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Finance Peer Career Advising (PCA) Program

The Finance Peer Career Advising (PCA) program connects undergraduate students with trained senior peer advisors who have successfully completed competitive Summer 2025 Analyst internships across a range of finance sectors, including investment banking, private equity, corporate finance, wealth management, and more. PCAs offer firsthand insights and personalized guidance on resumes, technical prep, networking strategies, and interview preparation.

All Marshall and Leventhal undergraduate majors, as well as students pursuing the Finance minor, are welcome to request a 1:1 career advising appointment starting at the beginning of fall 2025 semester. PCA advising hours will be posted in HANDSHAKE.

In addition to individual advising, PCAs will also lead career education programming and panels throughout the academic year to introduce students to different areas of finance. These events will also be posted and available for registration on HANDSHAKE.

Meet the 2025-2026 Finance PCA Cohort

Investment Banking Peer Career Advisors

Paavna Pannu
Firm (Summer 2025):
Goldman Sachs | San Francisco, CA

Paavna Pannu is a senior at the USC Marshall School of Business, majoring in Business Administration with an emphasis in Finance and a minor in Real Estate Development. She previously interned at Goldman Sachs in their San Francisco TMT Investment Banking division and has accepted a full-time offer with the firm.
Samarth Sogani
Firm (Summer 2025):
PJT Partners | San Francisco, CA

Samarth is a senior at USC Marshall pursuing a B.S. in Business Administration with minors in Computer Programming and AI Applications. Most recently, he interned at PJT Partners this past summer and will be at Qatalyst Partners in San Francisco full-time in 2026.
Ishan Tandon
Firm (Summer 2025):
Mizuho Greenhill | San Francisco, CA

Ishan is a senior at USC Marshall studying Business Administration, with an emphasis in Finance. He has two minors, one in Applied Analytics and one in Artificial Intelligence. Over the past summers, Ishan has worked in

Private Equity and Financial Due Diligence, and most recently, worked in Technology Investment Banking in San Francisco. He'll be joining Perella Weinberg Partners in San Francisco as a Technology Investment Banking Analyst after graduation.
Ishan enjoys exploring the outdoors through skiing and running (having completed his first marathon this past summer) and enjoys rooting for the Denver Nuggets throughout the NBA season.
Jessica Thompson
Firm (Summer 2025):
Houlihan Lokey | New York City, NY

Jessica Thompson is entering her final year at USC Marshall, majoring in business administration with an intended emphasis in finance and minor in environmental studies.

Her prior banking experience includes investment banking internships at Mitsubishi UFG Bank and Houlihan Lokey, both in New York City. At these banks, she held roles within the sponsor finance and financial institutions groups, respectively.
At USC, she was a member of the Trojan Investing Society (now TFA) 2024 mentorship program and has taken relevant coursework such as FBE421, BUAD308, BUAD310 and BUAD280. She further interned at the USC endowment fund during the fall of her sophomore year. She’s excited to be apart of the Trojan Finance Academy team and is looking forward to a great year!
Emily Wu
Firm (Summer 2025):
Goldman Sachs | San Francisco, CA

Emily Wu is excited to return to the Financial Services Career Hub as a Finance Peer Career Advisor for her senior year at USC.
Emily studies business administration at USC with an emphasis in finance, alongside a minor in AI Applications.

Previously, she was a student leader for the Trojan Finance Academy and the President of TIS. Emily is a summer investment banking analyst at Goldman Sach's Technology group in San Francisco and will be returning full-time. Emily is excited to continue to support students in their own finance journeys for the upcoming spring semester!
Emily will start her Finance PCA role in spring 2026 semester.

Investment Management / Buy Side Peer Career Advisors

Sparsh Dak
Firm (Summer 2025):
Audax Private Equity | Boston, MA

Sparsh Dak is a senior at the USC Marshall School of Business studying Business Administration (Finance) with minors in Cinematic Arts and Dance. At USC, he is President of Trojan Venture Partners, a Marshall Recognized Student Organization focused on buy-side training, where he helps

organize workshops on valuation, modeling, and investment research for undergraduate students interested in finance.
Sparsh is interested in the middle market buy-side space and enjoys learning how businesses grow, adapt, and create value over time. Most recently, he was a 2025 summer analyst with Audax Private Equity in Boston and will return full-time in 2026. In the past, he has spent time across the private equity, growth equity, and venture capital spaces with Eos Venture Partners, Volition Capital, Spiral Sun Ventures, and The Kimberton Group.
He joins the Marshall Finance Career Services Hub as a PCA this fall, and when not in finance-mode, you can find him spending time in Mudd Hall with BreakOn2, USC’s premier Latin Fusion dance team.
Kevin Tian
Firm (Summer 2025):
KKR | San Francisco, CA

Kevin Tian is a senior at the University of Southern California, where he is completing an M.S. in Finance and a B.S. in Business Administration (Finance) at the USC Marshall School of Business, as well as a B.S. in Architectural Studies at the USC School of Architecture.

He will be joining KKR’s Real Estate Equity team in San Francisco in 2026 and previously worked as a summer analyst (2025), following a prior summer analyst role with Hines in Houston, where he supported acquisitions for the Hines Global Income Trust. Kevin also worked at Persistent Asset Partners, a fund of hedge funds, and Congruence Capital, a Los Angeles-based long/short equity hedge fund. On campus, he is actively involved in the Global Investment Society (GIS), currently as the Head of Investment Research and formerly as the Head of Real Estate (2024-25).
Aditya Vijayanagaram
Firm (Summer 2025):
Ares Management | Los Angeles, CA

Aditya Vijayanagaram is a senior at USC Marshall, majoring in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance and minoring in Mathematical Finance. During summer 2025, he interned with Ares Management in Los Angeles as part of the Direct Lending group and will be returning there full-time in 2026.

At USC, Aditya serves as the president of the Global Investment Society, where he helps lead student-run investment research and professional development efforts. He’s also participated in the Trojan Investing Society (now TFA) mentorship program and previously interned in both corporate development and wealth management, gaining exposure to strategic finance and client advisory work.

Finance Peer Career Advising (PCA) Program