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In a highly dynamic world where the markets are constantly changing, how does one know how to make the best decisions in response to the market? What exactly may a specialization in finance entail? Such questions and many more were answered during the FIN specialization AMA hosted by Business Career Development Committee (BizCare) where Head of the Finance Department, Professor Srinivasan, and diligent Year 4 students specializing in Finance, Rahul Datta, Faith Yip, Makarios Tan and Judy Zhang were invited to share their thoughts and experiences.
Professor Srinivasan has over 20 years of experience in the education industry, guiding students in their endeavors into the Finance specialization with his heavy involvement in the finance industry. The four student speakers invited shared their experiences during their internships and the insights they gained while actively contributing to their interning companies which helped to develop industry-relevant skill sets as well as the relevant NUS clubs that helped to grow them into future-ready individuals.
Professor Srinivasan delved into a general overview of what the Finance Specialization was all about and gave insights on the various career pathways students can take. He highlighted how a Major in Finance was not just solely focused on building financial models and programming, advising those interested in FinTech to either take up a Data Analytics Major or at least a Minor in it as well.
Rahul, Faith, Makarios and Judy all strongly emphasized on the importance of joining clubs and societies relating to finance and to take part in case competitions to hone one’s skills for the finance industry and develop a stronger understanding of how financial institutions operate in an ever-changing market. Going on internships was also a strong recommendation by all speakers as it helps students to gain an understanding of the finance industry. It was also noted that going on Leave Of Absence (LOA) for internships were very common for students in the Finance Specialization as well.
Post-panel opinions from students
“The talk was rather insightful, where the speakers each shared their own unique methods and ways of “ace-ing” and getting ahead of their peers in this highly competitive environment. The different speakers, who are all of our y3s and y4s seniors, shared more about their experiences with internship applications as well as tips such as casting our nets wider when applying for internship, especially when the finance industry is so highly competitive and saturated with talents from all over the globe. The promotion of club involvement and advice to join more case competitions and stock pitch to gain first hand experiences was something that I can really take away from this sharing and consider if I want to further my horizons. Professor Srinivasan’s sharing was also very useful in helping us see the big picture of fin spec as a whole.” ~Zheng Rong, Y2 Real Estate
“The talk was very useful where the speakers had shared their initial concerns regarding choosing this path and specializing in finance, which are similar to what many of us face. The dilemma of whether the path is suitable for us, what we should do to be better and stand out amongst the competition, were all questions answered by the guest speakers during the talk itself. As students be it newly admitted to the University and getting used to the culture here at NUS or year 2 students frantically searching for internships and confused over the specialization path they should embark on, I believe the advices and tips given by the speakers as well as the concerns answered during the Q&A session definitely highlighted important and valuable pointers we all can takeaway and bear in mind when the time comes for us to choose our specialization!” ~Megan Goh, Y1 BBA