Private Equity Field Study

Private Equity Field Study

The Private Equity Field Study course pairs MBA students with private equity firms to work on part-time, unpaid projects. Students would be expected to work roughly one day a week on the project, with the flexibility to increase hours in some weeks of the semester. 

The students will be expected to contribute 12 weeks to these projects that are mission-crucial but not mission-critical. These unpaid positions are central to this for-credit, full-semester course taught by Prof. Michael Ewens at Columbia Business School.  Beyond the work required for the firm, students must attend a weekly class session to report on their progress and produce a final presentation related to the in-semester project. 

Listed below are some suggested projects for students.  Projects should likely be completed within 10-12 weeks.  Partner PE firms are encouraged to propose their own.  The only requirements are that that project challenges the student’s skill set and provides them with a perspective on the inner workings of a private equity firm. 

Students: The PE Field Study is an important component of the PE Fellows Program - read more about the Fellows Program

Firms: Interested in partnering with the class?  Contact us. 

Matching Students to Firms

Partner firms and students jointly manage the matching process. Partner firms review the resume book of admitted students and request outreach from the students they identify as suitable candidates. The matching process has the following steps:

1. Partner firm is provided the resume book for available students and informs the instructor of top choices (typically 2-6 names). Selection is first-come first-serve. 
2. Selected students are provided contact details of the partner at the firm and reach out to organize a short Zoom call/interview.
3. Partner firm and selected student decide on the pairing, with the student contacting the instructor about the final match.

Deadlines

(Full term, half-credit; meets 1 hour per week)

Instructor: Michael Ewens

Student Application dates: Fall 2025 deadline has passed, for Spring 2026 check back for more details
 

Example Projects

• Sector thesis development and support:
  • Industry landscaping, comparable assembly, target list development, relevant banker identification, etc.
• Pipeline management and screening:
  • NDA processing, initial write-ups of new opportunities, updating or maintaining the firm’s deal pipeline, etc.
• Retrospective analysis of previously evaluated deals
  • Returns and exits analysis.
• Refreshing templated marketing materials:
  • Firm one-pagers, management meeting materials, etc.
• Refreshing other templated materials:
  • Underwriting models, valuation memos/models, etc.
• Portfolio company onboarding/reporting refinement:
  • Refreshing/developing reporting / KPI packages
• Database compilation/management:
  • Aggregating lists of lenders/financing sources, co-investors, third-party vendors, bankers, etc.
  • Compiling/maintaining a repository of key deal terms of purchase agreements, credit agreements, etc.
• Data vendor and service analysis:
  • Review and evaluate new data vendors or service projects for deal or operating partner teams.
• Due diligence provider engagement and management:
  • Engage with alternative commercial due diligence providers to explore working with new, deal-related service providers to ensure QA and potentially more favorable pricing.
• Add-on acquisition search for existing portfolio company:
  • Analyze industry trends and competitive dynamics for target search.
• Junior investment professional QA:
  • Conducting a first-line defense review of CIM analysis and high-level modeling of early-stage deals conducted by analysts and pre-MBA associates.
• Investor relations or fundraising support
  • Research potential limited partners.

FAQs and Logistics

What is the course timing and weekly work requirement?

The class officially starts at the first course-meeting of each term.  The project need not start or end on the exact dates of the course so long as the student has roughly 12 weeks of out-of-classroom work.  During the terms, students will work on the partner project for an average of a day a week (3-4 hours more or less in some weeks is expected).

What is required of the partner firm in terms of student interaction?

While projects may differ in expectations and deliverables, every partner firm should expect to communicate by email with the student once a week and have a half-hour meeting (Zoom or in person) every other week to check-in.  Partner firms will be invited to come to class as guest speakers. 

What does the firm contribute?

Does the project have to be in-person, remote, or hybrid?

Ideally, the projects will allow the student to visit the partner firm’s offices at least a few times during the semester, however, the default format is remote.

How are students matched to partner firms?

To start, students apply to the class and once admitted, are added to the resume book.  Using this resume book, the matching process has the following steps:

1. Partner firm reviews resume book for available students and informs instructor of top 2-4 choices. Selection is first-come first-serve. 
2. Selected students are provided contact details of the partner at the firm to organize a short Zoom call/interview.
3. Partner firm and selected student decide on the pairing, with the student contacting the instructor about the final match.
4. Matched students are removed from the circulating resume book.

What data or resources will be available for the student?

Students will have access to all of Columbia’s resources (e.g., Pitchbook, Capital IQ, Factiva, Bloomberg, etc.). The partner firm can provide credentials for their data or subscriptions for the semester. 

Can the students list this project as an internship or employment on their resume? 

By default, no. Students will not list the partner firm on their resume without prior approval of the firm.  Students will list “PE Field Study member” on their resume by default.

What confidentiality terms and NDAs are allowed?

Students must sign an NDA with the firm to ensure confidentiality. All students enrolled in the class will sign a class confidentiality code for any conversations during class time. The discussions in class and deliverables will be general enough to ensure they do not violate these contracts. 

Timeline (updated for Fall 2025)

• March 5: Applications open
• March 30: Student applications close
• May-June: Collect firm projects.  Interested firms should contact the Private Equity Program and/or Prof. Michael Ewens ([email protected]) for questions.
• July-August: Matching between students and projects.
• September 2025: First class meeting 
• December 2025: Reception with firms and students in class