Upcoming Event: Women's Soccer versus #19 North Carolina on October 12, 2025 at 1 p.m.
Women's Soccer
vs #19 North Carolina
Photo by: Duke Photography
Teammates from the Field to Wall Street
1/9/2021 9:09:00 AM | Women's Soccer
By Lily Hiser, Duke Communications Student Assistant
DURHAM, N.C.-- Duke women's soccer fans undoubtedly remember the elite squad of 2011, a team that made it to the national championship game in the NCAA College Cup before falling in the final match to Stanford. The success of this talented roster, including student-athletes Callie Simpkins and Libby Jandl, came not only from exceptional skill, but also from a tight bond amongst the members.
"We had the most unbelievable Duke soccer program – the team, coaches, mentors, and then especially our graduating class," remarked Jandl. "We were super close. We were all different. We might have not met each other in life had it not been for Duke soccer, but we all really cared about each other and had each other's backs."
Amid the heartbreaking loss of the previous season, it was no surprise that the squad approached the summer of 2012 with intensity, determined to clench the NCAA championship in the following season. This was even more true for the rising senior class, a tight knit group who referred to themselves as the "Legendary Seven", or L7 for short.
Simpkins and Jandl, both members of L7, approached the summer of 2012 with intense focus on preparation for both the upcoming senior season and their future careers. Both were interested in the financial world and began focusing on sales and trading. With little experience in the field, Simpkins and Jandl set out together to attend networking events, prepare for interviews, and learn as much as they could about economics –they even sought out Emma Rasiel, PhD, head of the Duke Financial Economics center, outside of their regular academic schedules, to attend her office hour meetings.
The pathway to securing a career in finance typically begins with an internship at a desired firm the summer before one's final year of college. Being a successful intern over the summer at the firm typically leads to a return offer to work there after graduation. With so much riding on these internships, securing one, especially at an elite institution like Duke, is very competitive. Many students who pursue this kind of internship have been focused on it since beginning school, selecting extracurricular activities and job experiences specifically tailored to appeal to financial firms. However, with so much time dedicated to athletic as well as academic excellence, Simpkins and Jandl had a lot of catching up to do and a lot to prove to make it onto Wall Street the summer before their senior year.
After much preparation and hard work, both received summer internships at prestigious firms, Jandl at Wells Fargo and Simpkins at Goldman Sachs, and made their way up to New York City. Although they had great mentors in older teammates, no one in the Duke soccer program had performed a summer internship before, so it was up to them to negotiate time between their new jobs and training sessions. Upon their arrival, both realized how all-encompassing the internship would be, requiring demanding hours and excessive amounts of work in order to prove themselves to their managers.
"I would wake up around 4:30 a.m., every morning to come in from Jersey City," recalled Simpkins. "I would take the train in and be on the desk around 5 a.m., and then work all day until around 7:30 or 8 p.m. Then, we would go meet our trainer in Riverside Park and train [in both] fitness and soccer. We were traveling with the New York Athletic Club, playing soccer on the weekends, so we really had no life except for our job and soccer."
Simpkins and Jandl relied on each other throughout the entire process for support and encouragement. While they were not working at the same firm, both were experiencing the grind of the financial world in New York City. Along with each other, preparing for the upcoming season, which would be the end of their collegiate careers, kept them motivated to intensely train over the summer.
"It was just our sole focus to be the best that we could be in both the internship and on the soccer field. We knew that we were going to be coming back as senior leaders on a team that had a real shot at the national championship," commented Simpkins.
At the end of the summer, Simpkins and Jandl both received full time offers from Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo, respectively. While they did not win a national championship in their final season, they still had a successful year, making it to the NCAA quarterfinals before dropping a very tight match to Penn State, 1-0, on the road.
Their groundbreaking summer impacted Duke women's soccer in a profound and lasting way.
"We basically showed people that … you should start thinking about what you're going to do after college and after you stop playing soccer before that time actually comes, and that it's possible to do the internship, train, and still be in peak shape and achieve peak performance," explained Simpkins. "I was probably in the best physical and mental shape that I had been in after that experience."
Simpkins and Jandl inspired younger players on their squad to pursue summer internships, specifically in New York. They helped teammates prepare for interviews, reviewed resumes, shared professional connections, and offered shadowing experiences. Now, there are around 15 Duke soccer alumni in New York City, pursuing careers in a variety of fields. For Simpkins and Jandl, who began their professional careers relying on only each other, it is exciting for them to establish such a strong support system in New York City for other women just like them. The group has had everything from cocktail nights to holiday parties, and as the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Zoom parties helped everyone get through periods of uncertainty and isolation.
Simpkins and Jandl both moved to New York City after graduation and continued to work at Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo. This year, however, both had the opportunity to move to RBC Capital Markets, Simpkins earlier in the year and Jandl only a few weeks ago. The culture of a firm is critical to both Simpkins and Jandl, specifically after coming from such a strong program in Duke women's soccer.
"Moving from a close-knit Duke soccer family who instantly has your back, [where] you have second parents with the coaches, you have a whole set of sisters with the team, and mentors throughout the program to working in a job on Wall Street is a very tough transition," explained Jandl. "There are a lot of differences between what we had gotten used to at Duke and the team dynamics of a corporate job."
Simpkins' experience at RBC thus far has been one of the same caliber of excellence that she experienced while at Duke. When Jandl discussed pursuing a career at RBC with her, Simpkins was very enthusiastic about the team-oriented culture that she had come to experience there. Now on the same team once again, Simpkins and Jandl look forward to their next chapters.
"Callie [Simpkins] has always been a teammate in my life even when we weren't at the same firm, but it's just exciting to be under one roof now, and it really does feel like we're coming full circle," remarked Jandl. "Finding a team-oriented culture like we did at RBC, where they are very thorough and thoughtful with the hiring process, combined with Callie's high praises of the culture and platform – it just really spoke to me, because we came from this very family-oriented Duke soccer team. I couldn't be happier that we both found our new family and that we are a part of the same larger family for our careers to come."
#GoDuke
DURHAM, N.C.-- Duke women's soccer fans undoubtedly remember the elite squad of 2011, a team that made it to the national championship game in the NCAA College Cup before falling in the final match to Stanford. The success of this talented roster, including student-athletes Callie Simpkins and Libby Jandl, came not only from exceptional skill, but also from a tight bond amongst the members.
"We had the most unbelievable Duke soccer program – the team, coaches, mentors, and then especially our graduating class," remarked Jandl. "We were super close. We were all different. We might have not met each other in life had it not been for Duke soccer, but we all really cared about each other and had each other's backs."
Amid the heartbreaking loss of the previous season, it was no surprise that the squad approached the summer of 2012 with intensity, determined to clench the NCAA championship in the following season. This was even more true for the rising senior class, a tight knit group who referred to themselves as the "Legendary Seven", or L7 for short.
Simpkins and Jandl, both members of L7, approached the summer of 2012 with intense focus on preparation for both the upcoming senior season and their future careers. Both were interested in the financial world and began focusing on sales and trading. With little experience in the field, Simpkins and Jandl set out together to attend networking events, prepare for interviews, and learn as much as they could about economics –they even sought out Emma Rasiel, PhD, head of the Duke Financial Economics center, outside of their regular academic schedules, to attend her office hour meetings.
The pathway to securing a career in finance typically begins with an internship at a desired firm the summer before one's final year of college. Being a successful intern over the summer at the firm typically leads to a return offer to work there after graduation. With so much riding on these internships, securing one, especially at an elite institution like Duke, is very competitive. Many students who pursue this kind of internship have been focused on it since beginning school, selecting extracurricular activities and job experiences specifically tailored to appeal to financial firms. However, with so much time dedicated to athletic as well as academic excellence, Simpkins and Jandl had a lot of catching up to do and a lot to prove to make it onto Wall Street the summer before their senior year.
After much preparation and hard work, both received summer internships at prestigious firms, Jandl at Wells Fargo and Simpkins at Goldman Sachs, and made their way up to New York City. Although they had great mentors in older teammates, no one in the Duke soccer program had performed a summer internship before, so it was up to them to negotiate time between their new jobs and training sessions. Upon their arrival, both realized how all-encompassing the internship would be, requiring demanding hours and excessive amounts of work in order to prove themselves to their managers.
"I would wake up around 4:30 a.m., every morning to come in from Jersey City," recalled Simpkins. "I would take the train in and be on the desk around 5 a.m., and then work all day until around 7:30 or 8 p.m. Then, we would go meet our trainer in Riverside Park and train [in both] fitness and soccer. We were traveling with the New York Athletic Club, playing soccer on the weekends, so we really had no life except for our job and soccer."
Simpkins and Jandl relied on each other throughout the entire process for support and encouragement. While they were not working at the same firm, both were experiencing the grind of the financial world in New York City. Along with each other, preparing for the upcoming season, which would be the end of their collegiate careers, kept them motivated to intensely train over the summer.
"It was just our sole focus to be the best that we could be in both the internship and on the soccer field. We knew that we were going to be coming back as senior leaders on a team that had a real shot at the national championship," commented Simpkins.
At the end of the summer, Simpkins and Jandl both received full time offers from Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo, respectively. While they did not win a national championship in their final season, they still had a successful year, making it to the NCAA quarterfinals before dropping a very tight match to Penn State, 1-0, on the road.
Their groundbreaking summer impacted Duke women's soccer in a profound and lasting way.
"We basically showed people that … you should start thinking about what you're going to do after college and after you stop playing soccer before that time actually comes, and that it's possible to do the internship, train, and still be in peak shape and achieve peak performance," explained Simpkins. "I was probably in the best physical and mental shape that I had been in after that experience."
Simpkins and Jandl inspired younger players on their squad to pursue summer internships, specifically in New York. They helped teammates prepare for interviews, reviewed resumes, shared professional connections, and offered shadowing experiences. Now, there are around 15 Duke soccer alumni in New York City, pursuing careers in a variety of fields. For Simpkins and Jandl, who began their professional careers relying on only each other, it is exciting for them to establish such a strong support system in New York City for other women just like them. The group has had everything from cocktail nights to holiday parties, and as the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Zoom parties helped everyone get through periods of uncertainty and isolation.
Simpkins and Jandl both moved to New York City after graduation and continued to work at Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo. This year, however, both had the opportunity to move to RBC Capital Markets, Simpkins earlier in the year and Jandl only a few weeks ago. The culture of a firm is critical to both Simpkins and Jandl, specifically after coming from such a strong program in Duke women's soccer.
"Moving from a close-knit Duke soccer family who instantly has your back, [where] you have second parents with the coaches, you have a whole set of sisters with the team, and mentors throughout the program to working in a job on Wall Street is a very tough transition," explained Jandl. "There are a lot of differences between what we had gotten used to at Duke and the team dynamics of a corporate job."
Simpkins' experience at RBC thus far has been one of the same caliber of excellence that she experienced while at Duke. When Jandl discussed pursuing a career at RBC with her, Simpkins was very enthusiastic about the team-oriented culture that she had come to experience there. Now on the same team once again, Simpkins and Jandl look forward to their next chapters.
"Callie [Simpkins] has always been a teammate in my life even when we weren't at the same firm, but it's just exciting to be under one roof now, and it really does feel like we're coming full circle," remarked Jandl. "Finding a team-oriented culture like we did at RBC, where they are very thorough and thoughtful with the hiring process, combined with Callie's high praises of the culture and platform – it just really spoke to me, because we came from this very family-oriented Duke soccer team. I couldn't be happier that we both found our new family and that we are a part of the same larger family for our careers to come."
#GoDuke
Kieran Hall Postgame vs Pitt
Thursday, October 02
Mia Oliaro Postgame vs Pitt
Thursday, October 02
Kieran Hall Postgame Vs. Wake Forest
Thursday, September 25
Kieran Hall Postgame Vs. Notre Dame
Friday, September 19
