Finance students gain valuable industry insights on NYC study away trip

Ilitch School finance students gained a deeper understanding of financial institutions and markets while networking with industry leaders during a study away experience in New York City from May 18-25. Students earned course credit and gained first-hand knowledge while touring major financial institutions, global business centers and NYC landmarks led by Ilitch School faculty, alumni and friends.

The Study Away: Global Business Experience in New York City program is designed to provide students with a deeper understanding of financial markets and institutions and help them form connections with financial professionals. Students were led on guided tours of the headquarters of companies such as Citigroup, The Federal Reserve Bank, JP Morgan, Bank of America, and Merrill Lynch, and they spent time on trading room floors, watching the stock market move in real time.

These trips and connections were made possible through Ilitch School alumni and friends who are employed in high-level positions at each of the institutions visited. Students sat down for lunch with WSU alum Mark Bertolini, CEO of Oscar Health and toured Citigroup headquarters with alum Hussein Harajili, Head of Risk and Controls, Market Sales.

Part-time finance faculty member and Senior Financial Advisor at Merrill Lynch Joseph DiMauro also helped organize a tour of Merrill Lynch's headquarters, where students met Aubrey W. Lee Jr., first vice president and wealth management advisor at Merrill Lynch and Ilitch School Board of Visitor member.

Apart from formal company tours, students had a chance to experience some of the culture of New York City. Ilitch School accounting alumni Wing Cho led the class on a tour of the financial district, and the visiting class went to Central Park, The World Trade Center Memorial, and attended a Yankees game.

The trip was organized and led by Associate Professor of Teaching in Finance Basma Bekdache, who believes this will be a transformative experience for students.

"Students heard first-hand about various finance positions, toured the spaces and are able to learn about the day-to-day tasks and challenges which will help them decide what type of career in finance is appealing to them," said Bekdache. "They also made so many connections that they can follow up to secure internships and potentially full-time positions in the firms we visited."

As such, this program is in alignment with WSU's College to Career initiative, which seeks to provide every student with experiential learning opportunities that allow them to encounter the world, gain deeper insights and new perspectives, and prepare for prosperous careers.

To learn more about the program, or to apply for next year, click here to view the program page and enrollment requirements.

The Wayne State University Mike Ilitch School of Business prepares students for challenging and rewarding careers, advances the boundaries of scholarly and practitioner knowledge, and enhances the economic vitality of the city of Detroit, the state of Michigan and beyond through its programs, research and community engagement. Established in 1946, the business school was renamed in 2015 in recognition of a $40 million gift from Mike and Marian Ilitch. Thanks to this lead investment, the school moved to a new state-of-the-art building in the heart of the District Detroit in 2018, and academic programming and collaboration with city businesses are expanding. For more information, visit ilitchbusiness.wayne.edu.