DealMaven versus Wall Street Prep (comparing financial training solutions)
Hi everyone,
So I know a bunch of people on this board have questioned whether DealMaven, Wall Street Prep or Training the Street (TTS) is better. Having seen the TTS material through a close friend of mine, I think that the program is best suited for liberal arts candidates who have no finance background. The materials are excellent as an academic review of basic finance or accounting, but do not really help with modeling skills. I took a bunch of accounting and corporate finance electives at my university (and counted the credits towards my econ major), so I found the program of little value. So, for me, the decision boiled down to DealMaven or Wall Street Prep. I actually took the (expensive) decision to do both, so here's my take. In my job, I'm frequently building all kinds of models (Accretion/dilution, LBO, M&A) so I check back to these materials frequently. Of course, your background may differ from mine.
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DealMaven:
Pros
- Offers a lot of guidance into Excel shortcuts which is highly useful
- Assumes a very basic understanding of finance and accounting (useful for lib. arts grads)
- Offers a great overview of all kinds of different modeling, which is very easy to understand and learn
Cons
- Material expires after 3 months which is annoying because I need to refer back to the material for work/interviews
- Excel formatting guidance is questionable, at best
- Can be a little slow at times, especially if you already know the basics of finance
- Program crashes frequently if running on a slow computer
Wall Street Prep
Pros
- Excel formatting guidance is in line with "industry practices"
- Having materials on paper (i.e. course not delivered online like DealMaven)is way more convenient and less straining on eyes
- Offers a great overview of all kinds of different modeling, which is very easy to understand and learn
Cons
- Assumes basic knowledge of finance and accounting (lib. arts grads may have trouble here)
I personally thought Wall Street Prep is the way to go, especially since I have a basic understanding of finance and accounting already. Also, I found learning something delivered through an online course very difficult to accomplish. I like having my materials on paper because I find myself less distracted. But in terms of overall learning, I really think the outcome from both the courses is the same. I just think you get the upper hand with Wall Street Prep because of their industry standard formatting and you get to keep the materials for future questions/reference.
Thanks a lot for your comments. You helped me decide which program to choose
How is DealMaven presented online? Html, flash, video?
Can you print the webpages (and therefore create a PDF of everything)? Or is it very interactive where printing won't help?
Can you give an example of how DM's "excel formatting guidance is questionable, at best"?
Did you do both DM knowledge base I and II? What about WSP: premium or basic package?
Thanks very much for the info, very valuable
It just seems to me (not that I know anything) that FactSet/DealMaven would be more well known than WSP, as the certification is only a small part of their product line. Also, the name "Wall Street Prep" seems a bit amateurish... at least that's what I thought when I first read the name. for some reason "DealMaven Certification" sounds more "professional"... as we all know, it's all about the presentation.
Is completing a program like Wall Street Prep or DealMaven really necessary if you are going in to banking? It was my understanding that most of the modeling/excel/accounting/finance work you do as an analyst you learn on the job. Personally, I am a finance/accounting double-major so I'm not as concerned with learning that before I start as a summer analyst, but how necessary is it to know the modeling that you learn in one of these programs prior to starting the job?
what one is the most advanced/technical (LBO modelling, cash sweeps, paydowns, debt schedules...etc) using Excel financial modelling?
Leveraged LTM cash-swap water fall modeling, hands down.
You need at least 4 weeks of modeling it.
Best, SoulSearching
i meant which program is the most technical in terms of Excel modelling....
btw, i've modelled securization waterfalls. its easy. account for servicer fees, paydown, yada yada.....
Don't firms go over the same stuff during FT training? If so, then what is the use of doing these programs?
deleted
thats true, why do you guys think senior bankers know so little about the technicals/modeling? Is it because at the MD level its been so long since they were excel monkeys, so they just simply forgot? Or maybe the standards of getting into the business were easier back when they were starting out?
Ok, TTS Does NOT teach MS & GS. I was an analyst at MS, and AMT did all training programs. It COULD be that TTS did the incoming interns, but this was a few years ago, and I think MS had since cut out intern training.
So that's it. Anyone that tells you otherwise they're lying(and I know TTS says they do it, but I am proof that they don't)
thanks for the posts guys..
im going to get back to the DealMaven vs WSP thing again..
i agree that a 3 month course could be frustrating in the sense that you cant refer to the material later on..which i believe is very important..
however one can buy the liftime subscription to offset this..it costs 599 bucks (student)
as for WSP, one can add on the excel tips and tricks course for an additional 39 bucks making the entire package worth 538..
in light of this , and as a brand , which training is more well recieved at the BB firms?
thanks
cheers
After carefully reviewing the content of many service providers, I finally registered for Wallstreet prep. It is the best - hands down! WSP's content is clearly more applicable when it comes to being interviewed or even in the industry. I doubt it adds any value to the CV though, or certification from any other service provider.
is anyone attending the upcming 4 days boot camp? how useful are the training sessions in the boot camps?
I passed 3 levels of CFA exams recently. Coming from a non-finance background, Wall Street Prep definitely helped me a lot in understanding financial statement and relationships among different items. If interested, you can check out my blog at http://wallstreetprep8.blogspot.com/ to read my profile and my blog on investing.
r u still in college?
used WSP for sale
contact me if you want it...
I'm interested.
Personally, I would say don't waste your time doing it.
Is anyone interested in Training The Street's five day training program in New York from August 17th thru the 21st OR Sept. 21st thru the 25th? The five days typically cost $5,000 if you register early but they now have a 2 for the price of 1 deal - hence $2,500 each which puts it closer in price to some of the other programs out there. However, both parties have to register at the same time.
actual analyst training..u know, the nights where its 5am Monday morning (Sunday Night) and your dumbass is trying to figure out why it takes one hour to save the file and why Excel keeps recalculating the tables and why it keeps #REF'ing out everytime you delete a row and then hit CTRL + Z.
nothing beats this.
I'm making it up as I go along.
does analyst training teach you the ins and outs of excel? I do not have a good understanding of excel and I'm wondering where to pick it you. Do I do it on my own or will I be trained?
TTS also does modeling training. Some schools and banks use this. I can personally vouch for the quality. See if you can get this material from one of your banker friends.
Both good. Support Patrick!
BACK FROM THE DEAD
Hey forum,
So i'm reading this thread and I'm kinda torn over what program to pick for financial training.
I'm a level 2 candidate and just took the level 2 exam. I have all the theory down, but I would love to be able to take this theory and apply it to real world applications. I'm an engineer by day and would love to learn how to properly forecast, model possible M&A deals, LBOs, etc.
All these courses you guys have posted is great and the course on the wallstreetoasis site looks legit to but which one is good? When I read all the financial jargon, I totally understand it. I understand WACC, FCFF, enterprise value, etc. I understand relative valuation and absolute valuation, I just want something that can teach me how to take the financial statement analysis I've learned, pick the information from the statements and properly value a company and or model corporate transactions.
I love how the wallstreetoasis one performs a fake M&A between YHOO-MSFT. That's awesome cuz that's some real world stuff right there.
ANy suggestions guys?..TIA!!
bump
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DealMaven vs Wall Street Prep (Originally Posted: 04/01/2008)
Dear all,
Which pakcage is better? I want that's hands-on, many Excel examples/templates, and etc.
Best,
ive used these guys, like them alot, dont need to be in a classroom and work at your own pace. PLus you can get as many follow ups until you understand. Just have to get a good instructor, I had one and he went awol, so got switched over to a new one and it worked out fine
I went through Deal Maven and I thought it was pretty comprehensive. It teaches you the basics and, from what I understand, how things will be done on the job. It is a good synthesis for all the concepts you learned in finance courses and its a good introduction to using excel more efficiently. The case study in the end was good because it even built in a few mistakes that you might encounter on the job and they require you to catch them. I can't speak for Analyst Exchange or Wall Street Prep but I would recommend Deal Maven.
most banks use Wall Street Prep
if you are paying out of your pocket dealmaven cant be beat for pure value.. if you have the money i would check out wall street prep...
eh nvm i didnt know Wall Street Prep was cheaper! go wall street prep.. also check with your school.. they may sponsor a program already!
I am currently using dealmaven and I am very satisfied. I can not compare it to Wall Street Prep because I have never used WSP. Dealmaven seems to be a great value, and gets fairly deep into excel modeling.
WSP has a 3 month vs 2 yr license to access the info, if you only want to do the course to learn, not as long-term guidance, you can do the 3 month license and pay 399 over 499 or 599. Plus you might email them and ask for student rates, sometimes they have them (by them I mean this for both WSP and DM).
how long will it take to go through either Analyst Exchange, Dealmaven or Wall Street Prep? Thinking of doing one of those as my Uni doesn't offer quite a lot of Finance stuff... Is say 1 month (w/o any school classes going on) enough? Anyone have experience in this context? thanks
I'm doing WSP now, the full program, even though I'm not done yet, based on how long it has taken me, I would say 60 - 70 hrs is more than enough. However, I am proficient in excel and can navigate well, so if you lack this skill I would add some hours for just simply the time factor in building out all the models.
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