At Verger, we're proud of the internship program we've built, and this year's group is a great reflection of why. Looking back on the first half of 2026, we’re grateful for the talented students we've hosted and for the wide range of perspectives and personal and academic backgrounds they’ve brought through our doors.
This year's interns study finance, economics, mathematics, and business across five different schools and have each pursued a distinct path into the investment industry. For example, Max Smirnov came to us from Alfred University in western New York (Craig Thomas's alma mater!) after moving from Kyiv, Ukraine to study in business the U.S. This summer, Mary-Dell Currie, a field hockey player, lacrosse athlete, and rising senior at the local Reynolds High School, spent a week with our team shadowing meetings and getting an early look at what a career in investing might look like.
While our intern program is primarily about combining mentorship with practical investment industry experience, we always (in true Verger style) leave room for some fun. Joining together to celebrate National Intern Day on July 30, our Summer 2026 interns took to the soccer field with members of the Verger team for some Winston-Salem sunshine and friendly competition.
In this latest edition of our Intern Spotlight Q&A series, we hope you enjoy getting to know this year's cohort as much as we've enjoyed working alongside them.
Meet The Interns
Robert is a rising senior at Wake Forest University majoring in Finance with a minor in Entrepreneurship. A Winston-Salem native, he's a member of Sigma Chi fraternity, serves on the executive board of the Screamin' Demons, represents the Office of Family Engagement, and is President of WakeWash, a student-run laundry and dry-cleaning business. Outside of campus life, he enjoys supporting Wake Forest athletics, golf, snow skiing, and fly-fishing.
Robert's interest in finance started early: his father spent his career in the industry, and Robert downloaded Robinhood and made his first trades while still in high school. At Wake Forest, he built on that foundation through coursework in Accounting, Business Enterprise Management, and Finance. This summer, he's interning with Ally Financial in Charlotte on the treasury team, where he's looking forward to applying what he learned at Verger in a new setting.
Alex is a rising senior at Wake Forest University majoring in Finance with double minors in Mathematics and Chinese. On campus, she's worked as a campus tour guide and undergraduate research assistant and is a member of the Asian Student Interest Association and the Undergraduate Business Student Council. She's from Columbia, MD, and in her free time enjoys nature walks and reading.
Alex was first drawn to finance through managing a personal brokerage account and exploring the field through career services and pre-business programs at Wake Forest. Prior to Verger, she interned with Grant Thornton China (completed alongside a study abroad program in China in the summer of 2024) and worked as a research assistant to a law professor. This summer, she's a Sales & Trading intern at Wells Fargo in Charlotte, and will study abroad in Prague, Czech Republic in the fall.
Jesper graduated from Wake Forest University this spring with a double major in Economics and Politics & International Affairs. On campus, he served as President and Alternate Captain of the Men's Ice Hockey team, Treasurer of the Wake Forest Sports Business Network, played men's club golf, and member of Kappa Alpha fraternity. Born and raised in the Chicagoland area, Jesper is now a Private Wealth Associate at AllianceBernstein in Chicago. We wish him much future success as he begins his post-graduate professional career.
Elena is originally from the suburbs of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and a rising senior at Wake Forest University studying Finance. A member of the volleyball team, she's set to graduate a semester early, in December 2026. She values dedication and hard work and credits her time at Wake Forest with building a strong base of communication, teamwork, and time management skills.
Elena was first introduced to asset management by her parents and grandparents and has managed her own personal investments since 2020 – a foundation she deepened through her college coursework. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with friends and family, reading, and staying active with walks, hikes, or swimming in the ocean or a lake. This coming year, she'll play her final season of volleyball before graduating from Wake Forest's School of Business.
Vince is a rising senior from San Diego, CA, and a basketball player at Wake Forest University, where he studies finance. He's passionate about finding a career that lets him bridge financial knowledge with helping people, companies, and communities. In his free time, he loves cooking and trying new foods – he sees food as a unique way to immerse yourself in another culture – along with traveling, golfing, and going to the beach. He's also developing a growing interest in the movie industry.
Vince first encountered investing by overhearing his father, family, and friends discuss it, though it didn't fully click until high school. At Wake Forest, coursework in Accounting, Business Enterprise Management, and Finance introduced him to securities, portfolio construction, and quantitative analysis. Last summer, he worked at Oakley as a market data analyst in New York City. As he graduates this May, Vince is hoping to land a job in private equity, venture capital, or wealth management, ideally back home in San Diego.
Harper is an Economics major with a Business minor at Sewanee: The University of the South, where he also captains the men's soccer team. Balancing athletics and academics has sharpened his leadership, communication, and teamwork skills. Outside of soccer, he enjoys golfing and following the markets and current events that shape them.
Harper's interest in investing began in his economics coursework at Sewanee, where he grew curious about how investment decisions are made and portfolios managed over the long term. Before Verger, he gained exposure to private credit and lower-middle-market investing at Five Points Capital and rounded out his foundation through the Wake Forest Summer Management Program. At Verger, he contributed to market research, manager due diligence, asset allocation discussions, and weekly investment updates. This fall, he returns to Sewanee for his senior year – still captaining the soccer team – before pursuing a graduate degree in finance. He plans to pursue a career in investment management.
Max is a rising senior at Alfred University in western New York, pursuing a double major in Finance and Mathematics. Originally from Kyiv, Ukraine, he came to the U.S. planning to study business analytics, but his interest in finance took hold during his second semester, when he switched majors – a decision reinforced by internships with a small hedge fund, PRSPCTV Capital, and a venture capital firm, SGA Capital. He's since sat for the CFA Level I exam. On campus, he's involved with the Student Managed Investment Fund, the Economics Club, and the Student Senate. Outside of school, Max stays active with soccer, running, and hiking (he's a devoted Manchester United fan), reads widely (Nausea by Jean-Paul Sartre is a favorite) and plays ukulele (with plans to pick up more instruments).
Looking ahead, Max wants to continue studying finance at the graduate level, with particular interest in programs at the intersection of finance and mathematics.
Q&A With Our Interns
What was your favorite project you worked on?
Robert: My favorite was the capstone project, where I selected, researched, and presented an ETF to the investment team. The research process taught me a lot about how to evaluate a fund's strategy and positioning, and presenting to the team was a valuable experience that pushed me to think critically and defend my conclusions.
Alex: My favorite project was also the Verger Intern Capstone Project. It gave me a comprehensive look into the research required to analyze and understand a fund from the ground up. I specifically focused on a sustainable clean energy transition fund, which allowed me to dive deep into its investment strategies, past performance, and how the fund manager picks companies. It was interesting to bridge how a fund manager operates with how Verger applies its own analytical framework to evaluate those opportunities from an institutional investor's perspective.
Max: My favorite was a research project where I analyzed and reviewed AI tools for investment management. I'm very interested in technology and AI, and it was great seeing what kinds of applications are being developed in the investment world and how investment teams think about them internally.
Harper: One of my favorite projects was researching commodity markets and helping develop an investment recommendation for a real assets portfolio. I enjoyed analyzing sectors such as energy, industrial metals, agriculture, and precious metals while considering macroeconomic trends, geopolitical developments, and portfolio construction. The project challenged me to combine quantitative analysis with investment reasoning.
Elena: My favorite project from the summer was the Capstone project. It was my first experience researching commodities, and it was exciting to learn how those markets work and are affected by current world events.
What have you learned about workplace culture that you will take to your next experience?
Robert: Being immersed in a professional environment helped me develop the soft skills and pick up on the norms that you really only learn by being in the room. I especially valued sitting in on meetings with current and prospective managers, which gave me a chance to sharpen my professional communication and get comfortable with industry terminology.
Max: I learned that in my professional career, I'd love to be part of a close-knit, collaborative team. I loved how Verger's structure invited more collaboration across different departments and how the office felt like a true community.
Harper: One of the biggest lessons I'll take away from Verger is the value of collaboration and curiosity. Everyone on the team was willing to answer questions, explain their thought process, and involve interns in meaningful discussions. That environment encouraged me to ask better questions, think more critically, and recognize that successful investing is built on continuous learning and teamwork rather than having all the answers immediately.
Elena: I found the workplace culture exciting because of its interactive and inviting nature. The team was open to helping and supporting each other whenever needed, which showed me the importance of collaboration and how it can drive success.
Vince: I learned how important it is to have a culture that people want to be a part of. Knowing how intertwined and respectful everyone is here was very refreshing. A specific example: everyone knows each other's schedule. I think it's great that people have time for their families, hobbies, and everything else. I really hope to find a place like this for my career.
Mary-Dell: Throughout my week here, one thing stood out to me: the culture at Verger is unique and special. The team is tight-knit and intentionally built, and everyone's role is valued and important.
How has your view of asset management changed?
Robert: My view has changed significantly. I came in with a fairly narrow understanding, but I quickly realized how many different strategies and investment opportunities exist beyond what I'd been exposed to. Learning how to identify strong opportunities (and just as importantly, the ones that actually fit a portfolio's specific needs) has been one of the most valuable takeaways from my time here.
Alex: Prior to this internship, I viewed asset management primarily as an analytical field focused on data and number crunching. But I've learned that direct personal interactions and conversations are equally important in fund selection. By frequently sitting in on fund manager calls, I got to see firsthand how investment professionals develop and rationalize complex market strategies, and how important it is to cultivate a deep understanding of fund managers and their differentiating strategies through active conversation.
What part of Endowment and Foundation asset management did you find most compelling?
Max: For me, personally, the most appealing part of E&F asset management is the type of clients it serves and the alignment in values and goals between the two. Managing money for charitable and nonprofit organizations has much wider implications than P&L alone: that feeling of contributing to something good is what appeals to me most.
Harper: I found the long-term investment approach of endowments and foundations especially compelling. Rather than focusing on short-term market movements, the emphasis is on building diversified portfolios that can support an institution's mission for decades. Learning how manager selection, asset allocation, and risk management work together to meet long-term objectives gave me a greater appreciation for the strategic nature of institutional investing.
Elena: I really enjoyed learning how asset management differs because of an Endowment and Foundation's priorities. Managing risk and return has a unique focus as a result, and it was valuable to understand the "why" behind the decisions that were made when investing.
What was the most interesting thing you learned during your internship?
Alex: The most interesting thing I learned was the balance between quantitative and qualitative analysis in investment research. The Capstone project let me learn more about data collection and run quantitative models, but I also learned the importance of the qualitative side. Researching fund histories taught me how to analyze historical performance while simultaneously evaluating a fund manager's unique thought process and investment strategy.
Are there specific areas of financial management you're more interested in pursuing?
Vince: After sitting in on manager meetings, private equity is something that has really piqued my interest. I'd also thought I might want to go into wealth management, mainly to keep a relationship-based career and truly try to help others. But the challenges and nuances of PE are very interesting to me, and something I'll be exploring over the next few months.
What skill(s) did you learn at Verger that you're most excited to apply to future opportunities?
Elena: A skill I learned at Verger that I want to apply to my future is to ask questions. Whether it was me or one of my peers, asking questions could lead to significantly more information. The team was always welcoming of questions, and it showed me that being curious about the details is important to getting the full picture.
Vince: I'm being truthful when I say that I feel like I've learned more during my time here at Verger than in almost all of my classes at school. There were a lot of terms I'd heard of but didn't fully understand until my time here. I'm very grateful for the opportunity, time, and effort that's been given to me, and I'm excited to use my knowledge to invest in the lives of others, like Verger does.
Thank you to Robert, Alex, Jesper, Max, Harper, Elena, Vince, and Mary-Dell for your many contributions this year!
For more information about Verger's Internship Program, including how to apply, please visit our Careers page.