Finance Fellows Annual Networking Night

On Monday, September 21, 2015, approximately 120 undergraduate students from seven finance fellows programs at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business attended the Finance Fellows Annual Networking Night at the Riggs Alumni Center. Students interacted with 27 professionals from the field of finance who came to share their career experience and expertise to help students explore possible career paths within finance.

Susan White, clinical professor of finance and faculty director for the program, commented, “It was great to see so many students and finance professionals get together to talk about finance and careers. Networking is a lifelong skill that everyone needs – not just to get a job but to function effectively in the business world. Not only were students networking with finance professionals, they were all networking with each other as well.”

The evening followed a speed networking format (like speed dating) with groups of four to five students rotating among the professionals in three, 10-minute networking sessions, followed by open networking.

Sophomore Rahul Sitaram found that, “Asking the professionals what their typical day was like helped me learn so much about different careers and job functions.”

Finance Fellow Charlena Zhang agreed, “As someone who is not sure what I want to do, it was beneficial to hear what they do on a day-to-day basis.”

The finance professionals represented a variety of companies including Bloomberg, Freddie Mac, Northwestern Mutual, SECU, and Morgan Stanley.

The Smith School has seven finance-related undergraduate fellows programs to which students may apply beginning the spring of their freshman year. More information on our one-year fellows programs can be found here.

Emily Heavin, Smith Undergraduate Program