This interview is one of a series of interviews conducted by the Center for Business and Economics Fellows with recent Business & Economics graduates about life after graduation.
This interview was conducted during the Fall 2018 semester by CBE Fellow, Jack Goodman ’19 with recent graduate, Patrick Donathen ’17.
Jack: Where are you currently employed? How did you hear about this position?
Patrick: I am a current first year law student at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. Between undergraduate and law school, I worked as an Operations Analyst at BNY Mellon in Pittsburgh, PA. During my senior year at Allegheny, I applied to many positions at BNY and was actually rejected from all of them. However, at that time, the bank was beginning a new management development program, HR saw my resume in their job application system, liked it, and cold called me about the position. I got my first job offer through luck and persistence.
Jack: What do you do on a day to day basis?
As an analyst, I worked on a six person team in Derivatives. I was a work-flow leader responsible for ensuring all collateral trades were processed daily. I approved client and broker security trades and cash wires up to $100 million before market deadlines. I reconciled and corrected accounting breaks for real time client records. I also monitored my team’s group mailbox, responding to all internal inquiries about collateral processing. On top of that, I worked towards earning my Six Sigma Greenbelt. This was my favorite part as I was able to leverage my data analytics skills learned in the Economics Department to solve real-world problems and was given an opportunity to present my results to high level managers.
Jack: How did Allegheny help prepare for your current job?
Patrick: My biggest take away from Allegheny was the ability to think. In the business world, nothing is static, the world is constantly changing. To succeed, you have to be able to learn on the job, adapt to an ever changing world, and challenge the status quo. A liberal arts degree taught me the thinking and analytical skills needed to thrive is this kind of environment.
Jack: What advice would you give to current Allegheny students?
Patrick: Do not get discouraged from the stream of internship or job application rejections. It happens to all of us. I applied to thirty positions my senior year of college and only made it to four interviews. That being said, be persistent and do not give up on yourself. All it takes is for one person to give you an opportunity. When you get that opportunity, give it your all and leverage that into a stepping stone of where you want to go. I’m very proud of my alma mater and believe Allegheny makes us competitive with the best of the best.
Students of all majors are invited to a special CBE Lunchtime Learning presentation on Careers in Financial Planning. According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, the median annual wage for financial planners or advisers was $90,640 in May 2017. Employment of personal financial planners/advisers is projected to grow 15 percent from 2016 to 2025, much faster than average for all occupations.
Stuart Armstrong II
Blaine Aikin