It may not surprise
you that a teenager would pick Facebook as a valuable company. But what if the
teen had made the choice based on their own SWOT analysis of Facebook and
presentation on stocks comparable to the social networking giant? That’s the
type of in-depth analysis you’d hear from Ahlexis, student at James MadisonAcademic Campus (JMAC), after an immersive financial field trip to Marquette
University.
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| JMAC students pitching a stock idea |
Following a recent
visit to Marquette’s campus, Ahlexis and her Milwaukee high school classmates
undertook a stock evaluation session in partnership with students from the University’s Applied
Investment Management (AIM) program. This work, surrounded by
the stock trackers, computerized models and business news on TVs, “was the best
part of the field trip” for Ahlexis.
“We learned a lot
about major businesses and presented an analysis on companies Marquette
University invested in,” Ahlexis said. “We broke up into a group of seven and
talked about advantages and disadvantages to investing in the assigned company.
My group had Facebook. We utilized Yahoo Finance researching investments and stocks
for large companies such as Nike and Google. … I had a lot of fun with my
friends and the students from Marquette University.”
The AIM
undergraduate program at Marquette provides hands-on academic and security
analysis experience for a select group of finance majors. AIM students actively
manage an equity, international and fixed income portfolio during their senior
year. During this visit from JMAC students, the AIM participants were able to
mentor the next wave of financial professionals as well as work on some of the
coveted soft skills in financial relationship management.
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| Dr. Krause and JMAC students in the AIM Room |
Dr. David Krause,
AIM director and adjunct assistant professor of finance at Marquette, said two
major aspects of the experience stood out to him. First, despite their age
differences, the high school and college students worked “effectively to
deliver an investment analysis of the companies.” Secondly, the JMAC group had
no problem leading the room when it came time to deliver investment reviews.
“Standing in front
of 35 people and speaking on a topic that was unknown to them just an hour ago
would strike fear in most people. That wasn’t the case with the JMAC students
as they openly expressed their ideas and thoughts about investment
opportunities.”
Joanne Wycklendt,
senior in Marquette’s College of Business and AIM member, said the visiting
teenagers made astute business connections, including one who teased out a
discussion on retail competition based on observations from a cashier job.
“The students were
really good at connecting real world experiences with investments,” Wycklendt
said. “They were great at switching from a consumer’s mindset to an investor’s.”
After the experience with college students on campus, Ahlexis also said she can’t wait for the investment she’s made in high school to pay off in secondary education.
“I can’t wait until
I go to college because they showed me how fun and easy it is to be a smart
college student.”
Make A Difference –
Wisconsin helped facilitate the unique, immersive fiscal experience, which
included participants in our Money Sense program. (JMAC is a long-standing
partner of financial literacy programs through Make A Difference – Wisconsin and
AIM students regularly assist our organization at the annual Investment Conference.)
Providing unique financial experiences and money mentors has proven to boost
the good budgeting, saving and spending behaviors of teenagers into adulthood.
Marquette’s AIM
program allows a select group of finance majors to get hands-on academic and
financial analysis experience, including an opportunity to actively manage
domestic and international equity and fixed-income portfolios. Students study the
core body of knowledge covered in the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA®) exam –
preparing them to take the test upon graduation – and begin a career in the
money management industry.
The AIM program was
the first undergraduate business program selected as a Program Partner by the
CFA Institute. The partnership designation means that Marquette University
offers a degree program that covers at least 70 percent of the CFA Institute’s
Program Candidate Body of Knowledge, the CFA Institute Ethical and Professional
Standards, and other requirements.
-writing by Justin
Kern, marketing & communications manager, Make A Difference – Wisconsin /
photos courtesy of Marquette University
