MY STORY Choosing a career can be overwhelming, especially when you don't know what different jobs are actually like. Most students don't - I can relate. I started FinArchives after participating in NYU's College and Career Lab, where I had the opportunity to learn from professionals and explore careers I knew very little about. Those conversations helped me better understand the many professional paths available and the vast number of careers, and I wanted to make that same experience available to other students, especially students considering careers in finance. FinArchives brings together interviews with professionals across the finance industry so students can learn from their experiences, understand what different roles involve, and hear the advice that professionals wish they had when they were in high school or college. My hope is that this project helps students feel more informed, more confident, and a little - hopefully more than a little - less uncertain about where they want to go next. 8 Interviews with more to come! explore interviews

• LEARN FROM PROFESSIONALS • EXPLORE FINANCE • EXPLORE CAreers in finance Learn how finance professionals built their careers - and what they wish they knew when they were students. start EXPLORING Not sure where to start? FinArchives was built for students who want to learn more about careers in finance. We interview professionals from investment banks, hedge funds, private equity firms, and other areas of finance so you can understand what each career actually involves- and decide which paths interest you most. do you know your terms? 25 Essential finance terms investing dictionary • LEARN FROM PROFESSIONALS • EXPLORE FINANCE •

Interviews Browse through to see some of our latest interviews with professionals! Edison Chu Industry: Investment Management Head of Research view interview Wendy Yam Industry: Commercial Real Estate Head of CMBS Securitization view interview Vivian Chu Industry: Financial Data, Credit Ratings and Risk Management Analytics Vice President - Operational Risk Management view interview Doreen Yu Industry: Real Estate Investment and Asset Management Managing Director view interview Portfolio Manager Industry: Natural Resources, Investment Management and Commodity Trading Sector Senior Portfolio Manager view interview Head of Risk Management Industry: Retail Banking, Wealth Management, Corporate and Institutional Banking and Global Market Operations Asia Head of Liquidity Risk Management view interview Accounting Firm Partner Industry: Professional Services - Audit and Assurance, Consulting, Financial Advisory, Risk Management and Tax Services Partner view interview Davis Ng Industry: Global Asset Management and Investment Company Director view interview Priscilla Ma Industry: FinTech, Blockchain, Software Development Director view interview More Interviews to Come! If you are a finance professional and you would like to be featured, please contact us: finarchivess@gmail.com 929 - 877 - 5904

START YOUR JOURNEY • EXPLORE CAREERS • EXPERT ADVICE • Priscilla Ma "Friendships and networking aren't overrated. Build them, keep them. They'll be worth more than you think." 1. In plain English, please describe your current role and function. I help build and grow the fintech and DeFi ecosystem on Stellar , a public Layer 1 blockchain built for everyday financial services. 2. On average, how is your time divided across quantitative work (e.g., financial analysis), qualitative work (research and writing), presentations (to investors, management, etc), and other tasks? Please describe what falls into ‘other.’ There's substantially less quantitative work than in my previous roles in corporate and investment banking. When we extend grants or equity to projects, we do dive into the financials but far less than in banking. Most of my time is qualitative: assessing projects and blockchains, researching new products, and tracking a market that's evolving fast. As Wall Street moves deeper into crypto and digital assets, I'm spending more time on market research and strategy. The rest is supporting tech and crypto startups, navigating the Stellar ecosystem, traveling to meet partners and builders, and keeping internal teams aligned. 3. Where did you attend college and what was your major/minor? Did you participate in any clubs in school or internships that you believe helped you decide what you wanted to pursue as your career? Purdue with an economics major, with minors in international business and French. I did some game theory research, which made me realize academia wasn't for me. My internship at HSBC showed me that finance and capital markets is a crucial piece to a company’s growth and taught me how money actually moves around the world. 4. Do you have a graduate degree, and if so, what type? No. In early-stage tech and crypto, it's less about your degree or resume and more about your impact and your ability to get things done. 5. What about certifications like as a chartered financial analyst, certified public accountant, or other similar certifications? No. I completed CFA Level 1 and was glad to stop there. There are enough exams for banking already (i.e. FINRA ). Most people in crypto skip this route. Instead, they go deeper into the technical/engineering side , to understand how the onchain plumbing actually works. 6. What did you wish you had known in college that would have made your transition into the working world smoother? Grades and clubs matter less than connections. Friendships and networking aren't overrated . Build them, keep them. They'll be worth more than you think. 7. How will the rising prominence of artificial intelligence (“AI”) impact your job and entry level jobs in your industry? It'll maximize our efficiency. Finance and business are relationship-driven industries, and that will matter even more in the age of AI when the technical work becomes secondary once AI does it faster. Agents are already running workflows and taking over repetitive technical tasks like financial analysis and coding . AI can help you build a product. You still have to sell it. Longer term, five to ten years out, I think the working world changes shape entirely. Possibly toward more entrepreneurs, globally connected. 8. What skills or qualities do you look for when hiring for an entry job level candidate? Curious. Adaptable. Resourceful. Good with people. Someone I wouldn't mind being stuck next to on a long flight. A strong problem solver. 9. Is there any other information you would like to share that hasn’t been shared through the questions above? Dream jobs change. Priorities change. What you know changes in value. Stay curious - the world will surprise you, and that curiosity will lead you to your next dream job.

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START YOUR JOURNEY • EXPLORE CAREERS • EXPERT ADVICE • Edison Chu "There's no substitute for the experience of watching a stock you bought go down and having to decide what to do." 1. In plain English, please describe your current role and function. I currently work at a hedge fund, an investment firm that manages funds on behalf of institutions and high net worth individual investors. The fund is focused on investing in stocks of smaller sized public companies. I have two main responsibilities. First, I'm an investment analyst — I study companies to decide whether buying their stock is a good idea for our funds. I focus on companies that are in the semiconductor, hardware and industrial technologies sectors. Second, as Head of Research, I make sure our team has the right tools, resources and processes to do that work well. 2. On average, how is your time divided across quantitative work (e.g., financial analysis), qualitative work (research and writing), presentations (to investors, management, etc.), and other tasks? Please describe what falls into ‘other.’” I estimate that I spend about 60% of my time on qualitative work , focused on researching industry trends and companies. This includes communicating with company management teams, industry participants, and other investment research analysts. About 30% of my time is spent on quantitative work including financial analysis and modeling. About 10% of my time is spent on communicating my work to other members of our firm’s investment team through written and oral communications. 3. Where did you attend college and what was your major/minor? Did you participate in any clubs in school or internships that you believe helped you decide what you wanted to pursue as your career? I attended Northwestern University and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Materials Science and Engineering . I then went to MIT and received a Masters of Science degree in Materials Science and Engineering. My background is slightly unusual for this field — most people don't come from engineering. But it's actually been a real advantage because I understand the technology behind the companies I analyze. If finance clubs or internships are available to you, absolutely pursue them. 4. Do you have a graduate degree, and if so, what type? In your industry, is a graduate degree typically required or preferred for advancement, and do most professionals in your field have one? I have a Masters of Science degree in Materials Science and Engineering. An MBA (Master of Business Administration) is the most common graduate degree in finance because it provides a broad business and financial foundation. My engineering master's degree is uncommon, but it gives me a technical edge when analyzing semiconductor and hardware companies. A graduate degree is typically not required for advancement, but for some positions may be preferred and provide an advantage. 5. What about certifications like as a chartered financial analyst, certified public accountant, or other similar certifications? Are they required or preferred for advancement, and do most professionals in your field have one? In the investment industry, the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) is the most useful and common designation. It is not required or necessarily preferred for advancement. My rough estimate is that about 10% of industry professionals have the designation. It requires passing three exams over several years, and many candidates study while working full-time. It is most useful for people (like me) entering the industry or those trying to enter the industry who do not have the finance background that comes from an accounting, finance, business, or MBA degree. It is a certification focused on financial analysis, so can be beneficial in career advancement for those that have it. 6. What did you wish you had known in college that would have made your transition into the working world smoother? Since my education was focused in engineering, I didn’t have much exposure to finance and investing during my time in college. However, when I was in graduate school, as soon as I realized that I was interested in a career in business or finance, I was able to take 2 classes in finance - one in accounting and one in financial analysis in business. These certainly helped in making my personal transition from engineering to finance. If I had decided to focus on a career in finance earlier than I did, I certainly would have tried to pursue internships in the field before graduating. However, I did have a real interest in stocks, and opened a brokerage account to make some investments. There's no substitute for the experience of watching a stock you bought go down and having to decide what to do. These are particularly valuable experiences that can help a student decide what kind of career to pursue within the financial services industry. 7. How will the rising prominence of artificial intelligence (“AI”) impact your job and entry level jobs in your industry? AI is already changing my daily work, and I think it will reshape — but not eliminate — entry-level roles. The financial services industry tends to be at the forefront of embracing new technologies, as having an “edge” or even a small advantage versus competitors is critical. So far, I have utilized AI technologies in several parts of my research process. For example, updating financial models can be automated very quickly after new information is released compared to prior manual updating. I am also using AI to aggregate and summarize research from multiple external and internal sources when looking at new or existing investment ideas. I am using AI agents to help identify new and publicly available information and data on a continuous basis. I am using AI to help identify patterns in stock trading that may indicate upcoming additional buying or selling of a stock. My honest view is that AI will shift what analysts spend time on, not replace them — judgment, relationships, and original thinking will be difficult for AI to replace. 8. What skills or qualities do you look for when hiring for an entry job level candidate? For entry level job candidates, the most important quality is a demonstrated interest in investing in public markets. Demonstrated interest often means someone who has made investments in a personal portfolio of stocks, participating in investment clubs, or having internships in the industry. Candidates should also always have an “investment pitch” ready, an idea for a stock that can show well thought out reasoning and research as well as the ability to communicate the idea effectively. It is important for candidates to have strong quantitative skills in financial modeling, good interpersonal skills for interacting with company management teams who may be much more senior, and good written and oral communications skills to communicate research and ideas. 9. Is there any other information you would like to share that hasn’t been shared through the questions above? For those interested in investment analysis as a career or those that are just starting out, I like to tell them that the most important thing to learn is how to handle being wrong. For most successful investment professionals, the “hit rate” or the % of successful investment decisions (i.e. making money vs. losing money) is not much above 50%. That means you will be wrong and lose money on half of your decisions. Most people don’t like to make wrong decisions. The ability to move on to the next decision after making a wrong one is often something that takes time for young analysts to learn, accept, and adapt to. The analysts who thrive long-term aren't the ones who are never wrong — they're the ones who stay curious, stay humble, and keep making the next decision with clear eyes.

START YOUR JOURNEY • EXPLORE CAREERS • EXPERT ADVICE • Vivian Chu "One's impact depends as much on seeking feedback and managing stakeholders as it does on doing good individual work." 1. In plain English, please describe your role and function I work in operational risk management at a firm that publishes credit ratings and provides research, analytics and software to financial institutions and capital markets. My role is to help the organization build frameworks, metrics, and reporting that give leadership a clear view of operational risk exposure, control effectiveness, and trends over time. In practice, that means I work with business and control teams to identify where things could go wrong, assess the level of risk, and make sure we have the right controls, reporting, and escalation in place. 2. On average, how is your time divided across quantitative work (e.g., financial analysis), qualitative work (research and writing), presentations (to investors, management, etc), and other tasks? Please describe what falls into ‘other.’” On average, my time is split as follows: • 30% quantitative work (building dashboards and assessment tools, collection and review of metrics) • 40% qualitative work (documentation, research into best practices and standards) • 30% presentations to management and stakeholders 3. Where did you attend college and what was your major/minor? Did you participate in any clubs in school or internships that you believe helped you decide what you wanted to pursue as your career? I studied at the University of Melbourne, completing a double degree in a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Information Systems with a major in Finance and Economics. While at university, I held several part‑time roles, including at Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ), which helped solidify my decision to pursue a career in financial services. In my penultimate year, I also completed an internship at Deloitte, which was a highly formative experience and gave me meaningful exposure to the professional services environment. 4. Do you have a graduate degree, and if so, what type? In your industry, is a graduate degree typically required or preferred for advancement, and do most professionals in your field have one? I do not hold a graduate degree. However, many of my peers in the industry often pursue a graduate degree in law or business administration. 5. What about certifications like as a chartered financial analyst, certified public accountant, or other similar certifications? Are they required or preferred for advancement, and do most professionals in your field have one? I am a Certified Practicing Accountant member of CPA Australia. Although not strictly required, most professionals in my field will have attained a professional designation of some sort e.g., Financial Risk Manager (FRM) , Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) etc. 6. What did you wish you had known in college that would have made your transition into the working world smoother? I wish I had understood earlier just how different the workplace is from university — especially that one's impact depends as much on seeking feedback and managing stakeholders as it does on doing good individual work. If I had appreciated that sooner, I would have prioritized asking better questions, building relationships, and getting comfortable with not having all the answers from day one. 7. How will the rising prominence of artificial intelligence (“AI”) impact your job and entry level jobs in your industry? AI is changing my role in two main ways. First, it augments the day-to-day work: AI tools can scan incidents, KRIs , logs, and unstructured data to flag anomalies and emerging risks much faster than manual review , which means I spend less time on data gathering and more on interpretation, challenge, and decision support. Second, as AI is embedded into operations and controls, it becomes a new source of operational risk, so my remit now includes helping inventory and assess AI use cases, ensuring they’re captured in our risk and control frameworks, and working with stakeholders to set guardrails and monitor incidents related to AI-enabled processes. AI will automate a lot of the classic “entry‑level” work in operational risk (data collection, basic analysis, standard reporting), so we will require fewer people to do that work. But rather than displacing junior roles entirely, AI will redefine them—shifting the focus from generating raw analysis to validating, contextualizing, and escalating AI-driven insights. Entry‑level analysts will spend more time stress‑testing what the model is saying, investigating anomalies, and making sure outputs make sense. “Human in the loop” will always be necessary! 8. What skills or qualities do you look for when hiring for an entry job level candidate? I look for people who have a strong work ethic, are genuinely curious, and aren’t afraid to ask questions when they don’t understand something. I value candidates who show a willingness to learn, can take feedback constructively, and demonstrate basic professionalism and reliability.

Resources & Links This space provides tools, guides, and materials to help students learn more about finance, participating and engaging. The following links provide important resources that will help a student grow in their financial skills. Young Investor's Society The Young Investor's Society hosts a large amount of student materials for learning finance as well as a yearly stock pitch competition in which students can compete. Visit LinkedIn LinkedIn is a social networking service for professionals and students alike. It is helpful for forging connections, discovering careers, and building a network. visit Corporate Finance Institute The Corporate Finance Institute offers beginner friendly courses on valuation, excel, investment banking, and financial modeling. visit Khan Academy: Finance Khan Academy hosts one of the largest and most extensive free finance courses out there, and it is not only an invaluable resource for finance but a lot of other topics. Visit Investopedia Investopedia is one of the best finance encyclopedias on the internet and can be used for a wide variety of learning purposes - including trading simulations, quizzes, and a lot more. Visit The Wall Street Journal is a finance-based news institution that provides useful financial information about current events. The Wall Street Journal visit

START YOUR JOURNEY • EXPLORE CAREERS • EXPERT ADVICE • Wendy Yam "Many people think of investment banking or consulting when they hear “finance,” but there are many other paths within the industry that one can take!" 1. In plain English, please describe your current role and function. My title is Head of CMBS Securitization and I work for a company that lends money to commercial real estate owners. Specifically, I help turn commercial real estate loans (like mortgages on office buildings, malls, or apartments) into investments that people can buy in bond/securities form called commercial mortgage backed securities (“CMBS”) . We bundle a number of these loans together, package them, and sell them to investors, which helps our company free up money to make more loans. My primary responsibility is to lead that whole process and make sure everything is structured, priced, and sold properly amongst other responsibilities. 2. On average, how is your time divided across quantitative work (e.g., financial analysis), qualitative work (research and writing), presentations (to investors, management, etc), and other tasks? Please describe what falls into ‘other.’” I would describe my role as a blend of analytical, qualitative, and execution-focused responsibilities. Approximately 30% of my time is spent on quantitative work, including credit analysis of commercial real estate loans and return analysis on financings. Another 30% is qualitative, focused on drafting marketing materials that clearly articulate the underlying real estate and investment thesis for investors. Roughly 20% of my role involves marketing and presentation, where I present transactions to investors and address key risks and mitigants. The remaining 20% is dedicated to project management, coordinating across attorneys, accountants, internal teams, and external partners to ensure transactions are executed efficiently and on schedule. 3. Where did you attend college and what was your major/minor? Did you participate in any clubs in school or internships that you believe helped you decide what you wanted lol to pursue as your career? I attended Barnard College, an all-women’s liberal arts college in New York, where I majored in Economics. While I was not involved in finance-focused clubs, I balanced part-time work during the academic year with several internships, primarily in IT, over the summers. My interest in finance ultimately solidified through my experience at Goldman Sachs, where I worked in the Asset Management division during the summer of my junior year and continued through my senior year. 4. Do you have a graduate degree, and if so, what type? In your industry, is a graduate degree typically required or preferred for advancement, and do most professionals in your field have one? I do not have a graduate degree. I would say about 30% of the people in the industry have graduate degrees- usually a Masters in business administration or Masters in Real Estate Finance but typically not required to advance in the industry- at least not in my role. 5. What about certifications like as a chartered financial analyst, certified public accountant, or other similar certifications? I did obtain additional certifications when I was working at a bank (Citibank), I was series 7 and 63 certified. Additional certifications (CFA) are not required for my role but for certain other roles in the industry like portfolio management, it might be required or highly preferred. 6. what did you wish you had known in college that would have made your transition into the working world smoother. Communication and presentation skills are essentia l if you want to advance in your career. It is also important to research different career paths, which is where your website could be especially helpful. Many people think of investment banking or consulting when they hear “finance,” but there are many other paths within the industry that one can take! 7. How will artificial intelligence (“AI”) impact your job and entry level jobs in your industry? Our company has been exploring the use of AI in both our credit and securitization processes. The goal is to make certain tasks faster and more efficient, while also improving productivity and accuracy. At this stage, AI is not being used to replace entry-level hiring, but rather to help our existing team work more effectively and maintain current headcount while increasing output. However, I foresee the use of AI to eliminate work that we have had to outsource. 8. What skills or qualities do you look for when hiring for an entry job level candidate? I usually look for candidates with strong academic performance, as that is often a reflection of their work ethic , as well as a background in finance or real estate. I also value humility, eagerness to learn, and a personality that seems compatible with the company’s and team’s culture. During the interview, I look for strong communication skills and the ability to speak thoughtfully and in detail about something they have worked on, whether it is a school project or an internship experience. 9. Is there any other information you would like to share that hasn’t been shared through the questions above? Don’t let the size or name recognition of a firm turn you off too quickly. Some of the best learning happens at smaller firms, where there’s less red tape, more direct access to decision-makers, and a greater chance that your contributions will be noticed. In my experience, working at a smaller firm has been one of the best environments for growth because you can take on real responsibility faster, learn broadly, and see the impact of your work more clearly. A household name can be appealing, but a smaller platform can sometimes give you a much better foundation early in your career.

START YOUR JOURNEY • EXPLORE CAREERS • EXPERT ADVICE • Head of Risk Management "I wish I had broader exposure to world events and market developments but that was also a function of information not being as freely accessible back in the day." 1. In plain English, please describe your current role and function. My role is responsible for liquidity risk management for banking and securities entities across Asia. I oversee the identification, quantification and monitoring of liquidity risks for the bank. For example, the development of models and metrics to measure the potential cash outflows that the bank may face during a liquidity stress and monitoring frameworks to ensure the bank holds enough cash and high quality securities that can be readily liquidated if needed during a stress. 2. On average, how is your time divided across quantitative work (e.g., financial analysis), qualitative work (research and writing), presentations (to investors, management, etc), and other tasks? Please describe what falls into ‘other.’ I spend approximately 50% of my time in meetings with various stakeholders in London, NY, HK and other Asia markets . These meetings are usually to update management on new internal, market or regulatory developments, or to work with other teams to agree next steps for projects such as how to model liquidity risk on digital assets or upcoming regulatory exams etc. 20% of time is responding to queries or providing information to other stakeholders in Asia, the global Treasury team, business stakeholders and regulators. This may involve drafting presentations or providing quantitative analysis e.g. if we observe a significant change in our risk metrics, what are the drivers and management response. 20% of time is spent working on or reviewing papers or models/methodologies the team has developed or providing guidance to the team. 10% is spent on a mix of reading about market developments e.g. impact of DLT on liquidity requirements, and team management/people admin. 3. Where did you attend college and what was your major/minor? Did you participate in any clubs in school or internships that you believe helped you decide what you wanted to pursue as your career? University of Melbourne. Bachelor of Commerce and Information Systems. Major was finance. I didn't do any internships. I joined clubs but for social purposes. 4. Do you have a graduate degree, and if so, what type? No. Graduate degree is not required and not that common as the critical skills for the role are not necessarily provided or developed from a graduate degree e.g. critical thinking, clear and articulate verbal and written communication skills and stakeholder management. 5. What about certifications like as a chartered financial analyst, certified public accountant, or other similar certifications? Most people have CFA . It is viewed favorably but we don't use it as a deciding factor when hiring into the team. 6. What did you wish you had known in college that would have made your transition into the working world smoother? I wish I had broader exposure to world events and market developments but that was also a function of information not being as freely accessible back in the day. For example, it would have been great to access publications like The Economist or Bloomberg , but it was too expensive as a university student. 7. How will the rising prominence of artificial intelligence (“AI”) impact your job and entry level jobs in your industry? AI helps from a productivity perspective e.g. benchmarking or comparing different regulatory rules , Zoom AI note taking, more efficient processing of large data sets etc. However, I don't think it can replace decision making as that is not rules based and is very scenario specific. While it's helpful to use AI to summarize, in certain cases people still need to read that 80-page white paper as I observe that AI can occasionally summarize things incorrectly. 8. What skills or qualities do you look for when hiring for an entry job level candidate? Initiative, curiosity to learn, willingness to go over and above, attention to detail and strong verbal and written communication skills. 9. Is there any other information you would like to share that hasn’t been shared through the questions above? None.