From Barracks to Banking: Alexander Riley ’27
This article is part of The Next Step series. While the four years at VMI are designed for cadets to push themselves academically, physically, and mentally to tackle the demands of life at a premiere military college, they also prepare cadets for life after graduation. Whether that life be one in the military or one in the private sector, VMI faculty and staff provide guidance to cadets along their journeys. One department specifically dedicated to that endeavor of post-Institute success is the Office of Career Services. In The Next Step series, we highlight cadets preparing to enter the workforce after graduation, as well as those still in the midst of their cadetship preparing for internships over the summer.
Alexander “AJ” Riley ’27 started investing in high school. That’s when his interest in finance started to bloom.
“My 3rd Class year, I decided on investment banking specifically as a career interest,” he explained. “I applied to a lot of investment banking internships due to the very competitive recruiting process.”
Riley, an economics and business major from Stafford, Virginia, will be spending the summer as an investment banking summer analyst at Citizens Bank. He will be focusing on mergers and acquisitions for industrial, health care, and consumer companies out of the Cleveland office.
“This role entails building and analyzing financial models, drafting information memoranda and other transaction-related documents, as well as preparing pitch books, presentations, and other internal underwriting materials,” he said.
Riley said it’s difficult to break into the world of investment banking. He knew once he received an offer from Citizens, he was going to accept it. The internship has many attractive features, he explained, including a week-long period where the company will fly him to Atlanta where he will have the chance to network with senior leaders and get up to speed on standardized practices within the investment banking division of Citizens.
“There is also a mentorship program where I will be assigned to a younger employee who works at the office I will be working at. That person will be available for any questions — professional or personal,” Riley said. “Citizens also staffs their interns on live deals, so getting the opportunity to play a role in the deal process is invaluable.”
During his interview, Riley said a vice president at the company discussed the emphasis their office puts on not working too many late nights in a row. On average, investment bankers work 80 to 100 hours a week. For his work week, Riley is looking at more of 60 to 80 hours.
“Although this may be the case, I am fully prepared, willing, and somewhat excited to work those long 80 to 100-hour weeks. That is nothing compared to a week at VMI,” he admitted.
Having VMI on his resume, Riley said it gave him the upper hand.
“Leaders in investment banking recruit heavily from the Ivy League schools and often don’t bat an eye at applicants from any small college. But once one firm — Citizens — gave me a chance at a first-round interview, I think that is where my VMI edge set me apart from others,” he said. “My interviewers noted that I conducted myself in a very professional and respectful manner — this is something that is drilled into you at VMI.”
He said the regimented daily life at VMI set him apart from others who may have been interviewing for the spot he gained.
“Being able to tell an interviewer that you wake up at 6:30 a.m. every day for a morning formation and having a shaved head with no cell phone for seven months as a college student is something that they will remember you for,” he stated. “That is what set me apart in my interviews and helped me get a second-round interview, a super day interview, and ultimately an offer.”
He was drawn to this career path because he wanted to be able to help someone reach a point where they can retire comfortably and set their family up for the future.
“It is not just a transaction; it is the result of a lot of hard work finally paying off. Being able to help them through that process and actually see them benefit from it is something I think that I will find really meaningful,” he said. “I also like the idea of helping find the right buyer, someone who can take over and continue growing a business. There is something rewarding about knowing you played a part in both helping the owner move on to the next stage of their life and making sure the business they built continues to succeed.”
Looking to his own future, he hopes in the next decade to have completed his master’s of business administration and assuming a senior level position in a high finance firm.
“I want to create a network of relationships that allows me to be able to play a key part in making deals happen for people I know,” he said.
He also hopes to start a family and settle somewhere in the Charlotte, North Carolina, area.
VMI has empowered Riley with determination and persistence, which allowed him to not give up during the recruiting process for investment banking.
“I’ve encountered failure so many times at VMI and learned how to handle it, which in turn made one rejection letter seem like not the end of the world,” he said. “My professors and rigorous class material that was taught to me gave me a head start on interview preparation and helped with studying for technical questions.”
