This technical interview workshop will cover the core concepts most frequently tested in finance interviews, including accounting fundamentals, valuation basics, and key financial metrics. Students will break into small groups to discuss these topics, share insights, and clarify what’s most important to know before heading into interviews. The session is designed to build confidence, reinforce essential knowledge, and provide a collaborative space to prepare effectively.

During this meeting CFIA will be going over the application/recruitment process as well as a more in-depth view of what the Freshman Finance Academy program will consist of.

With the increasingly accelerated recruiting timeline for finance internships, CFIA and Carolina Fund wanted to create a program that establishes a cohort of the Moore School’s most ambitious freshmen who are interested in pursuing careers within competitive finance fields like investment banking, private equity, asset management, sales & trading, and more. 

The Academy’s objective is to provide this cohort with direct instruction on the essential skills, abilities, and knowledge required to obtain competitive finance internships, as well as opportunities to hone and refine these skills. Additionally, the Academy will connect the cohort with Moore School alumni who are eager to give back and provide personalized support to students throughout the finance recruiting process. 

DMSB Room 135

Come learn more about the DMSB’s Finance Scholars Program.

The Finance Scholars program prepares high-achieving undergraduates for elite careers in finance through rigorous coursework, industry-driven case studies, boot camps, and close alumni networking. It features advanced sections of core finance courses, practicum modules on valuation, risk, asset analysis, and provides preferred access to a student-managed investment fund. Each year roughly 30 students are selected via a competitive process to gain this intensive, career-oriented training track.

Jefferies is a global investment banking and capital markets firm that provides advisory, sales and trading, research, and wealth management services to corporations, governments, and institutional investors. Headquartered in New York, the firm has a strong presence worldwide and is recognized for its focus on mid-sized companies and innovative solutions. With a client-first approach, Jefferies combines deep sector expertise with a full range of financial services to help clients achieve their strategic and financial goals.

The Greystar will be speaking about their recruiting process careers at the firm. Greystar is a leading, fully integrated real estate company offering expertise in investment management, development, and management of rental housing. As of 2022, Greystar had 58.2B in gross assets and operated in 16 countries. 

The Dimensional Fund Advisors Zoom will be a panel consisting of a number of people from the firm including their recruitment team, HR team, and analysts/associates that graduated from USC. 

Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA) is a global asset management firm that builds investment strategies grounded in academic research and real-world market data. The firm is known for emphasizing factor-based investing strategies, such as tilting toward small-cap and value stocks, in an effort to capture long-term market premiums. Rather than stock picking or market timing, DFA relies on systematic, rules-based approaches designed to harness the efficiency of markets. The company offers career opportunities across investment research, portfolio management, trading, client services, technology, risk management, and operations, often attracting candidates interested in quantitative finance and data-driven investing. Today, DFA manages hundreds of billions in assets globally, with a strong reputation for evidence-based investing and collaborative career development.  

 Host:

Dave Foster, Campus Recruiting Team Lead, Human Resources

 Panelists:

Avery Wyrick | Analyst, Global Client Group (May 2025 grad)

Emma Holian | Associate, Global Client Group (May 2022 grad)

Zac Cerreta | Associate, Global Client Group (May 2021 grad)

The South Carolina Retirement System Investment Commission (RSIC) will be joining us to discuss their strategy and the opportunities available for students.

RSIC is responsible for managing and investing the assets of the state’s retirement systems, which serve hundreds of thousands of public employees and retirees. Established to provide professional oversight and long-term investment strategies, RSIC seeks to maximize returns while prudently managing risk. The Commission oversees a multi-billion-dollar portfolio diversified across public equities, private equity, fixed income, real estate, and alternative investments. Its mission is to ensure the sustainability of South Carolina’s pension funds, providing secure and reliable retirement benefits for current and future beneficiaries.

Historically, RSIC has hosted multiple DMSB students as interns during both the school year and summer. This is a great opportunity to see how a large-scale investment fund operates.

Jimmie Lenz will be joining us to speak about his experience in the FinTech (Financial Technology) industry.

Jimmie is a South Carolina graduate and has worked in a variety of jobs on Wall Street. He started his career as an equity and derivatives trader and later stepped into a number of senior management roles within the finance community. These include leading an NYSE broker dealer with foreign and domestic operations, Chief Risk Officer and Chief Credit Officer at a top three broker dealer, and Head of Predictive Analytics for one of the largest Wealth Management firms in the US. 

Currently, Jimmie is the Director of the Master of Engineering in Financial Technology and Master of Engineering in Cybersecurity at Duke University and the Frank and Irene Salerno Visiting Professor of Financial Economics. Lenz also leads the Digital Asset Research and Engineering Collaborative (DAREC) at Duke University.  Jimmie is an experienced executive, lecturer, and scholar in the fields of FinTech, Risk Management and Capital Markets.