Anyone familiar with AnEx Program

I am a Chinese candidate for AnEx ( Analyst Exchange) Program. I know this program is not the only way to learn financial modeling and the internship firm is not very reputable. The attractiveness is the opportunity to work in a English speaking and international environment.

Does anyone have experienced this program and can share me something about the advance it can provide? Does the program really worth the money we paid? Can it really help us in future job seeking, if so, how? Since I want to find a job in HK, anyone has a similar experience will be of great help.

Thanks a lot !

 

I would highly suggest not to use your real name and your photo, just for your privacy concern. I know the founder of AnEx, Paul pretty well. The training is going to help you with the interview process "a lot". But $3,000 just for that, I am not really sure. The only good thing is that you get to do live deals with smaller firms who signed up for this program and Paul is well connected in New York Banking industry (previously worked at Morgan Stanley); this all could help you to get a job in New York City. Outside of New York City, I am not really sure about that. Good luck. If you have nothing better to do for the summer and have some cash to burn, I think it should be all right.

"I am the hero of the story. I don't need to be saved."
 

I am also thinking about this program, just talked to the manager over the phone, it sounds like a great plan, but I really want to make a informed decision because of the cost, and has anyone taken the program and benefited from it? really need to make the decision, so any advice is welcome, thank you.

Break Through
 

Honestly, I don't know all the ins and outs of your situation but paying $5k for the workshop is not worth it. Do a Fin Modeling self-study program like BIWS, Training the Street, or Wall Street Prep... you can get one of these for about $300-400 and learn everything that bankers will expect you to know in an interview... you can still put the experience on your resume and bankers aren't going to make a distinction between who paid $5k and who paid $300... it's just a check in the "does he have interest/some degree of experience with the type of modeling we need him to do" box...

 

Thanks a lot for the comment, right now I am taking the financial modeling course from BIWS, but my concern is that I do not have any direct working experience in finance, and I have already been out of school (a non-target) for two years and working as a business analyst. I am not sure what is my chance of making the transit into finance.

Break Through
 

don't do it.. 5 grand is a lot to spend on training with no guarantees of any sort. You would be better of going to an MSF or MBA program to make the transition to IB. If that is truly what you want to do. I did the program back in 2007 and it was one of the worst decisions. I would do BIWS, and try regional boutiques or consider going back to school, AnEx is not worth it.

 
Best Response
bkwr83:
don't do it.. 5 grand is a lot to spend on training with no guarantees of any sort. You would be better of going to an MSF or MBA program to make the transition to IB. If that is truly what you want to do. I did the program back in 2007 and it was one of the worst decisions. I would do BIWS, and try regional boutiques or consider going back to school, AnEx is not worth it.

bkwr83, the program did not exist in 2007 so are you sure? There was only training back then - is that what you're referring to? Back then there was no actual work on deals which can help boost a resume if you don't have the alternative to get a job at a boutique, etc. I also think BIWS is the best self-training option out there, but in my opinion they aren't really comparable. BIWS (or other self-study programs) don't give you the benefit of building out the experience part of your resume with actual transactions. It IS a significant investment though and definitely not for everyone, so I encourage you to do plenty of research and ask the guys over at Analyst Exchange detailed questions about what type of work you'd be doing before committing (and/or asking for references from former students might also be a good way to assess if the program would be right for you).

Either way, good luck. Patrick

 

Thanks a lot for the information, it helps, actually I am also doubting the worthiness of the program. how do you think about the internship part? is it a good experience to put on resume?

Break Through
 

@Pat

yeah there was no internship/work related training, just the financial training program. While I can see the benefit of the work experience the price is steep, especially given that there is no real formal process for you to get placement, etc. Most kids that are going through recruiting have taken some sort of financial modeling prep course and I assume would dilute the value of AnEx in terms of a competitive edge. I could be wrong but just speaking from my own experience and opinion.

@OP

I do see the value of the internship/work experience but I am not sure if the value-add is there for the additional four thousand. Perhaps if you can get in touch with some recent alumni of the program? Either way good luck

 

I have done the program back then,and I think Paul (the founder of AnEx) made a lot of improvement from my year so my experience may not be what you will get.

I think if you are not shy on cash and you do need the finance experience to break in into banking, you should totally do it. I learnt tons through the program. The way they structure the program is training for the first 1-2 week, during which they will teach you valuation, LBO, M&A and etc. Then you get to use those knowledge in real work which really helps you to have a deeper understanding of the concepts.

That been said, I believe how much you put in during the internship is equal to how much you will get out. If you work hard and demand for more work, you will definitely learn more. Everyone there is very helpful. Good luck!

 

I have done the program when I was a junior. I did have other non-banking paid internship offer (prop trading) but I really needed the modelling experience. There were 25 students, I think everyone was really happy with the program and benefited tremendously through the experience. I really liked the internship part as it strengthened my modelling skills. It gave me a lot of talking points in the later interviews too. If you have extra cash and need the modelling experience, I highly recommend it. PM me if you need more info.

 

Thanks. To be clear, I want to do this BEFORE I start my MBA program.

I do understand that I can do much better if I want to target a "regular" internship for between my first and second years.

 

I took their courses including M&A, LBO and Valuation and they were great. I am from a non-target school and AnEx courses helped me get full-time BB offers. Their courses are one-on-one and you can learn at your own pace. This makes a big difference because you have time to ask unlimited questions and really understand that concepts. Another advantage is the case study with instructors which lets you apply your knowledge to live deals that are going on currently in the market. I definitely recommend this course.

Let me know if you any other questions.

 

But as per I had access to their materials from a friend of a friend of mine, it seems that during the course/classes they use some "amateur" examples and do not work with real companies (like Wal-Mart, GE, etc) - at least on the classes, I don't know the case study. Also, don't you think their formatting is quite questionable as it doesn't seem to really follow the industry in this criteria. What is your opinion on that?

 

The instructors do start with very basic examples like acquiring/buying a truck for a small company: How will the acquisitions and divestitures affect the financials? The best way to raise capital – debt/equity. But as the material gets advanced, they introduce more complex examples. When I took the course, we went over Starwood Hotels case study and analyzed several other comparable companies like Hilton, etc. AnEx instructors change their case studies frequently and usually use companies that are actually merging, acquiring or getting acquired.

As per their materials, those are just for reference only. They only include examples and formulas.

I recently finished my analyst training program and I am using the same format like AnEx. AnEx format is similar to Morgan Stanley and other BB as AnEx instructors are from these firms.

Let me know if this answers your question.

 

I enjoy AnEx, but I guess it depends mostly on learning style. We've got a case competition tomorrow, and I've been able to use the M&A and LBO models for our group...we'll see how it goes.

I saw those Wall St. Training videos on YouTube...are they strictly online, or do they have in-person training as well?

 

I agree with ibmonkey and sofib09. I would strongly recommend the Analyst Exchange to anyone who really needs to learn this stuff. What I liked best was their method of having you actually build the models over and over again in front of them until you get it right - the other programs don't do that.

I also like the fact that they did start off very simple and built up my skills as the material increased in difficulty.

Lui, what didn't you like about the AnEX courses? Ibmonkey is right, the materials are for reference only. You actually need to take the course to learn how model.

 

Did you decide to take the Analyst Exchange? I am looking into it also. They give you training and actual experience. I know an actual internship can give you this also, but you never know if you will be filing papers, or working on an actual merger case.

Suzie
 

Hi,

I saw your post on the Anex program. I understand that you one of the anex program's alumni, hence will like an honest opinion from you. I am currently working in the big4 in london as a graduate(in technology) and it's not exciting. I want to move towards m&a side of finance. Is this program worth the effort of moving to NY for 2 months and doing the program? How strong will this experience be on my CV and for future M&A roles? Money is not a problem but I want to make sure I am not taking a foolish risk for a desperate career change. Pleas suggest.

R

ripul
 

I'd be very dubious about something like this. Consider it from the point of view of someone looking over your resume. If you have additional experience, they're going to wonder why you dropped 14k on it, but overall it would probably come across positively. If you don't have any other experience (which I assume is the reason you're considering it) then surely they are going to think you just bought your way to an internship rather than getting in on merit?

Asatar:
I'd be very dubious about something like this. Consider it from the point of view of someone looking over your resume. If you have additional experience, they're going to wonder why you dropped 14k on it, but overall it would probably come across positively. If you don't have any other experience (which I assume is the reason you're considering it) then surely they are going to think you just bought your way to an internship rather than getting in on merit?

With the AnEx program, there is traininig/courses in the morning then an internship at a different, boutique IB firm. I only spoke to them over the phone and considered doing it for this summer but ended up not doing so.

And, I'm pretty sure he won't mention paying 14k in one of his bullet points for his internship there buddy...nor are interviewers likely to associate the name of the firm the OP will be working for with AnEx since AnEx reps. told me they change firms every semester or so.

 

lol who the fuck cares if you bought your way in or got it through a family connection, etc etc.. As long as you are still smart and can do the work does it really matter?

IMO Bringing up merit is a complete joke, as a merit system would mean a taking a test and a more serious recruiting process.

But damn bro. 14k is a lot of fucking money to let you work for them for free!

 

Working in IB already just barely justifies large student loan balances, but increasing that initial investment by 14k? definitely kills your ROE.

Good luck. I say WSP online crash course+a few* cold emails will take you a long way.

  • = few.... thousand.
 

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