Corporate Finance to IB transition

Question

Hi there,

I’m currently working in the Corporate Finance team of a manufacturing company in London (2 years in), and I’ve just been invited to interview for an off-cycle M&A internship at a mid-market investment bank. I’m comfortable with Excel but less used to dynamic modeling or sensitivity analyses under pressure.

The interview next Tuesday will apparently include a short valuation exercise using an Excel sheet and possibly a case where I have to calculate enterprise value or assess a potential acquisition. I’ve been trying to self-learn via YouTube, but the sheer amount of material out there feels overwhelming.

Can someone please guide me on which specific areas to focus on in the next few days? EV/EBITDA multiples? DCF sensitivities? Any tips for staying calm under time pressure during the modeling part would be really appreciated.

Answer 1

Focus your next few days on mastering the essentials rather than trying to cover everything. Revisit how to calculate enterprise value, equity value, and key multiples like EV/EBITDA, EV/EBIT, and P/E. Then move to basic DCF mechanics—projecting free cash flows, choosing discount rates (WACC), and computing terminal value. Once comfortable, spend a few hours practicing quick sensitivity tables in Excel (e.g., how valuation changes with WACC or growth rate) and setting up basic three-statement or single-sheet models from scratch.

Use guides like Investopedia or short modeling videos from Mergers & Inquisitions or Breaking Into Wall Street—avoid overly detailed tutorials. For the interview, stay calm by talking through your logic aloud, use clear assumptions, and keep your Excel neat with labeled inputs. They’ll value structure and reasoning more than perfection.