From November 2020 to May 2021, Sakshi Mundhra’22 worked as a Research intern in Lead Consultant for Belmark Associates for Fitzgerald Asset Management, an investment firm committed to the development of sustainable municipal infrastructure across the U.S. 

Her main responsibility was to work at the eco-municipal bonds project which required intense problem solving skills, given that her team was working on a niche area that had minimal research and the clients were not sure what the end product would be like. Her work consisted of collecting quantitative data to find a metric to measure the environmental benefit of a NCPA municipal bond, where she got to learn about the bond.

“This experience taught me to be persistent since a lot of my ideas were shot down till I was able to finally come up with something concrete which was approved by FAM,” she shared. She gained valuable active listening and conversational skills thanks to FAM meetings where she had the opportunity to engage in intellectual conversations with a large group of experts from different fields and firms. This opportunity helped her hone her interpersonal skills by being able to effectively communicate with the team about the goals and demands of the project.

Sakshi credited her liberal arts education background with helping her develop a strong sense of social responsibility, along with transferable intellectual and practical skills, such as communicating, analyzing, and problem-solving, which she now applies in real-world settings. She took several economics courses that equipped her with the skills such as team work, presentation skills, and professionalism to help her succeed at her job.

After Sakshi embarked on her professional journey as a graduating senior, she advised Beloiters to reach out to the resources available on campus and talk to professors and alumni to get the ball rolling. One thing she wanted to make sure she did before graduating as an econ major was go to Econ Day and the Upton Forum for networking opportunities, as well as meet with people at Career Works to work on her resume and cover letter. She also reminded students to have different cover letters for the different jobs that you’re applying to.