February 27, 2025
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Bhavya participated in the Citadel Associate Program (CAP) and is now an associate at the firm. Read her interview to learn more about CAP and how Bhavya honed her investment analysis skills through specialized training across two rotations in our equities business.
One lasting impression from her internship experience? “Everyone at Citadel is excited to invest in you both as an intern and as you develop your career here over time.”
I would describe the Citadel internship as empowering.
The internship gave me a taste of what it’s like to be a real associate. I felt like my work was value-additive to the team because I was doing research on and building infrastructure for stocks that they didn’t already cover but wanted to pick up over time.
On each of my two rotations in the fundamental equities businesses, I pitched a stock that the team was interested in covering. I built a model from scratch with earnings projections and a valuation framework, and I also did deep fundamental research to build a thesis around whether I thought the stock was a long or a short. At the end of the rotation, I pitched my idea to the team, who then asked questions and shared feedback. I enjoyed my experience more than I ever expected.
For my consumer rotation, I initiated coverage on a food company. Even though the product itself was intuitive to me, it was still a challenge to learn the KPIs, what investors care about and how to flow that into my investment thesis and model. I enjoyed working with an analyst and team that took the time to mentor me, especially since they are among the best investors in the space.
My second rotation was within health care, which was less intuitive to me. I covered a medical device company that solved a problem for a population with a disease that I had no familiarity with.
While the business model itself was simple, I had to learn the intricacies of industry pricing, the underlying disease and sales distribution. This experience taught me how to break down a seemingly complicated topic into its fundamental building blocks, which I have found to be very transferable as a full-time associate today.
The people here are one of the main reasons why I wanted to come back full-time. It was really important to me to work at a firm where I felt that senior people wanted to invest in me, see me grow and put in the upfront capital for my learning and development that would pay off for the team over time. While I was an intern, I worked for two incredible analysts, both of whom were very patient with any questions I may have had and took the time to make sure that I was on track. At the same time, they also gave me the space and autonomy to form investment theses that were my own rather than something that I was told to implement.
As CAP interns, we were also fortunate to have sessions with senior leaders at the firm, including the heads of the three equities businesses. They took more than an hour out of their day to meet with the interns, share their experiences and answer our questions. They were not only willing to take the time to meet with us, but they even sent us congratulatory emails when we got our return offers, which was really special.
The first—and maybe one of the biggest—is collaboration. It’s one of the firm’s core values, and I experienced it firsthand with the other interns. We were all willing to help each other with our projects, and we formed really strong relationships through the summer. I also learned so much just sitting next to other teams on the floor and hearing analysts share their wisdom with my peers.
It’s exciting to be surrounded by people who are best in class at what they do, innovating and solving problems together so that we deliver the best results for our investors. I have found that this environment really encourages you to bring out the best in yourself.
The internship gave me the experience I needed to contribute to my current team on day one.
The most important consideration for an intern is the people that you work with. When I was going through the interview process for the Citadel internship, I remember thinking to myself, “Wow, it would be awesome if I could be just like this person in 10 years.” In my experience, everyone at Citadel is excited to invest in you both as an intern and as you develop your career here over time. And that helps accelerate your learning and development path so much faster.
The internship gave me the experience I needed to contribute to my current team on day one. I learned how to think like an investor, build financial models and incorporate Citadel’s tools and technology into my process. Despite being only a couple of years out of college, I get to be directly involved with my team’s investment process and contribute to making real-time investment decisions on a daily basis, and the internship was a key step in preparing me for my role today.
Our summer internships are a one-of-a-kind experience—where passionate and driven students can apply their talents and make real impact.
Learn the skills, strategy and craft of investing at a preeminent financial firm. In this highly selective program, world-class investment professionals will be your coworkers and teachers.
