Ben speaks with Jimmy, a rising junior at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, about how he landed two highly competitive finance internships before junior year. Jimmy discusses his experience with Prime M&A, recruiting for investment banking in Chicago, preparing for technical interviews, becoming an Adventis trainer, and securing offers from Morningstar and J.P. Morgan. This episode is packed with practical advice for students interested in investment banking recruiting.

Episode 52 | July 6, 2026

Cornell Hotel School student and Banking at Cornell club president Darren shares how he leveraged networking, differentiated his background, and landed a Wells Fargo investment banking internship. Learn his best recruiting strategies, networking tips, and lessons for aspiring finance professionals.

Episode 51 | June 22, 2026

In Episode 50 of the Coffee Chat Podcast, University of Illinois student Yash shares how he chose wealth management over investment banking, the networking conversations that shaped his career path, and the recruiting strategies that helped him secure a Summer 2027 role with J.P. Morgan Private Bank.

Episode 50 | June 8, 2026

Amherst student Magnus shares how a pre-med background, healthcare passion, and authentic networking helped him transition into investment banking and land a 2027 Junior Summer Internship with TripleTree.

Episode 49 | May 25, 2026

How do you land a junior-year investment banking offer as a sophomore? Hadley shares the mindset, preparation strategy, and networking approach that helped her stand out, and why “just going for it” made all the difference.

Episode 48 | May 11, 2026

Eric shares how sending 25 personalized cold emails a day, traveling to meet bankers in person, and mastering interview prep helped him break into investment banking. And why persistence is the ultimate edge.

Episode 46 | April 13, 2026

In this episode, Ben talks with David Hawthorne, Director of the Financial Markets Institute at Michigan State University, about how FMI identifies top talent early and builds the technical, professional, and interpersonal skills needed to succeed in competitive Wall Street recruiting.

Episode 45 | March 30, 2026

When Cornell senior Ben Gleman was rejected from eight finance clubs, he built his own. In this episode, Ben shares how he founded Banking at Cornell, developed its two-tier membership model, and partnered with Adventis to prepare students for top roles on Wall Street.

Episode 33 | November 17, 2025

Ben Dowell sits down with Dalton Kahl from the University of South Carolina to discuss the Freshman Finance Academy, a selective program helping first-year students build the technical, networking, and leadership skills needed to thrive in competitive finance recruiting.

Episode 32 | November 10, 2025

When Iowa State football player Ty Claiborne lost a stock pitch competition, he turned that moment into the spark that launched the Ivy Investment Banking Initiative.

Episode 31 | November 3, 2025