Resources

I thought it might be helpful to list some of the resources I used over the past while to get up to speed on investment banking, the economy, and different banks.

Books:

• Liar's Poker
• Monkey Business
• Barbarians at the Gate
• The Accidental Investment Banker
• A Demon of our Own Design
• The World is Flat / Hot, Flat, and Crowded
• Tipping Point
• Financial Shock: A 360º Look at the Subprime Mortgage Implosion (great summary of what's happened, even though he published before all the real crazy stuff happened)
• Valut Guide for Investment Banking / Vault Guide for Finance Interviews
• Running of the Bulls (about Wharton - I read it to see what the competition is like :)
• Never Eat Alone (book about networking)
• Goldman Sachs: Culture of Success / House of Morgan / other books on specific firms
• When Genious Failed

There are tons of other books but these are just a few that I've read in the past year.

Websites:

• www.mergersandinquisitions.com
• www.leveragedsellout.com
• www.investmentbankinginterviewprep.com
• www.wallstreetoasis.com
• www.realclearmarkets.com / www.realclearpolitics.com
• www.fiercefinance.com
• www.dealbreaker.com
• www.ibankingfaq.com

Again, there are tons of websites out there with good information, but these are some of the sites I look at frequently (some obviously for fun and some for information).

In addition to all of this, as I was getting ready for interviews I found lists of I-banking interview questions and would go through the lists, making sure I had a good answer for every single question. I probably did this for hundreds of questions, but I didn't want to get caught off-guard. It worked well; I never had an interview question that I hadn't heard before (or at least something very similar to it, to which I could easily tailor my pre-determined answer). I'm working on putting together some materials such as a model, interview questions, and other stuff that will be helpful. I'm short on time these days but it will be coming.

Other:

• Wall Street Journal (read it every day!)
• Financial Times
• New York Times
• Business Week (usually just skim through the copy in the business school)
• The Economist (also just read the copy in the business school)

There are obviously way more sources of information that you can possibly take in, but I've just made it a habit of always having something to read. I'll walk to class and read on the way. I read when I wake up, get home, whatever. A thirst for knowledge is vital to understanding what's going on in the world and being ready for investment banking, where the learning curve is steep.

I'm sure you all have other resources that are helpful - post a comment to share what is helpful to you!