As my internship with Ellery Partners comes to a close, I would like to reflect on the incredibly valuable experience I’ve had with the firm. From strengthening my DCF and LBO modeling skills to improving my leadership and communication skills by working with the other highly talented interns, I would like to thank everyone who made my time so rewarding.

From the start, the level of comradery between everyone on the team was terrific. I’ve never felt so close with a group so quickly, and I chalk this up to the fun and insightful team-building exercises that Jalen would initiate every morning. This set the standard for open and easy communication between everyone and made it far more comfortable for us to reach out to one another when we had questions. Even though I’ve never met anyone on the team in person, I would consider all of them my friends and look forward to staying in touch with them in the future.

I was also able to improve my technical skills through a variety of outlets provided by the firm. Almost immediately, we were given the responsibility of doing due diligence and analysis of CIMs in various industries. Not only did this help improve my business analysis skills, but it was also very interesting to learn about different types of companies and how they operate. About halfway through the internship, we had “modeling week,” in which we learned how to build DCFs and LBOs from people who have worked at some of the top investment banks in the industry. I’ll never forget spending hours working on my first LBO, and struggling to get the circular referencing to work, and then finally fixing it and feeling that sense of pride in my work. These assignments, in conjunction with Orlando’s weekend training seasons, dramatically improved my technical abilities.

As I begin the long journey of my career, I will never forget this first finance internship and the invaluable social and technical skills I learned. I look forward to watching the amazing success of this organization and its founders!