Gatton Hosts Seminar to Prepare Business Students for Workforce

On January 30-31, the University of Kentucky’s Gatton College of Business and Economics will host Wall Street Prep’s Financial & Valuation Modeling Seminar for the second time. In October, the college welcomed more than 60 registered students to the first seminar, led by former investment banker and native Kentuckian, Brad Barlow.

“The Wall Street Prep Valuation and Excel Modeling Seminar provides top-notch practical training for people who are interested in investment banking, equity research, portfolio management, business development, capital markets, and corporate finance careers,” said Wendy Liu, senior lecturer in Gatton’s Department of Finance and Quantitative Methods, and coordinator of the events. “The two-day seminar mimics the process that takes place at today’s leading financial institutions by using real case studies to build financial models from scratch. It offers hands-on training in advanced Excel modeling techniques, financial statement analysis, and valuation. The seminar provides an excellent way to learn valuation and modeling in a short time.”

“Wall Street Prep’s Financial & Valuation Modeling Seminar is a must for those interested in a career in investment banking,” said student and attendee Wade Bailey. “In college you are taught the theoretical, the basics of valuation, and this course helps to transition you from the classroom to the real world. I chose to attend this course because I wanted to learn how to take what I have learned here at the University of Kentucky and apply it to what I will be doing once I join the workforce.”

Barlow said that the inaugural course at UK had one of the highest attendance rates he has seen in his six years of teaching financial modeling and valuation skills at universities.

“It was inspiring to see the high level of interest, the enthusiasm, and the desire of our students to succeed in an increasingly competitive world,” Liu said.

The registration cost for the Jan. 30-31 seminar is $179. In addition, a popular seminar on mergers and acquisitions and leveraged buyout modeling will be offered (for $150) for the first time at UK Feb. 20-21. Details of the events and links to registration can be found at: https://www.wallstreetprep.com/seminars/kentucky-013016-financial-modeling-university-boot-camp-series/