Students Learn Practical Business Skills in Course Presented by Financial Training Experts Close to 100 students participated in a financial training seminar May 27-30, presented by Adkins Matchett & Toy (AMT), global experts in training analysts and investment bankers at leading financial companies, hedge funds and corporate law firms. The intensive four-day, 30-hour class was offered primarily to undergraduate students from Stern College for Women, Yeshiva College and Sy Syms School of Business. “Several members of the YU Board of Trustees encouraged the school to enhance our analytic offerings in finance, and we are exploring ways to incorporate these vital real-world skills into the curriculum at Sy Syms,” said Michael Strauss, associate dean of Sy Syms, explaining the impetus behind the course. “We believe that all students should take this fundamentals of finance course before they enter the business world.” Organized by YU’s Career Center, in partnership with Sy Syms, the course touched on numerous topics including financial statement analysis, modeling, valuation, balance sheets, capital expenditures, cash flow statements and how to use Excel. “This is the third year we are offering a variation of a course like this, to bring students up to speed on different aspects of finance,” said Marc Goldman, executive director of the Career Center. “It’s great for anyone planning to work in any type of business setting and it’s beneficial for students across all industries.” AMT’s German Nande, who taught the course with two teaching assistants, explained that the class was designed to make fundamental concepts come alive. “It encourages students to articulate their newly acquired practical skills and to ‘talk’ the language of accounting, modeling, valuation and deal structuring,” Nande said. “It also allows students in non-traditional finance or accounting backgrounds to explore the world of financial analysis and valuation.” That was the case for Batya Weiss, a math major at Stern College. “Business is going to be really important in whatever career I pursue,” she said. “I want to be able to understand the vernacular of business wherever I go, and this course opened my eyes to the accessibility of the business field.” For students already immersed in the business world, the class offered a chance to hone their skills even further and learn new concepts to apply to their future careers. “This course is a great opportunity to take everything I’ve learned in school and make it more practical,” said Sammy Banilivy, a senior at Sy Syms majoring in accounting. “I wanted to get exposed to some of the more technical aspects of business, and the course was a good way to enhance my skill set and prepare me for future internships and jobs.” “Our course leverages Yeshiva University’s outstanding academic values and well rounded education with highly practical skill training,” added Nande. “We at AMT strongly believe that the natural passion and academic commitment of Yeshiva’s students, faculty, career management and support staff alike provides a fantastic basis for this unparalleled training to flourish.”