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Jia Wang, Second year International Finance Policy Concentrator
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Jia is a second-year SIPA student pursuing an MPA degree with a concentration in International Finance Policy. Her coursework includes Capital Market and Investments, Corporate Finance, International Monetary Policy and International Trade.
Jia is currently interning at Merrill Lynch and spent the summer interning with a New York-based asset management company. There she was responsible for covering mid-cap consumer sector stocks in the U.S. equity market. She is currently working part-time at Merrill Lynch, Global Private Client Group, and making customized equity recommendations for high net-worth individual investors. Prior to SIPA Jia worked as a production assistant for China Central Television from 2005 to 2006. After obtaining her MPA degree, Jia plans to continue in finance field as an equity analyst.
How did you obtain your internship?
"A friend at the School of Engineering forwarded a job vacancy advertisement to me. I turned in my résumé and got an interview one week later. Shortly thereafter I was offered the position. It was exciting to start my career from buy-side."
What drew you to SIPA?
"SIPA offers a comprehensive program for people who want to enter the finance career but do not have a finance background. And New York is the financial capital of the world. The location of SIPA is a comparative advantage in choosing internships as well. Internships are available while you are taking classes and during the summer if you choose to stay in the city."
What has been the most challenging part of your time at SIPA?
"You really have to work out a balance. To study at SIPA and live in New York makes you struggle between the coursework, networking, and working. There are so many opportunities and choices that you really have to weigh the opportunity cost of everything."
What has been the best part of your SIPA experience?
"I would say the chance to hear what cutting-edge scholars think about the current market. It is great to know the Nobel Laureates’ opinion on current market conditions. The interaction with them makes people more mature intellectually."
How did you find the first-year core curriculum?
"I hated the core courses during the first-year due to heavy coursework and weekly assignments. But I realize now that it built up a solid academic foundation for any career that has something to do with analysis. The study of economics and statistics cannot be more useful in a career in financial services.”