Free Money Finance: Seven Tips for a Better Resume

Free Money Finance: Seven Tips for a Better Resume:

"Yahoo lists seven tips for a better resume as follows:

1. Select the best format.
2. Make certain your document is error free.
3. Find a balance between wordiness and lack of detail.
4. Do not use personal pronouns.
5. Use numerical symbols for numbers.
6. Think 'accomplishments' rather than 'job duties.'
7. Keep it positive."

There is more as well as some things that Yahoo does not have. So if you are on the Job Market, definitely click through!

Free Money Finance is one of my favorite personal finance blogs. Definitely worth reading! (I think so highly of it that I get it via both MyYahoo, iGoogle, and my Google reader!)

Apple's Stock (AAPL) Cheap, Cheap, Cheap

A good example for all classes, but even better for SIMM

Apple's Stock (AAPL) Cheap, Cheap, Cheap:

"Apple generated $8.5 billion of free cash flow in fiscal 2008 (through September). Apple's enterprise value at $88 a share is about $56 billion. That's 7X trailing free cash flow."

Insider trading class discussion

from Bnet

"PETE ROSE not betting on the Reds on a particular day certainly told other bettors, bookies, etc. that something was not right with the Reds that day (due to an injury or whatever). That is terrible! His silence was tantamount to insider trading. We all know how many hits Pete had, but I wonder how many "hits" were made by gamblers because of Pete's inside knowledge"

and then my personal favorite from a couple years ago. WOW!

"You have to read this! It has everything any insider trading case could want---from a retired seamstress, to classified ads placed to hire accomplices, to the theft of advance copies of BusinessWeek, to strippers, to Russian baths. (I am not making this up!)"

Finance 401 project

Due to a conflict with the Finance 401 exam, the term paper will be due Dec 3rd.

Jeremy Siegel's Mistake: Why Stocks Are NOT "Dirt Cheap"

Jeremy Siegel's Mistake: Why Stocks Are NOT "Dirt Cheap":

"The 15X average PE for the S&P 500 is what you get when you use professor Shiller's methodology, which averages 10 years of trailing earnings (and, therefore, if profit margins are normal, uses earnings of about 4 years ago). Prof Siegel's earnings estimate, meanwhile, is a forward estimate--one that adds about 5 years of trended growth (6% a year) to the Shiller estimate, but uses the same PE.

We suspect that, if Prof Siegel performed the same 'trended' analysis over the entire 20th Century, the average PE for forward trended earnings would be about 11X-12X, not 15X. This, we expect, would produce a fair value estimate much closer to that of Shiller, Grantham, Smithers, et al."

Given our class discussion on ratios and using multiples to value equities, this one is a must read for all classes! (yes click through to the article)

This will allow me to

This will allow me to update blog by phone in event of class cancellation etc.

SIMM Calendar

Test answers

Sorry for the delay...forgot yesterday..

1) C

2) E

3) D

4) E

5) D

6) C

7) D

8) E

9) E

10) A

11) D

12) C

13) B

14) E

15) A,B,C,D,E

16) E

17) A

18) B

19) B

20) E

21) D

22) B

23) B

24) A

25) D

26) C

27) C

28) D

29) B

30) E

31) D

32) D

33) E

34) D

35) E

36) A

37) B

38) C

39) D

40) E

41) E

42) C

43) E

44) D

45) B

46) E

47) C

48) C

49) B

50) E

51) B

52) D

53) D

54) E

55) D

56) C

57) A

58) C

59) D

60) D

61) C

62) C

63) C

64) C

65) B

66) E

67) D

68) D

69) C

70) C

71) E

72) E

73) C

74) B

75) E

Finance Students Keep Their Job Hopes Alive - NYTimes.com

Finance Students Keep Their Job Hopes Alive - NYTimes.com:

"Financial companies shed 150,000 jobs last year and more than 100,000 so far this year, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, a national job placement company. Yet amid the downturn, applications to graduate business schools rose this year, as they have in other periods of uncertainty."

Anxious time for finance majors

Anxious time for finance majors:

"CLEVELAND -- With the meltdown on Wall Street, many finance majors are worried about whether they can find jobs when they graduate.

'I have at least one more year of college, so I hope it will get better, hopefully,' says Seth Woolfe, a CSU finance junior.

It may be harder to find internships for college students, especially paid internships.

'Before you might have had three job offers when you graduated, now you may have to settle for a satisfactory job, not your dream job,' says Alan Reichert, a CSU Finance Professor.

Finance is the second most popular major in the College of Business at CSU. There are about 300 finance majors."

Markets crimp plans of would-be investment bankers - The Boston Globe

Markets crimp plans of would-be investment bankers - The Boston Globe:

"There are still opportunities in finance,' said Bakewell, who ended up taking the summer spot under JPMorgan Chase. 'You can't just change your whole career path. I can't imagine trying to do a complete 180 just based on recent events.'

There were a few more jangled nerves in the immediate aftermath of the September turmoil that toppled the remaining independent investment banks. Faculty and administrators at numerous business schools describe their second-year MBA students in particular as stunned or even panicked initially.

Students are starting to accept the new reality, school officials say, although many are reviewing their options and looking at smaller firms in different areas or even at different fields."

IBM

I have had several past students mention (ok, so two) that this is a good opportunity...be sure to check it out...from notice board:

Interested in working for IBM?

If so, plan to attend the IBM information session presented by Kathleen Colucci, SBU alumna and IBM vice-president, finance.

When: Thursday, Oct. 2 from 4 – 5 p.m.
Where: Reilly Center, Rm. 219

IBM has full-time corporate financial planning opportunities for candidates earning degrees in finance, accounting, or business.

Connie Whitcomb

Some valuation resources

In finance 401 we are doing valuation and I have mentioned SIMM several times. Here are some resources you might find useful in your valuations. Students in Money Management Resources

Fin401mainpage

Projecting Cash flows--the spreadsheet will be modified but here it is to start"

Sorry, I changed the file online but forgot to tell people...

here is the 401 projected financials:
http://www.financeprofessor.com/fin301/projectedfinancials.xls

Colleges spending more time teaching financial literacy | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Pamela Yip | Personal Finance | Business Colu

The Finance Club is talking about doing this. Any interest?

Colleges spending more time teaching financial literacy | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Pamela Yip | Personal Finance | Business Columnist | Dallas Morning News:

"'One of the things that we have found is that the population has very little background in basic economics and personal finance,' said Steven L. Cobb, center director and chairman of the economics department. 'The earlier that we start teaching economics, the earlier students begin to understand these concepts and the better the chance that they will be good consumers.'

Other schools are also active in offering personal finance courses."

Free Money Finance: A Better Way to Get the Salary You Want

Deciding whether or not to mention salary requirements is always a question interviewers have, so this advice from FreeMoney Finance is well worth reading!

Some good advice from Free Money Finance: A Better Way to Get the Salary You Want:

"I think this advice is not realistic. If an interviewer asks you point blank what your salary requirements are, you may be able to dodge him once or twice with a smooth, non-committal answer. But if he presses you (which I would do), you're either going to have to tell him or look uncooperative/obstinate -- which obviously doesn't put your best foot forward during the interview process.

So here's an alternative that I like from Yahoo -- price yourself like a house"

Read more about this...BEFORE you interview!

On and Off-Campus Recruiting

On and Off-Campus Recruiting:

"Register with The Career Center by opening a free, SBU College Central Network account and post a current résumé to it. The site is located at: www.collegecentral.com/sbu. For information on how to navigate College Central Network, click HERE.

** Attend an 'On-Campus Recruiting Orientation' in order to be eligible, if selected, to participate in an interview. You must attend an orientation before you sign up for an interview. Previous recruiting-orientation participants do not need to attend again. Please check with the Career Center to determine your eligibility."

MANY finance jobs are filled in the Fall....so now is the time to begin....Feel free to show me your resume as well. Far from an expert, but I will mark it up for you.

Meetings...

12:30 Friday BonaResponds leader meeting...looks great on a resume! and you know it is the right thing to do. Become a leader!

and then we can walk over to

1:00 Friday Finance club meeting:

There will be a Finance Club meeting this Friday at 1pm in the SIMM room, located in the basement of the R.C. Topics discussed, among other things, will be the annual New York City Trip and the Alumni Golf Tournament. The meeting is open to all students regardless of year or major. If you are unable to attend the meeting and would like information on the club or events please e-mail Mark Larry at larrymj@sbu.edu .

The Park Library - Bloomberg Terminal Guide

The Park Library - Bloomberg Terminal Guide-
Another Bloomberg certification site.

bloomberg+certification - Fast Answer Search - Baker Library | Bloomberg Center

bloomberg+certification - Fast Answer Search - Baker Library | Bloomberg Center:

"Why complete certification? Gain comprehensive knowledge of Bloomberg Professional service, optimize job performance, and differentiate yourself from peers."