What is the Fastest Way to Learn Financial Modeling?

The right class can make a world of difference when it comes to how fast you learn financial modeling, but there isn’t just one single fastest route to mastery. The truth is that when you tailor your learning strategy according to your unique circumstances you’re more likely to get faster results. For example, if you only plan to learn financial modeling basics, joining a vocational training program may not be the most efficient use of your time. In contrast, a vocational certificate is a better choice for career preparation than a short introductory course, short as it may be. This article will help you figure out which financial modeling training format is right for you by outlining the advantages and disadvantages of each. 

Free Resources (For Learning Financial Modeling Basics)

Suppose you want to explore some beginner financial modeling skills or answer a niche question about a project you’re already working on. In that case, there are more than enough free resources to get you started without spending a dime. Since many of them are available through the Internet, these resources are fast to look up and can help you speedily get to the bottom of questions you’d otherwise spend much longer figuring out on your own. There are hundreds of tutorials explaining how to use beginner-friendly financial modeling tools like Excel and Tableau along with tips for stock market investing and other financial topics. However, it’s best to treat free education tools as tip-of-the-iceberg explorations, rather than comprehensive guides, as they’re unlikely to boost you beyond the beginner level. 

A simple Google search will turn up too many resources to count, and not all of the top results will offer good information. To find the most reliable free financial modeling resources, favor resources that are published by respected finance companies and established education brands. While there are plenty of blogs and YouTube channels created by people at your same skill level, you can also access free content from more premium providers. 

For instance, the highly-rated vocational school, Noble Desktop, offers free online finance seminars, as well as free short courses like Stock Market Fundamentals. Their Financial Modeling Blog and video tutorials are also great resources. 

Introductory Classes (For Casual Students Who Want Guided Instruction)

Despite the fact that Internet sources are so readily available, short instructor-led classes may get you from A to B quicker in some situations. It’s a common criticism of free financial modeling resources that they rely overly on your ability to rummage for information in an unvetted assortment of source materials. The sheer quantity and lack of curation surrounding these resources can be a bit unwieldy, and if that rings true for you, joining an instructor-led class may alleviate some anxiety. Similarly, short classes may be quicker if you know you learn better when your questions get answered by a real person. 

Offered in a variety of delivery formats, most short financial modeling courses are beginner-friendly and doable in less than a day. To make classes available to everyone, these courses often provide flexible scheduling, including multiple shorter sessions alongside single-day classes. Because they generally last only a few hours at most, short introductory classes can allow you to learn financial modeling in the midst of an otherwise busy schedule.

In the stress-free environment of an introductory financial modeling class, you won’t be expected to tackle advanced skills. Instead, you’ll navigate rudimentary financial modeling skills appropriate for personal application, rather than professional use. These short classes also provide an ideal setting for testing out whether financial modeling is for you if you’re undecided about whether to attend a vocational training program. Popular topics covered by introductory financial modeling classes are Excel, Tableau, fundraising, and stock market investing. 

Certificate Granting Programs (For Aspiring Finance Professionals)

While college finance programs take several years and short finance classes only cover basic skills, certificate courses offer an accelerated route to professional mastery. With the right financial modeling certificate, you can even become a Financial Analyst in just a few months. Although certificate training programs can’t provide as much experience as a finance degree, their immersive approach to skill building will ensure you graduate with marketable skills so that you can enter the workforce. With the aptitude to obtain an entry-level job, you can start your career and begin working toward a finance degree on a decent salary. 

Certificate-granting financial modeling bootcamps come in several varieties that are important to be aware of before embarking on your journey. Financial modeling career certificates like those offered by Noble Desktop provide comprehensive experiential skills training that can get your career started in a few weeks full-time or several months part-time (>100 hours). In contrast, shorter bootcamps may take less than 20 hours to complete, but also cover fewer skills, making it harder to base a career on. On top of helping you start your finance career without a college degree, some finance certificates speed up the process of getting a job by providing you with career support benefits. 

On-Demand Courses (It's Hard to Tell)

Platforms like Udemy, Coursera, and Skillshare, are among today’s most advertised ways to learn new skills, but it’s hard to know whether they’re your best bet for learning financial modeling quickly. These programs work by providing you with on-demand study materials that you can explore at your leisure, making them one of the most schedule-adaptive options on the market. However, unlimited flexibility makes it impossible to measure how quickly you’ll learn financial modeling in an on-demand course. While live courses have a set schedule, your on-demand study timeline can be thrown off by factors like lack of accountability, shortage of instructor support, and procrastination. As a result, taking stock of your true study habits (including how you respond to confusion) before joining an on-demand course is a useful exercise. If you decide that on-demand training isn’t for you, it may end up saving you some exasperation. 

On-demand financial modeling courses have some strengths, however, that can make them worth a second look. For beginner and intermediate topics that are small in scope, on-demand classes can be a convenient alternative to free resources. Where on-demand classes trump free resources is by guaranteeing that information is provided by an expert. Ideal for teaching basics and answering focalized questions for projects, on-demand classes will also provide a curated curriculum that generally includes additional resources beyond what you’d receive if you clicked on a random YouTube tutorial. Because this style of training doesn’t generally come with instructor feedback or support, you’ll find it most useful if you’re self-motivated, don’t want to ask questions, and are comfortable with independent problem-solving. 

Learn Financial Modeling Skills with Noble Desktop

Your search for the perfect financial modeling class can come to rest at Noble Desktop a highly-rated provider of financial modeling training both live online and in NYC. In the immersive Financial Analyst Training Program, you can earn a career certificate while working with a real restaurant business to gain professional experience that sets you apart. A finance expert will walk you through the process of creating a portfolio-ready three-statement financial model and Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model that will wow the socks off of future employers. As you engage with these practical learning activities, you’ll acquire a diverse skill set that includes accounting, Excel, corporate valuation, and market forecasting. 

If a finance career just isn’t in the cards for you, Noble Desktop has a variety of financial modeling-related classes suitable for personal projects. For instance, the Excel Bootcamp can teach you how to use one of the world’s most popular office software tools to perform numerical analysis and data visualization (including financial modeling). As a beginner-friendly class, its only prerequisite is basic computer knowledge, making it accessible to almost anyone. 

Want to expand your existing Excel knowledge into a broader understanding of financial modeling in general? Noble Desktop’s Financial Modeling Bootcamp pairs advanced Excel skills with practices from corporate finance to help you create more complex financial models. In addition to teaching you how to create DCF and three-statement models, the activities in this course will familiarize you with applications for major finance concepts such as accrual versus cash accounting, enterprise value, leveraged buyouts, and market capitalization.