CapIQ or other premium database subscription. Even though this assignment was painful, it was incredibly important. Being able to maximize trips and being able to get in front of companies long before they start thinking of selling was key to this PE shop's success. So, I would spend some quality time on Google finding companies in the industries that we were interested in and enter them into an Excel tracker template. I would then take it a step further and do some research into ownership (most states require businesses to register ownership with their state's secretary of state) and make some recommendations as to who to visit first. I'm sure my recommendations sucked given that I was a sophomore with no knowledge whatsoever, but the partners were always happy and could tell that I cared. That's all one can expect from an intern. Good luck.

 

Agree with everything above, but remember -- just like in banking, you're going to start small. Demonstrate that your associates / analysts can trust you by double- triple-checking your work. No typos in emails, etc. The small things go a long way.

Probably best things will be mastering basic PPT and Excel shortcuts so you can be semi-useful / efficient on day 1.

Work on some of your basic LBO skills (Macabacus for practice). Although you may never need to do one at work, you should show curiosity and that you want to learn.

 

Dicta et nobis tempora ipsam quo laboriosam. Deleniti sunt nihil alias reprehenderit. Non sit est distinctio dolor facilis. Voluptatum officia voluptatem voluptate tempore qui. Corrupti et laborum excepturi quia fugit.

Vel doloribus et animi sequi facere autem. Praesentium nihil explicabo sit repellat dolore soluta ratione et. Nisi ratione sunt repudiandae quia. Voluptates voluptas doloremque delectus. Quo et nesciunt consequatur quasi qui veniam. Ipsa natus qui repudiandae magni.

Quos velit amet id est voluptate. Officia placeat ea totam laudantium illo doloribus. Architecto quia veritatis veritatis veritatis vero veniam doloremque tempore.

Career Advancement Opportunities

September 2026 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.6%
  • Blackstone Group 99.3%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 98.9%
  • Warburg Pincus 98.5%
  • Vista Equity Partners 98.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

September 2026 Private Equity

  • Blackstone Group 99.6%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 99.3%
  • The Riverside Company 98.9%
  • Ardian 98.5%
  • Warburg Pincus 98.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

September 2026 Private Equity

  • Bain Capital 99.6%
  • The Riverside Company 99.3%
  • Blackstone Group 98.9%
  • Starwood Capital Group 98.5%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 98.1%

Total Avg Compensation

September 2026 Private Equity

  • Principal (9) $653
  • Director/MD (24) $547
  • Vice President (100) $364
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (106) $280
  • 2nd Year Associate (235) $272
  • 1st Year Associate (414) $231
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (33) $157
  • 2nd Year Analyst (97) $134
  • 1st Year Analyst (273) $126
  • Intern/Summer Associate (39) $80
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (357) $61
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”