I am bored, and I would like to play around with financial modeling. I found some great powerpoints and videos on DCF and DCF analysis, but I would like to know what else I could be learning in my free time. Links or suggested resources would be greatly appreciated.
Many thanks and best regards,
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I would suggest taking a look at some accounting textbooks to get a jump on how financial statements are constructed, how they flow into each other, etc. The sooner you get a firm grounding in this, the better.
true. and to get you started off (because i didn't know this at the beginning and it would have made everything so much simpler had i been told this next little thing):
the firm's operations are described in its profit and loss statement. these results are then modified financially in the statement of cashflow. and all of this flows to your balance sheet and changes your financial situation. i think i just saved you a semester.
If you're planning on studying finance at university, I'd discourage you from studying up on it now. There is a strong risk that you'll end up thinking "I know this stuff already" when you're sitting in university lectures and not absorbing what the average-to-excellent student does at university.
Overconfidence (whether conscious or subconscious) will lead to gaps in your knowledge and, net/net, you're worse off.
Studying something more out of line with your degree trajectory, but still close enough. For example, if you plan to focus on finance at university, learn some coding now. Unlikely you'll use it for your finance school work, but it will still be useful, will broaden your mind and gives you an asset that you can use later.
Alternatively, use your boredom to take yourself out of your comfort zone. If you're a book learning guy, learn something physical like boxing. It will make you a better person, a better student and a better job candidate.
@"SSits" is spot on. I did this before college and thought I could space out during those 101 type of courses, ended up missing the boat and not doing well on the first set of exams. But I will readily admit that when I was in high school there was no internet so the resources to study a subject on your own were limited almost exclusively to textbooks. You could audit an entry level accounting course at your local community college and get a little more structure than flipping through a book.
If you don't already have perfect grades, concentrate on that and getting into the best college you can. Become more well read. I like the coding recommendation. Learn skills like public speaking and how to not be socially awkward (not saying OP is but it seems to be an issue for a lot of younger people on WSO). Workout and volunteer. Learn how to be proficient and persuasive with the opposite sex (or same sex if that's your bag).
Also, have fun. Hang out with friends and get your dick wet (or the opposite more crude sounding action for females). I know that ambitious young people hate hearing this, but enjoy your youth while you have it. I don't know when it happened, but all of the sudden I was in my 30's, married and had kids. Then I turned 40. I could swear I was just in high school and college.
Absolutely. Trying to pick up on Java right now. Excellent advice. Boxing might not be the best for a concussion-prone ex-football player though haha
If you're just beginning, try Khan Academy or Code Academy (or both). I started with JavaScript one of the easier entry points. Moving to something more complicated (like C or Java) is pretty easy as many of the concepts and coding syntax are the same.
Python is awesome, I'd suggest you take a look at it at least as syntactically it is very intuitive. Check out some tutorials and then jump over to projecteuler.net you will learn cool math concepts and how to hack out some ugly code at the same time. The best part is after you solve a problem you get access to the forums where you can see other people's code and how elegant it is compared to yours.
Or other active sports. Too many missed punches to your head won't do any good. Don't get me wrong, been doing boxing myself. Good sparring partner is the key :-)
bro chill out already
you have several years to go.
enjoy the present and screw this.
at most my suggestion would be play around with excel and get into some sports
"Hey guys, gotta stop playing street hockey now, I need to go home and teach myself vlookup, shits exciting"
go outside, throw a ball, get your first OTPHJ.
I would say you should just focus on grades and SAT's. Also, relax, relax, and relax. Enjoy life.
If you're anything like me when I was in high school, smart but a bit too inverted, then learn to SELL. It doesn't matter what it is, it can be a small business with some friends or really whatever you want. Learning how to read and use emotional cues matters.
I would even say this includes getting girls/guys/whathaveyous as you're learning to sell yourself (hopefully not literally); i.e. why you're a good fit for their private parts.
Solid advice. Most of what you learn when you try to get good with the opposite sex will teach you the other skills you need to know about selling.
Selling skills will benefit you no matter what career path you end up in. While you may feel certain now there's no guarantee that you'll still want to work on Wall Street by the time you get out of high school, or even after a few years in the industry. If you do stick to that route you will still find that your sales skills are invaluable to both your own advancement and deal procurement.
POON
A High School student trying to get a head start (Originally Posted: 12/23/2012)
Hello, this is my first time posting on WSO so please forgive any infractions of unspoken rules I might make (haha), cutting right to the chase, I am interested in finance and I am seeking an internship where I could begin to get a feel for it. I realize a prevailing opinion might be one of me spending my high school summers figuring out what I want to do, not working on specializations, but I have no qualms about pushing papers and getting coffee. I go to one of the most prestigious high schools in Houston, Texas, I take 4 APs, including AP Econ and AP calc, I have a 3.7 UW GPA, I have over 10 ECs including, but not limited to, business club, finance club, pre-law club, debate society, Spanish club, several volunteers' clubs, and several political clubs. I have done three internships so far, one at DB consulting (small Houston firm), one with the diplomatic core (focusing on the Middle East and Latin America), and one with the world affairs council of Houston. Additionally, I have several major distinctive awards, I'm a 2 time winner of the presidential award for community service, targeted teen leadership award winner, and a winner of a few academic and quite a few debate and business club awards from my school. Does anyone have any advice? Whether it be from cold-communicating to specific communication with specific places any help is very very greatly appreciated! Thank you all so much!
Unless you're in Brasil during Carnival and the girls mom tells you to make out with her daughter and you think she's 19 20 ... bUT GUESS WHAT! sHE ISNT!
You're still in HS, relax. Focus more on getting head, than getting a head start.
I'm guessing you're not a senior judging by your post. No need to bother with another internship at this point. A lot of college kids don't even have three by graduation. Just focus on getting into a good college, you'll have plenty of time to intern later.
Don't bother getting an internship. Not even worth your time. Just get one after freshman year
Do you play sports at all? Start playing sports...
Do you hang out with girls at all? Start hanging out with girls....
But to answer your question try for a PWM internship.
Join the Army. Benefits
Sounds like you are completely fine. 3 internships in HS is crazy. JP Morgan has a program for freshmen and sophomores in college:
http://careers.jpmorgan.com/student/jpmorgan/careers/us/programs/summer…
Bur holy shit what grade are you in right now? ACT/SAT yet? --> if not then study hard for these and do incredible. Read the WSJ daily. Start networking with big banks if you are bold.
Can we for fucks sake not turn WSO into College Confidential? There should be some official policy on this. Relax kid, people at my target school don't even know about banking till their junior year and they do fine. If I have one advice its get into top schools Ivey League, MIT, Stanford, Georgetown etc and you'll be fine.
Some additional info, as far as sports go, football and if you consider it ultimate frisbee, girls, don't worry I think I have that part covered, or at least any parts I can learn from high school thus far, I'm not a senior, I'm a junior, I'm working pretty hard on getting into good schools, I meet with our counseling department regularly and study hard, ACT: 32, SAT 2400: 2080, SAT 1600: 1420, and I'm not trying to leverage my way into a better school with this, but is there anything I can do to get more experience with/be closer to finance?
It gets annoying for the older guys here on the site when they have high schoolers like us asking questions like these. Do yourself a favor and have some fun before college. High school is a breeze compared to college and once you start doing internships life will be different forever. You won't have the freedom to do the shit that you want to do anymore. No more weekends to just chill with friends for a couple years, no long vacations with no distractions etc. I have the opportunity to do internships this summer but I am going to just take the summer off and enjoy myself, go travel and do some summer courses to lessen the workload. If you want to prepare for working in IB you should just do some summer courses once you find out where you are going to college. That should make life much easier and add a lot of freedom for internships and better GPA.
For a while I was like you and wanted to be the child prodigy of the financial world but then I realized that finance isn't the be all end all of life.
Take my advice. Trust me
Alright, I think I'm getting a resounding answer, thank you all so much:)
Or you can get internships every summer, work, make money, then laugh and feel superior to humanity when you are in your 30s. Become a BSD and pay for hookers as your bank account had grown so much that your chin soon followed. Sounds like the path you want, right?
I'm in hs as well. OP get better grades than me and get into a HYP. That is all the head start you will need.
Post sounds conceited as hell. One of most prestigious high schools in Houston- how have I not heard of it!?
I didn't mention the HS in the post, so that might contribute to the problem! Playing it on the safe side, I won't say the name of the school, but it's Catholic, led by a teaching order, all male, and inside Houston proper, so that should narrow it down!
ooohh of course!! such a sick high school
Damn dude you are loaded lol. You may get a head start, but I don't think it'll have to be a priority for now at least. It'll become one soph/junior year at univ.
Focus on learning how to properly finger and go down on a girl while in high school, it'll have a much higher ROI than learning financial modeling .
Fucking nerd.
Read a lot, learn to code if you want. Way more useful than fucking DCFs.
Also, I'm not one to usually say this on these threads, but to try to learn how to be an outgoing, charismatic individual. Then you can do whatever you want in life.
How to get laid so you won't be awkward with college girls who are more experienced than you.
I see everyone else beat me to "how to get laid."
I got nothing else.
As I write this, the OP should no longer be on the board. He should be on the phone with a girl from his high school.
On the phone? What are you, like 85 years old? He should be sending out snapchats of his wang to the junior girls and seeing if there are any takers
I would learn how to talk to thots
I worked in a supervisory role on a (small) factory floor when I was in high school and found it to be very valuable experience. Most Wall Streeters don't understand basic shop floor economics and it's a weakness. That or real core accounting, it's like the Latin base of all business language.
But we don't decline our nouns in business.
Hahah yea I think I depicted myself as some form of Milhouse from the Simpsons. I am a former state champion offensive tackle with ambitions in finance. I'm going to an SEC school next year with the intention to pledge KA, so I don't think I am doing half bad socially. I'm just trying to get a jump on things to ensure I am the best thing to ever emerge from my nontarget undergrad.
Unless you your grandad was a KA, your dad was a KA, your older brother was a KA, your mom was a KA sweetheart, your childhood t-ball coach was a KA, don't go into rush thinking you're for sure going to pledge one fraternity. Those kids are the worse.
Good point. I will keep an open mind.Thanks
Damn
KA was also a bunch of nerds at my school
Saving you some time here OP. Employ this on a couple girls successfully and you'll be busy until you start college.
//www.youtube.com/embed/7ToGjYYJCoM
Learn to write in English as best as you can. This is the most valuable skill you can ever learn - and you will always be able to improve on it through life. Forget finance/accounting etc... An English grad can always get into a BB, a finance grad who does not know how to write a letter properly will never get a job in a BB IB.
Learn how to handle your booze before college
get a god damned job at a grocery store
I'll second this, you'll have so much more appreciation for a good office job down the line if you work doing shit for other people first. Use the money to take girls out and learn to spit game while you're at it.
Read some books. I wouldn't focus on learning some complex financial modeling or theory at 17 or 18 years old but you could read some books to get a better understanding of the industry.
You'll be eons beyond your classmates when they're sophomore and juniors who still think all bankers are traders.
Pick up a hobby and not one to BS but one that you are actually interested in. Find something that challenges you and use it as a way to learn something beyond the classroom or office setting. It goes a long way when meeting people to be able to say, I like finance but I'm really passionate about this. (Also let's people know you aren't a complete finance nerd, but that you are a normal relatable human being.
I'd focus more on building social skills.
At this point in your life, you're better off following the markets and reading about deals going on right now vs. trying to learn hard skills like financial modeling or accounting. These are just check the box skills and most interviewers don't expect college kids to have these skills, so demonstrating you do will be of marginal benefit. You'd get a lot more milage out of having 5+ years of experience reading/following the markets and M&A experience vs. 5 years of experience in excel/modeling... which as other have mentioned, you won't learn properly anyway so you'll likely do more harm than good.
You can learn solid financial modeling/accounting within a semester in college... so don't get too worked up about it.
When choosing between the "intelligent enough to be dangerous and a fairly normal dude" and the "really sharp but a nerdy keyboard jockey that practices financial modeling in his free time", I would hire the former every time (and indeed have).
I second Marcus Halberstram on this. You should focus on following the markets, reading Bloomberg etc and following what's going on. But do not neglect your social development, getting friendships, etc.
Seriously dude? Like others have said, learn how to 1) talk up the ladies and 2) handle your alcohol. Then maybe you'll be able to speak with confidence and navigate whatever social setting your in as a professional. Don't even waste your time modeling. If your really introverted and my previous suggestions are too scary, get a job selling some crap door to door. The guy that can sell with edge the guy that can model every time
Also would recommend to not do much. Maybe read some books here and there but being overly specialized at a young age is not good. Some book recommendations: Investment Banking by Rosenbaum, McKinsey Valuation, The Intelligent Investor, Liar's Poker.
Do some fun shit in high school. It's a great point of your life, especially if you've already been accepted to school.
I have already read Liar's Poker, am getting IB by Rosenbaum for Christmas, and will definitely look into others. Thanks for the advice!
Learn a programming language, and master Excel. VBA and Python should be at the top of your list. All the Finance and Accounting stuff will be learned in college.
@Marginal Benefit:
Check out Oil 101.
Computer programming, do codeacademy or put down some money and sign up for codeschool or thinkful. Python is particularly useful for Finance and things like SQL are also skills that would be great to have. You might never become an engineer, but having some background in comp sci( and maybe a minor in college if you like it enough) can open up a ton of opportunities.
I looked into a computer sci minor, but the school told me that computer sci is in engineering. Because it is in engineering, I am not allowed to minor in it. It is odd, I know haha.
Get laid, learn to be comfortable meeting new people, get better at FIFA and stop trying so hard for f**k sake.
Or start a hedge fund, see how that works out for you
Get laid, learn to be comfortable meeting new people, get better at FIFA and stop trying so hard for f**k sake.
Or start a hedge fund, see how that works out for you
Get laid, learn to be comfortable meeting new people, get better at FIFA and stop trying so hard for f**k sake.
Or start a hedge fund, see how that works out for you
Get laid, learn to be comfortable meeting new people, get better at FIFA and stop trying so hard for f**k sake.
Or start a hedge fund, see how that works out for you
Get laid, learn to be comfortable meeting new people, get better at FIFA and stop trying so hard for f**k sake.
Or start a hedge fund, see how that works out for you
Get laid, learn to be comfortable meeting new people, get better at FIFA and stop trying so hard for f**k sake.
Or start a hedge fund, see how that works out for you
Get laid, learn to be comfortable meeting new people, get better at FIFA and stop trying so hard for f**k sake.
Or start a hedge fund, see how that works out for you
Get laid, learn to be comfortable meeting new people, get better at FIFA and stop trying so hard for f**k sake.
Or start a hedge fund, see how that works out for you
Get laid, learn to be comfortable meeting new people, get better at FIFA and stop trying so hard for f**k sake.
Or start a hedge fund, see how that works out for you
And yes, I meant to post that 8 times.
You should learn french, german or spanish. It would be a big plus to have a second European language on the resume.
Does anyone else find this slightly depressing?
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