Leaders Program

Introduce students to the structure, expectations, and recruiting path for investment banking. Lesson covers the hierarchy within banks, differences between bulge bracket, elite boutique, and middle market firms, and the distinctions between product and industry coverage groups. Students also learn the importance of early preparation for the accelerated recruiting timeline for junior summer internships.

Sessions focus on building strong networking skills for investment banking recruiting. Students are given a step-by-step guide for contacting bankers, best practices for cold emails, thank-you notes, and maintaining relationships over time. Key emphasis is on proper networking etiquette, establishing a networking tracker, and the importance of consistent follow-ups to develop authentic relationships.

Students are taught how to effectively answer questions like "Tell me about yourself," "Why IB," and "Why this firm" using structured storytelling. The session also introduces the STAR method for answering experience-based questions, covers how to discuss recent deals and industry trends, and provides tips for handling brain teasers and market-based questions.

Build a strong foundation in essential accounting concepts critical for success in investment banking interviews. Students learn how to link the three core financial statements, learn the impact of non-cash items like depreciation, how different transactions like debt issuance, asset sales, and goodwill impairment affect financial statements, and the creation and use of deferred tax assets (DTAs) and liabilities (DTLs). Practical examples and multi-step problem walkthroughs emphasize how accounting concepts are critical to valuation methods.

Understand the distinction between Enterprise Value and Equity Value, and introduce relative valuation methods like Public Comparables and Precedent Transactions, emphasizing how multiples are used to assess a company's worth based on similar businesses or past deals. Also, focus on intrinsic valuation through a Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model, walking through the steps to project free cash flows, calculate WACC, estimate terminal value, and discount future cash flows to determine a company’s intrinsic value. Ultimately, highlight the strengths and limitations of both relative and intrinsic valuation approaches.

Introduce core M&A concepts including the strategic rationale behind mergers and acquisitions, deal structures, buyer and seller motivations, and basic accretion/dilution analysis. Students will learn how M&A fits into investment banking services, how deals are modeled financially, and how investment banks advise clients through the acquisition or sale process. Additional focus will be placed on real-world examples and key drivers of M&A success or failure.

Focus on explaining how LBOs are utilized by private equity firms acquiring companies using a mix of debt and equity to amplify returns. Key topics include why debt is used, characteristics of a strong LBO candidate, ways to boost returns, and the basic steps of building an LBO model.