About
A finance forum,
run by students.
The Forum was founded to give students a serious, public-facing venue for finance writing — the kind of editorial accountability no classroom can replicate.
Our Mission
Finance writing,
done right.
The Oval Financial Forum exists to help members develop skills in financial analysis and writing that can't be taught in the classroom.
We publish The Oval Review — a monthly newsletter covering macroeconomics, financial markets, sector analysis, geopolitics, and company deep dives. Every piece is written to a strict sourcing standard, reviewed by our editorial board, and copyedited before it reaches your inbox. No speculation. No opinion. Original financial analysis written by Ohio State students.
But the newsletter is the vehicle, not the destination. Our goal is to shape members into individuals who can explain complex ideas concisely, think critically across markets and geopolitics, and carry that fluency into whatever comes next.
The Process
How we bring each issue to life.
Every edition of The Oval Review goes through the same four-stage process — from research to publication.
Members pull data exclusively from Tier 1 sources — FRED, BLS, SEC EDGAR, and primary filings. No secondary aggregators, no shortcuts.
Each member writes their assigned section independently. Drafts are factual, forward-looking language is prohibited, and all claims require sourced backing.
The Editor-in-Chief reviews every section for accuracy, analytical depth, and adherence to the forum's editorial standards before it moves forward.
The VP of Copy & Standards performs a final edit for clarity and consistency. The finished issue is then published and distributed to subscribers.
Inside the Forum
More than a publication.
The forum is a working group. Beyond the monthly issue, members develop real financial fluency through structured programming throughout the year.
Members meet with professionals across finance, banking, and investment management throughout the year — candid conversations about how the industry actually works.
Members compete in internal stock pitch competitions. The strongest pitches are considered for a featured deep dive in the following edition of The Oval Review.
Built in-house by the founding team, the Oval Financial Tutor is a custom AI training tool exclusively for our members. It quizzes financial concepts, assigns real research tasks with named companies and required Tier 1 sources, and gives structured feedback on drafts — all calibrated to the forum's editorial standard.
Learn more →The Oval Financial Tutor
Training built for the way we work.
The Oval Financial Tutor is a custom AI tool built by the founding team — exclusively for members. It isn't a general-purpose chatbot. Every prompt, quiz, and feedback loop is calibrated to the forum's editorial philosophy and sourcing standards.
Members use it to drill financial concepts, receive structured feedback on their drafts, and complete real research assignments with named companies and required Tier 1 sources. The tutor enforces the same standards as the editorial process — no shortcuts, no aggregators.