Yale Student's Resume Video Raises Wall Street Eyebrows

Thousands of Ivy Leaguers circulate their resumes each year to New York's investment banks, but few garner as much attention as Aleksey Vayner, who last week submitted an 11-page resume and video to UBS's human resources department.

By the week's end, the Yale University senior's video had raised scores of eyebrows and sparked much laughter in nearly every firm on Wall Street.

Mr. Vayner identifies himself on his resume as a multi-sport professional athlete, the CEO of two companies, and an investment adviser. The video depicts him lifting a 495-pound weight, serving a tennis ball at 140 miles an hour, and ballroom dancing with a scantily clad female. Finally, Mr. Vayner emerges enrobed in a white karate suit and breaks six bricks in one fell swoop.

Between athletic bits, Mr. Vayner takes the opportunity to opine on success. After being described in the opening lines of the video as "a model of personal success and development to everybody," Mr. Vayner says, "Failure cannot be considered an option." He adds: "To achieve success you must first conceive it and believe in it. Remember: impossible is nothing."

An e-mail chain circulated Friday that was obtained by The New York Sun shows that Mr. Vayner's cover letter, resume, and video bounced from bank to bank in New York — from Bain and Company to the Blackstone Group to the Boston Consulting Group to Lehman Brothers and onward.

Some recipients expressed skepticism at the claims Mr. Vayner makes in his resume. "One interesting thing … he claims to run his own investment advisory firm, yet his qualifications with the SEC are pending … according to my Series 7 studying, that just does not work … hmmmm," an analyst who asked not to be identified wrote. Others simply savored the materials for their comedic value: "This is pure gold"; "What a tasteful resume/cover letter and video"; "Certainly one way to get your foot in the door"; "Typical Yalie"; "Wow is all I can really say" — these were among the investment bankers' and consultants' comments via e-mail to their colleagues as they spread the e-mail around the Internet.

Mr. Vayner did not return phone calls yesterday seeking comment.