Seizing the Summer

Champ McCorkle is heading to the Big Apple this summer, where he’ll hone his strategic thinking skills as a summer analyst in the mergers and acquisitions group at Evercore, a New York–based investment banking advisory firm. 

“My goal is to become one of the top strategic thinkers in finance as fast as possible,” McCorkle says. “I believe Evercore’s M&A group will be the best place to start.” 

The internship fits into McCorkle’s long-term goal of working on high-impact deals in technology and healthcare—two sectors he believes have the greatest potential to solve global problems. For example, he’s passionate about fixing the healthcare system’s broken incentive structures, which he says waste trillions of dollars and leave billions of people underserved or exploited.

“For me, this isn’t just a career,” he says. “It’s about understanding how firms operate, how capital is allocated, and how real value is created, so I can ultimately help reshape the systems and industries that impact billions of people.”

Booth faculty have been exceptionally supportive both in and outside the classroom. Every evening after his Cases in Financial Management course, Joshua Pierce, visiting professor of banking and “one of the top finance researchers in the world,” would always stay another hour or so “just to talk shop with students,” McCorkle says. 

The alumni network has also been invaluable. “Many Booth grads took the time to speak with me, and a few directly helped me prepare and position myself for the Evercore offer,” McCorkle says. “Between the alumni, the rigor, the faculty, and the support, Booth hasn’t just prepared me for investment banking. It made sure I’m ready to compete at the highest level.”

Georgieo Abou Jaoude came to Booth to supplement his background in electrical and computer engineering with a top-tier finance education.

“As an engineer who did not have much exposure to this field during my bachelor’s degree, I wanted to learn finance from the best faculty in the world,” he says. “I was also excited about the idea of taking courses with MBA students and expanding my network. I believed the MiF Program would be like ‘jet fuel’ for my career progression and personal growth.”

Abou Jaoude has accepted an internship in the Chicago office of the London-headquartered  professional services firm PwC, where he will have the opportunity to leverage his background in engineering and finance as a capital projects and infrastructure summer associate. 

“It’s a team of engineering, industry, and finance professionals who assist clients through the entire capital project life cycle, helping to mitigate risk and navigate disruption,” Jaoude says. “This role sits perfectly at the intersection of engineering and finance.” 

At Booth, Abou Jaoude has taken a wide variety of courses, including Quantitative Portfolio Management, Advanced Investments, and Accounting and Financial Analysis. He also worked as a teaching assistant in the course Data Visualization for Decision-Making. 

“Coming from an engineering background, the MiF Program is teaching me how to think in a completely different way than I was used to,” he says. “It’s extremely valuable to see issues from a finance point of view.”

He’s also benefited from meeting fellow students from all over the world with such a wide variety of backgrounds.

“Working with people who come from different universities and cultures and seeing how they think has also greatly expanded my perspective,” he says. “It has been truly amazing. I know I’ve made friends for life.”

With her innate curiosity, Sherry Tang found the perfect match in the MiF Program at Booth. 

“I’ve always enjoyed digging into the ‘why’ behind things,” she says. “Booth’s data-driven approach was exactly what I was looking for to build a deep, technical foundation in finance.” 

The school’s world-class reputation and its strong emphasis on analytical thinking and rigorous financial theory also “really appealed to the nerd in me,” she adds.

Tang accepted a summer internship in corporate banking at one of Citi’s locations in Taipei, Taiwan, where her family lives. She’s looking forward to sharpening her client-facing skills while analyzing the needs of Citi’s corporate banking customers and clients, including their financial condition, risk profile, and business activities. She’ll also be analyzing corporate banking products and solutions. 

“Taipei is growing as an AI hub, and its technology space is booming,” she says. “I’m excited to see the market there and get a better understanding of the global economy through a different lens.”

The internship aligns nicely with Tang’s long-term career goal to work in a client-facing role, such as investor relations or relationship management, where she can build long-term partnerships, develop a deep understanding of client needs, and help deliver strategic financial solutions. 

“I’m drawn to roles that allow me to combine relationship-building with strong analytical thinking to support clients in achieving their financial and business goals,” she says. As she embarks on her summer internship at Citi, Tang is confident she’s well on her way toward attaining this goal. 

“Coming from an undergraduate background in psychology and communication, I initially lacked confidence when applying for finance roles,” she says. “The MiF Program played a crucial role in bridging that gap and giving me the confidence and capabilities to pursue a role in corporate banking.”

Ajay Natarajan will be heading to IBM’s headquarters in Armonk, New York, this summer for a corporate finance internship. 

“I’ll be working on financial analysis and reporting while interpreting business data,” he says. It’s a critical step toward Natarajan’s ultimate career goals, which lie within public equity–focused asset management and financial technology. 

He’s grateful to Julie Morton, senior advisor for careers in the specialized masters programs, for connecting him with IBM in the Autumn Quarter, ultimately leading to his internship interviews and offers. He also found his MiF coursework instrumental in preparing him for the IBM internship.

“Corporation Finance with professor Anil Kashyap was challenging but very rewarding. It’s one of the classes that has prepared me best for this role,” Natarajan says. “Accounting and Financial Analysis with professor Hans Christensen was also a great opportunity to bolster my accounting skills.” 

Booth’s academic reputation is what convinced Natarajan to attend the MiF Program. “I felt that I would be able to join many other like-minded individuals to study under faculty who have done incredible work in their fields,” he says. “It’s amazing to see my professors’ names on prominent works and frameworks in finance.” 

Since starting the program, Natarajan has also been impressed with the school’s robust alumni network, which has given him invaluable professional connections with industry leaders and enhanced what he’s learned in the classroom. “I always try my best to attend Booth events with alumni, whether fireside chats, dinners, or panel discussions,” he says. “I’ve found it to be one of the best ways to learn.”