About Swiss Finance Institute

How does the Swiss Finance Institute curriculum differ from your business school curriculum?

The business school curriculum is very concept-based; the Swiss Finance Institute curriculum not only teaches you the concepts, but also gives you the opportunity to put those concepts into practice. You can’t get the SFA experience in a regular classroom setting. I would liken it more to a job experience than to a school experience – SFA is constantly giving you the chance to apply your knowledge and skills through various modeling exercises, case studies, simulations and presentations. They also provide detailed explanations, stories and anecdotes that give participants a great sense of what the industry is really all about. As someone who is fascinated by the investment banking industry, the experience was a lot of fun, despite the hard work. I learned so much, and would recommend it to anyone, including those who are currently pursuing MBAs.

What advice would you give to future Swiss Finance Institute participants?

Take advantage of all that the program has to offer, and give it your all! For anyone who is interested in a career in investment banking or corporate finance, this program is a goldmine of information that you can’t get anywhere else. The intensity of the curriculum can get to people at times, as you are basically trying to become fluent in a new language in just a few weeks’ time. It helps if you understand that everyone is in it together. Don’t be afraid to seek help from classmates who may have a better understanding of the material, and remember that faculty members will always make themselves available to help out and go that extra mile in explaining things until you have a firm understanding of the material. In the end, the hard work is well worth it; I think that I can speak on behalf of my classmates when I say that SFA has had a huge positive impact on our knowledge, skills and job prospects.

- Ya-Wen Shen, Corporate Finance, New York