By Will Wieters
Vanderbilt MS Finance Class of 2026
Each summer, students in the Vanderbilt Master of Science in Finance program step into spaces they have spent years imagining— from deal rooms and research floors to analytics hubs and investment committees. For the Ms Finance Class of 2026, those spaces stretched from New York to Denver to London, offering front-row views of the work that defines modern finance. Their reflections reveal not only what they accomplished, but how those experiences shaped the confidence, clarity, and professional momentum they brought back to campus.
What became clear is that each student’s experience became more than a resume line. They were hands-on, real-world commitments, building moments where students moved from being observers of finance to contributors within it.
Stepping Into the Work: Real Responsibilities from Day One
Across all functions, students describe work that pushed their technical and analytical abilities.
In investment banking, Rafael Giesbers spent the summer in Goldman Sachs’ consumer and healthcare groups, working heavily on slide creation and market analyses. His preparation was largely self-driven, and as he put it simply, “I mostly prepared on my own and built further on my previous internships.” At UBS, Ramsey Safa gained direct exposure to analyst-level expectations. “The amount of responsibility and exposure I got” was his favorite part of the summer—followed immediately by a blunt surprise: “The hours honestly… I did not expect analysts to work until 2–3 every day.”
In equity research, Aiden Gluck and Tim Cavanagh experienced the rigor of weekly valuation work at Rayburn West. Gluck completed 15 stock pitches and noted, “I learned more than I ever have in a summer when it comes to valuation and understanding how the public economy works on a larger scale.” Cavanagh discovered something he didn’t anticipate: “How much I enjoyed research. It was never something I enjoyed in school, but once it was applied, I learned I loved it.”
At Access Holdings, Noah James stepped into private equity deal work—market research, modeling, and investment memos across multiple sectors. He called the firm’s structure his biggest highlight: “My favorite part… was the emphasis on training and exposure across every aspect of private equity.” He was also surprised by how modern the work has become, with a large part of value creation coming from AI and data analytics.
On the analytics and strategy side, Eddy Kim supported Axle Logistics as a pricing analyst. He built performance reports for sales teams and found himself in a leadership role quickly: “I was the first source for sales teams to report to if they ever needed help…I had a lot of fun leading meetings with executives at the firm.” Others stepped into market and credit roles. At J.P. Morgan, Anuj Ghumatkar modeled credit card portfolios and shared one of the most honest reflections of the summer: “As an intern, you have the liberty of asking as many questions as possible…my team was extremely wonderful.”
Across the board, the assignments were not hypothetical—they were real, and they mattered.
What Surprised Them: Trust, Technology, and the Pace of the Work
One of the clearest themes was how quickly teams trusted interns. Ghumatkar shared how much liberty he had in approaching models. Kim echoed this, emphasizing how often people came to him first for help. Students saw firsthand that strong work gets noticed quickly. As Kim put it, “Learning that if you’re good at your job, people will notice…the better you are at your work, the more people will trust you.”
Others were struck by elements of finance they had never considered. Shah was surprised by “The volume of trades that end up failing due to various reasons each day at a quant strategy fund.”
Some found surprises in their own preferences. “How much I enjoyed research,” Cavanagh repeated, noting how different applied finance feels compared to coursework.
What They Loved Most: People, Mentorship, and Real Growth
Despite the demanding nature of the work, students consistently pointed to the culture and mentorship around them. Ghumatkar recalled, “The people… my team was extremely wonderful in that they always answered any questions I had.”
Gluck appreciated the community as much as the technical depth, especially being in Nashville with classmates nearby. James highlighted the training he received. Patel valued the mix of research and client interaction. “Getting to make outbound calls to clients… It’s a much more valuable skill than I thought initially.”
Others enjoyed stepping into leadership earlier than expected. “I had a lot of fun leading meetings with executives at the firm,” Kim reflected. And many simply enjoyed the environments they entered—from exploring new cities to working alongside high-performing peers.
How the Vanderbilt MS Finance Prepared Them—and What They Took with Them
Students credited the Vanderbilt MS Finance program with preparing them both directly and indirectly for their internships—whether through coursework, Career Management Center guidance, or the knowledge that the program would demand professional maturity.
Patel noted how general preparation for recruiting strengthened his confidence. Rayburn West interns found the MS Finance summer curriculum “complementary” to what they learned on the job. Oldham shared how much easier her fixed-income coursework became after her internship.
“Understanding debt markets is great for understanding all of finance,” she said.
James reflected more broadly: “It gave me a strong foundation in market research and financial modeling while exposing me to how private equity interacts with the broader banking and investment universe.”
Others pointed to the most essential takeaway—confidence.
“I feel more prepared working in high-stakes environments….It’s given me experience in how to manage tasks and other people,” Kim wrote.
And Ghumatkar may have summarized it best: “It builds character and confidence in your work product.”
As students returned to Owen this fall, they brought not just stronger technical skills, but a clearer sense of direction, purpose, and capability, proving that they are ready for the next step in their finance careers.