biws quick start guide

5/25/2018 BIWS Quick Start Guide

1/54

Breaking Into Wall StreetQuick Start Guide Site Functionality and Course Access

http://breakingintowallstreet.com 1

Welcome to Breaking Into Wall Street!

This Quick Start Guide will cover everything you need to get start using the courses on

the site, regardless of whether youve signed up for a single course, a package deal, or

anything in between.

Heres what well explain in this guide:

How to Log In and Access Your Courses, Modules, and Lessons.o Alternative Navigation Jump to Topic.

How to Complete Individual Lessons.o Before: Review the Before File, Notes, and Assumptions.o After: Review the Completed After File.o Study: Watch the Video.o Execute: Practice Yourself, Starting with the Before File.o Scrutinize: Confirm That Your Finished File Matches the After File.

How to Ask Questions, Take Notes, and Track Your Progress.o How to Ask Questions and Receive Answers.o How to Take Notes and Track Your Progress.o How to Track Your Completed Lessons.o

How to View All Your Notes and Comments.o The My BIWS Page.o The All My Comments and All My Notes Pages.o How to Save and Print All Your Notes.

How to Download Course Files and Videos. How to Take Quizzes, Get Certifications, and List the Courses on Your Resume.

o How to Take Practice Quizzes and Review Your Quiz Results.o How to Get Course Certifications.o How to List the Courses on Your Resume.

How to Sign Up for Additional Courses and Free Tutorials.o How to Sign Up for Additional Courses.o How to Sign Up for Free Financial Modeling Tutorials.

How to Change Your Account Information and Password. Any Questions?


2/54



How to Log In and Access Your Courses, Modules,

and Lessons

Click the User Login link in the top right-hand corner of the site:

Then, once you arrive on the Login page, simply enter the Username and Password you

created when you signed up:


3/54



If you do not have a Username and Password,please contact us via the Contact link

at the top of the pageand we will fix your account and make sure you can log in

properly:
http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/


4/54



Once youve logged in successfully, you can access your Courses by clicking on View

Course Details underneath each Course. You will be redirected to the Courses page

after you log in:

After you click the link, youll be able to access all the Modules and Lessons within eachCourse. If you cannotaccess your Courses properly,please email us via the Contact

link at the top of each page.

Heres what youll see after you click on View Course Details in this example, weve

clicked the View Course Details button under the Excellence with Excel Course:
http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/


5/54




6/54



On this screen, youll see a description of the course, the quick reference guides, and

other resources as well as all the Modules in the course. Each Module displays how

many Lessons youve completed(Done), how many youve started but havent

finished yet (Started), and how many you havent started yet (Remaining).

Heres what happens when you click on the Formatting Module:


7/54



You can click on any of the Lesson links themselves or on the Quick Links on the

right-hand side of the page to access the Lessons in this Module.

You can also sort the Lessons by their completion status (Not Started, Working, and

Done), but well get to that when we reachthe section on taking notes and tracking your

progress.

Alternative Navigation Jump to Topic Function

You can also access all your Courses, Modules, and Lessons by clicking on the Jump to

Topic button that appears on thetop right-hand corner of each page:

Then you can click on one of the Courses in that menu to open the list of Modules:


8/54



Then, you can click on any of the Modules to view the Lesson list:

Finally, you can click any of the individual Lessons that appear next to each Module to

jump to individual Lessons within that Module:


9/54



Return to Top.

How to Complete Individual Lessons

We recommend using the B.A.S.E.S. methodto complete the Lessons:

Before:Review the Before Excel (or other) file, including any backgroundinformation and required assumptions.

After:Then, check the After Excel (or other) file, and focus on how itsdifferentfrom the Before file.

Study:Once youre reviewed both files, watch the entire video through to theend and pay attention to both the whyand the howof what we do in Excel (or

PowerPoint) to turn the file into the After version.You can also review the

transcript(s) and quick reference guide(s) included in the lesson, if applicable.

Execute:Then, try it yourself by practicing with the Before file and replicatingthe steps so that it looks like the After file when youre done.


10/54



Scrutinize:When you finish, confirm that its the same.If its NOTthe same, youcan review the video again, look at the existing comments left by other BIWS

members, or leave a question on the site or via email if you get completely stuck.

You can also review the transcript(s) and quick reference guide(s) and see if

those point you in the right direction.

Heres an example (from the Excel course) of how you might apply this strategy to

complete individual Lessons:

Before: Review the Before File, Notes, and Assumptions


11/54



After going to the Lesson, open the Before file and the supplementary resources

(transcripts, quick reference guides, and other documents) under Files & Resources:


12/54



Now, review the Excel file itself:


13/54



In this case, youd note the data displayedin all the columns and how the address data

is very poorly formatted. The point of this lesson is to fix the formattingforthat data, so

you should start thinking about how you might do that.

After: Review the Completed After File

Now, go back to the Lesson page and click on Files & Resources again and bring up

the After file:


14/54



Heres the file:

Note the key difference:the address data is now formatted properly and is much easier

to read.


15/54



In the more advanced Lessons, there will be many differences in the After file, but

this gives you a flavor of what to expect.

Study: Watch the Video

There isnt much to say about this part simply watch the video, follow along, and if

the screen size is too small for you, go to View Larger Video linked to under Video

Formats in each Lesson instead.

You can also speed upthe video by playing it at 1.5x speed or 2.0x speed via the

buttons beneath the video on each page:


16/54



Normal speed is appropriate if you want to absorb the material at a manageable pace.

1.5x speed is good for skimming or faster learning of the material, and 2.0x speed is

perfect for when you want to quickly review a video youve already watched.

Execute: Practice Yourself, Starting with the Before File

Now, start with the Before Excel file and replicate all the steps in the video.

Youre aiming to make your own Excel file resemble the After file youve already

examined.

Scrutinize: Confirm That Your Finished File is the Same as the After File


17/54



Do a side-by-side comparison between your own completed file and the After file on

the site and verify that they are the same:

Theyre the same in this case, so were done. This process is more time-consuming in

the more advanced Lessons, but the steps are the same.

What If Your File Doesnt Match Up With the After File in the Lesson?

First, you can watch the video again and skip to the parts that you may not have

understood 100% the first time around:

You can also review the Comments posted on each Lesson page, because these often

contain answers to the most common questions:


18/54



And if you cant find what youre looking for there, you can always leave a comment on

the Lesson with your question (youll receive a response within 1 business day, and

often faster than that):


19/54



Finally, you can click the Contact link in the top menu of every page on the site and

submit your question via email instead:

You are better off leaving a comment directly on the sitebecause you will receive a

faster response that way.

Return to Top.

How to Ask Questions, Take Notes, and Track

Your Progress

Besides just completing the lessons and the Excel exercises on the site, it is criticalto ask

questions, take notes on key topics, and track your progress over time or youll forget

much of what youve learned.

This section of the guide explains how you can ask questions and receive answers, and

how you can track which lessons youve completed and the notes youve taken.


20/54



How to Ask Questions and Receive Answers

You have 2 options for asking questions: 1) On the site itself; and 2) Via email.

We would strongly recommend asking your questions directly below each Lesson,

because youll receive faster responsesthat way.

If you have a private question that you cant share or you have account access trouble,

then youll have to use email and once againgo through the Contactlink displayed at

the top of each page on the site.

Heres how to ask questions on the site in a specific Lesson:

Once you enter your question or comment, it will appear below all the existing

questions and comments on the Lesson.

Then, you will receive a response within the site and email notification within 24 hours.

BONUS TIP:You should also review the dozens / hundreds of existing questions and

answers for all the Lessons. Theres a treasure trove of previous Q&As from studentswho have used the site to win job offers, so we strongly recommend reading as many of

these questions and answers as you can.

You can also review all yourprevious comments and navigate to our responses by

clicking on the All My Comments link on the right-hand side of each page on the site:
http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/http://breakingintowallstreet.com/biws/contact/


21/54



Return to Top.

How to Take Notes and Track Your Progress

For Courses with dozens or hundreds of Lessons, its really important to track your

progressto remember where you are and which Lessons you have yet to complete.

Taking noteson each Lesson is also a big help because we cover a lot of material in the

videos and the quick reference guides cant possibly show you every nuance.


22/54



Heres how you can take notes on a Lessonand view your existing notes:


23/54



After youve completed a Lesson, or while youre in the midst of completing it, you can

also change its completion status:

The three statuses are Not Started, Working, and Done:

Clicking on the button once changes it to Working, clicking it again changes it to

Done, and clicking it a third time changes it back to Not Started.


24/54



After you complete Lessons, you can get a summary view of your progress by

navigating to the Course page or the Module page:

The Course page above shows you a summary for all the Modules in the Course, while

the individual Module pages show you which specific Lessons youve completed, as

well as how many notes youve taken on each Lesson:


25/54



When youre reviewing your work or moving through Lessons youve already

completed, you can also sort all the Lessons in a Module by their status:


26/54



This is helpful if youve finished part of a Module and you need to return later to

complete the remaining Lessons.

How to Track Your Completed Lessons

Click My Completed Lessons on the right-hand menu when you log in (or on the

pages that list individual Lessons), and youll see the page shown below:


27/54



Click the drop-down menu to choose the Course you would like to view, and you will

see the Modules for that course and what your status is on each Lesson:


28/54



How to View All Your Notes and Comments

To view all your Notes and Comments in one spot, you can click the All My Notes or

All My Comments buttons displayed on the right-hand side of each page on the site,

or click on the My BIWS link in the top right-hand corner of the site:


29/54



To print your Notes, youll have to click the My BIWS link and continue onto that

page (see the next section of the guide right below this):

The My BIWS Page

On the My BIWS page, youllbe able to access all your Courses, your Download

Center, Quizzes, and Completed Lessons, and your recent Notes and Comments:


30/54




31/54



The All My Comments and All My Notes Pages

You can then click the All My Notes or All My Comments buttons on the My

BIWS page, or on any other pages on the site, to view everything:

You can choose to display Notes only in specific Courses, Modules, or Lessons, or all

your Notes across the entire site here.

The All My Comments page is similar, but you can click on individual Comments

there to jump directly to our responses on the corresponding Lesson:


32/54



How to Save and Print All Your Notes

If you go back to the My BIWS page and scroll down to Recent Notes, you can click

on the Download Notes button to save your notes to a single PDF:


33/54



Heres the page that will appear once you click the Download Notes button:

Return to Top.


34/54



How to Download Course Files and VideosYou can download Course files and videos by clicking the My Download Center

button on the right-hand side of any page, or within the My BIWS page:

Then, select the Course that you want to download files and videos from:


35/54



After you select the Course, you can then download the Excel / Word / PowerPoint /

PDF files all at once and download all the videos in different formats:


36/54



Downloading the files can be helpful if you have a slow Internet connection or youll be

without Internet access for a while, but we recommend completing the Lessons onthe

site as much as possiblefor several reasons:

1. The Comments under each Lesson video are extremely valuable, and you wontbe able to view them if youre using only the downloaded video files.

2. You also wont be able to track your progress or enter your own Notes.3. Finally, you wont be able to ask questions and receive answers as easily, or refer

to all the supplementary materials for Lessons.

Return to Top.


37/54



How to Take Quizzes, Get Certifications, and List

the Courses on Your Resume

Quizzes and certifications allow you to test your knowledge, review what youve

learned, and make sure that youre remembering everything as you progress.

They are NOTyet available for all courses on the site (our long-term goal is to introduce

practice quizzes and certification quizzes for all the courses).

You will receive free access to these features if you sign up for a course and we then

add practice quizzes and/or certification quizzes for that course.

How to Take Practice Quizzes and Review Your Quiz Results

You can navigate to Practice Quizzes by clicking on the quiz links within each

module, or by going to the quiz modules within certain courses:


38/54



You can then take the quiz:

Each question is displayed on a single page and you press Next to advance to the

next question; on some quizzes, the questions are grouped by category and each page

shows all the questions in one category.

Your progress is saved automatically as you advance through the questions, but you

can also click the Save Quiz button to save your answers manually.

You can also reset all your previously saved answers by clicking the Reset Answer

Choices button at the top of the quiz page shown above.

Once you reach the end of a Practice Quiz, youll be able to see your score, the number

of questions you answered correctly, your responses, and the correct answers and

explanations for all the questions:


39/54



Heres what an incorrectlyanswered question looks like:

You can get answer keys for all the Practice Quizzes in the Courses that havePractice

Quizzes by going to the My Resource Center page and opening the ZIP file for the

course:


40/54



To review the results from all the quizzes youve taken both Practice Quizzes and

Certification Quizzes (covered in the next section) click on the All My Quizzes link

on the right-hand side of the Course and Module pages, or on the My BIWS page:


41/54



Then, you can select the specific Course Quizzes you want to view from within the

drop-down menu on the page:

Next, you can click on individual quiz attempts to view your scores, your answers, and

the correct answers with explanations.

Youll see a summary of the total number of questions you answered incorrectly at the

top of the page, with all the questions, answer choices, and explanations below that:


42/54



A few notes on these quiz features:

1. As mentioned above, we do NOThave Practice Quizzes for all the courses yet.We are aiming to add them to everything over the long-term.

2. While you can view both your correct and incorrect answer choices on thePractice Quizzes, as well as the full explanations for all the questions, you can

only view your incorrect answerson the Certification Quizzes (it would bemeaningless to award you a certification if you know all the answers in advance).

3. Your score is based on TOTAL POINTS RECEIVEDnot the number ofquestions you answer correctly. Therefore, if you get 90 out of 100 questions

correct but only score 100 out of 120 points (since some questions have multiple

correct answers), thats a score of 83%, not 90%.

4. You can take the quizzes an unlimited number of times until you pass.


43/54



How to Get Course Certifications

The certification available for each course requires you to earn a score of at least 90% on

a rigorous examination. The Certification Quiz is available in the last Module of many

of our courses:

Once you click the Module, you will arrive on a page similar to the one shown below:


44/54



Now you can begin answering all the quiz questions:

The Certification Quizzes work the same way as the Practice Quizzes: your progress is

saved automatically and you can always return to complete a partially completed quiz

later on. Or you can come back to the quiz and reset all your answer choices.

However, Certification Quizzes have multiple questions grouped by category on the

same page, and the quizzes themselves are much longer and more in-depth.


45/54



Once you complete the quiz, youll see a report at the end with the number of questions

you answered correctly and the total number of points you earned:

In this case, we answered 0 questions so we earned 0 points on the quiz and did NOT

receive a certification.

To get the certification, youll have to score over 90%by POINTS. Some questions have

multiple correct answers, so one question could be worth anywhere from 1 point to 3

points.

In the quiz shown above, for example, you would need to earn at least 227 / 253 points

to receive the certification, since 227 / 253 = 89.7%, which we round up to 90%.


46/54



Even if you answered 175 / 195 questions (also 90%) correctly, you might NOTreceive

the certification because your score is based on points earned, not # of correct answers.

Completed quizzes will appear on the My Quizzes page (access via the Courses page

or My BIWS page), where you can review the questions you answered incorrectly and

view and print out your certificates:

When you view the individual quiz results, youll get a summary of your performance

at the top and youll see the questions that you answered incorrectly:


47/54



We do NOTprovide the correct answers to the questions because that would defeat the

purpose of the Certification Quiz. Once you pass, you can print out your certificate:

Return to Top.


48/54



How to List the Courses on Your Resume

One of the many benefits of completing a BIWS course is the ability to list it on your

resume to highlight your skill set.

Click the link below to download a document with templates and sample resume / CV

language to use for each course youve taken:

http://biws-support.s3.amazonaws.com/BIWS-Courses-Resume-Instructions.docx

Return to Top.

How to Sign Up for Additional Courses and Free

Tutorials

How to Sign Up for Additional Courses

To sign up for additional courses, simply click on the Courses link in the top menu on

each page:
http://biws-support.s3.amazonaws.com/BIWS-Courses-Resume-Instructions.docxhttp://biws-support.s3.amazonaws.com/BIWS-Courses-Resume-Instructions.docxhttp://biws-support.s3.amazonaws.com/BIWS-Courses-Resume-Instructions.docx


49/54



Then, scroll down to the Courses that you do NOT have access to on the Courses page

and click the View Course Details to get the full description, or click theSignup

Now button to sign up directly:

Only the courses that you do NOThave access to have Signup Now buttons next to

them.

After you click the Signup Now link, a screen like the one shown below will appear:


50/54




51/54



After you enter your information and click the Order Now button, youllbe directed

to enter your username and password to add the course to your account, and then

youll have access to the new course.

If something goes wrong,contact us via the Contact form on the site and well fix your

account so that you have proper access.

How to Sign Up for Free Financial Modeling Tutorials

If youve already signed up for the Interview Guide or Networking Toolkit, you might

decide that you need the financial modeling courses in the future; or, if youve signed

up for the more advanced modeling courses, you might decide that you need arefresher on the basic and intermediate concepts.

To get a preview of whats in the core financial modeling courses (Excellence with Excel,

Financial Modeling Fundamentals, and Advanced Modeling), you can sign up for the

free tutorialsthat we offer:

On the next page, simply enter your email address in the box on the right-hand side of

the page and then click the Give Me Free Access button:


52/54



Make sure you enter your email address correctly, or you will NOTreceive the free

tutorials via email.

Youll receive the first tutorial when you sign up, followed by another tutorial in the

series each day after that, and then additional free tutorials in longer intervals after

youve received the first sequence.

Return to Top.

How to Change Your Account Information and

Password

Start by clicking the Account link in the top right-hand corner of each page of the site:


53/54



You can change your name, email address, and display name on the next page:

If you scroll down the page, you can also change your Password at the bottom:


54/54



Return to Top.

Any Questions?

Thats about itfor this Quick Start Guide.Please contact us if you have any other

questions or if anything here is unclear.

-Brian

Brian DeChesare

Breaking Into Wall Street

Mergers & Inquisitions

biws quick start guide

Documents

o study

guide site functionality

course accesshttp

breaki biws quick start

additional courses

courses onthe site

course certifications

courses pageafter