Investment Banking Recruiting Secrets of the Top 1%

Andrew spent over 12 years at Goldman Sachs investing the firm's own balance sheet across public equities, high-yield credit, real estate, and venture capital before leaving to found 8FIGURES, an AI native investment advisor. In this episode, Max and Andrew dig into what a cross-asset mandate really looks like from the inside, how AI is transforming the tasks that used to define entry-level financ...

Frank Van Buren flew Black Hawk helicopters on combat missions in Beirut and Central America before walking into an investment banking associate role at Wells Fargo. What happened in between? A chance conversation on a beach in Cyprus that changed everything. In this episode of Wall Street Diaries, Frank breaks down his full journey from the Army to 26 years on Wall Street, including 5 years in IB...

AI isn’t replacing analysts. But it is separating the ones who adapt from the ones who don’t. Brandon Hightower is the co-founder of Axom Partners, the boutique M&A firm Forbes called Big Tech’s go-to dealmaker for AI acquisitions. In 2.5 years they’ve closed 15+ deals representing $5B in transaction value advising names like OpenAI, Salesforce, and Meta. In this episode, we get into what Big Tech...

Scott McDermott went from PwC in Ireland to CFO of a global AI company, with stops at Netgear for 14 years, the Arlo Technologies IPO at $1B+ on the NYSE, Fitbit’s European finance build, and interim CFO at Cornerstone OnDemand overseeing 170 people. In this episode, he breaks down what AI is actually doing to finance jobs right now, why taking risks in your 20s is the move most people regret skip...

Nick started at Goldman Sachs TMT in San Francisco, spent 6 years at Francisco Partners rising from associate to VP, and now co-manages S20 Capital, a late stage tech secondaries fund. In this episode, we get into what it actually takes to break into and climb in private equity, why he skipped business school, the mindset shift from associate to VP, and what running your own fund really looks like...

AI isn't new. The concepts behind it go back to the 1960s. So why is everything changing right now? Asif Moosani has been inside this world longer than most. From coding at IBM to banking at Lazard to investing in AI startups at Google's Gradient Ventures, and now running strategy at Sona, an AI native workforce management startup. In this episode, we get into what actually triggered the boom, wha...

Eric majored in exercise science and planned to go into medicine. When that didn't work out, he applied to every rotational business program he could find and got screened out of all of them because of his major. A friend's tip about consulting changed everything. In this episode, Erick breaks down how VCs evaluate founders before writing a check, why AI is already handling junior analyst work at...

Most investment bankers follow the same script: 2 years of banking → PE → MBA → repeat. Emma Jacobsen didn't. After landing a spot in Bank of America's elite tech IB group, she walked away from PE to join Nuro, one of the most ambitious autonomous vehicle companies in the world. Now in Strategic Finance, she's sitting in on CEO meetings, building investor narratives, and watching a $126B industry...

Nick spent over a decade in the 75th Ranger Regiment before walking into Meta with zero coding experience. Now he's at Harvard Business School and building in defense tech. In this episode, he breaks down exactly how he made the transition, why veterans have an unfair advantage in the private sector, and why the smartest investors are quietly moving into defense. If you're a veteran, a student bre...

In this episode of Wall Street Diaries, Max sits down with Taylor, a real estate investor who has helped deploy over $1.7B into multifamily acquisitions. Taylor breaks down how real estate investing actually works, from sourcing deals and underwriting properties to raising capital and exiting investments. If you’ve ever wondered how billion-dollar real estate deals come together behind the scenes,...

rivate equity isn’t about finding “great” companies. It’s about finding the right company for your fund. In this episode of Wall Street Diaries, we talk about why the exact same deal can be a perfect fit for one PE fund… and a hard pass for another. Different funds operate under different mandates, different risk tolerances, and different investment philosophies. What looks like a “no-brainer” on...

Matt Huang did everything “right.” Investment banking. Consulting. Corporate strategy at Google. In this episode, we break down what banking teaches you, why target schools can feel like pressure cookers, how rejection compounds into leverage, and what happens when you choose learning over short-term money. If you’re chasing Wall Street but quietly questioning the long game, this one’s for you. ✉️...

Artificial intelligence is advancing faster than anyone expected. Some people believe AI will replace most white-collar jobs in the next few years, including investment banking analysts. Others think it will simply change how the job works. So what will happen to investment banking? In this video, we break down how AI is impacting Wall Street, what it means for analyst roles, and how students shou...

Most students think investment banking is the finish line. In this episode of Wall Street Diaries, Nathan walks through why that assumption quietly breaks down. He shares what the job at Goldman Sachs actually felt like day to day, the moment he realized modeling mattered far less than he expected. We also talk about starting recruiting late, breaking in anyway, and how banking became a tool for o...

In this episode of Wall Street Diaries, we break down how an investment banker thinks, and why an engineering mindset often matters more than pure finance knowledge. We talk about systems thinking, constraints, and tradeoffs, and how those ideas show up in real decisions on Wall Street. The conversation also zooms out to the AI boom, explaining why the race for AI is increasingly a race to build m...

In this episode of Wall Street Diaries, Max Johnson breaks down what investment banking actually trains you for, and why many students misunderstand the real value of an IB career. Drawing from his path from investment banking to AWS, Max explains why banking isn’t just about technical skills or fast exits. Instead, he reframes IB as a long-term training ground for judgment, execution, and operati...

Investment banking interviews aren’t about memorizing perfect answers. They’re about how you think, communicate, and handle pressure in real time. In this episode of Wall Street Diaries, we break down how IB interviews actually work, what interviewers are really evaluating, and why interviews are more like conversations than exams. If you’re a finance or economics student recruiting for investment...

S2 Ep04: Is Sales & Trading Better than Investment Banking? by Wall Street Mastermind

S2 Ep03: Is Chemical Engineering the Best Investment Banking Major_ by Wall Street Mastermind

This week features Carson, a Vice President at Jefferies, who built a long-term career on Wall Street by taking a path most people overlook. Coming from a non-target background, Carson worked his way into investment banking, specialized in Private Capital Advisory, and steadily rose through the ranks to VP while many peers exited the industry. Carson shares what it really takes to break into banki...

Season 2 Episode 1 of Wall Street Diaries is here! It features @KevinYangImpact went from valedictorian at Michigan Ross to investment banking at Guggenheim TMT, private equity at Vector Capital, and ultimately into global impact investing and founding his own firm. His path blends prestige, finance, and purpose in a way few careers do. Kevin talks about breaking into banking from a non-target or...

Our student Jordan was attending a non-target liberal arts college and had been unsuccessful at recruiting on his own formonths. Not knowing how to structure his networking calls or answers in interviews, he knew needed guidance and decided to join WSMM. We soon helped him polish his behaviorals and crush his technicals, landing some of the most prestigious banking interviews. Hear how Jordan went...

In this episode, we dive deep into the cost of equity, an essential WACC component frequently tested in investment banking interviews. You'll discover how to calculate it using CAPM and why it's crucial for valuing a company. Learn practical tips on framing your answer clearly and confidently. We walk through a real interview-style example to show best practices. Perfect for anyone preparing for f...

In this episode, we break down how to calculate WACC, one of the most common technical questions in finance interviews. You'll learn what each component means, from the cost of equity to the after-tax cost of debt. We explain how to determine the right capital structure weights and why WACC is critical in valuation. Using a real JPMorgan HireVue example, we show you how to answer clearly and confi...

Our student Christian came to us as an astronautical engineering major not knowing anything about finance or having relevant experience. He had taken a gap year and after seeing a few friends go through the recruiting process he decided to give it a try. Hear how WSMM helped him land relevant experience for his resume soon after joining and eventually help him become a top candidate landing a top...