Keean De Villars
Attended: Young Investment Banker Summer Experience
Now: Works at JP Morgan
"I always knew I wanted to go into finance, but was never sure what area I wanted to go into or even the best way to go about getting into one of the major banks.
The InvestIN course simplified down the career paths into two simple pathways: Markets and Investment Banking. Hearing from professionals in both areas, and after doing a real life ‘on the job’ simulation, I had a much broader understanding of which path I wanted to take, and the top tips for how to stand out in interviews. We also went over the different ways of getting into a bank, including summer internships, spring weeks, work experience, graduate programs and apprenticeships.
I joined JP Morgan on their Degree Apprenticeship Program straight out of Sixth Form and started in Middle Office Commodity Operations, before being successful internally in moving to a Front Office role on the trading floor when I was 19. I now sit on the Equity Derivatives Sales Desk, and work in that high pressured and high adrenaline environment that was described to me.
Without InvestIN, I might still be at university wondering what area of finance I wanted to go into. The course allowed me to really understand what life would be like in each of the career paths, and helped me realise what I might enjoy more based off my skillset and my work environment expectations."
The Alumni Project
We often get asked what our students do beyond InvestIN - whether they continue to pursue the same career, or pivot into a different field. In 2023 we conducted a survey of our alumni students to find out what they are doing now and whether InvestIN helped them in this journey.
78% of respondents referenced InvestIN in their university application
80% of respondents said that our programmes helped them decide what career to pursue
3/4 of respondents that referenced InvestIN received a place at their first choice university
2/3 of respondents said our programmes gave them the knowledge and skills they needed to succeed in their chosen career