Success Story: Bryce Petty ’19 in Goldman Sachs summer internship
Success Stories | May 03, 2018 | admin
By Maja Tarateta
Bryce Petty’s first “real” interview—in-person and in an office—was at a recent Goldman Sachs superday that led to an internship offer. But thanks to preparations he made during his time at the Gabelli School, the applied accounting and finance major was able to overcome his nerves.
“As I started talking, I got more comfortable. All the questions they asked, I felt confident answering. I knew it wasn’t a fluke that I was there,” said Petty, BS ’19. “I was confident as a person, as a student, and as a candidate.”
That confidence, Petty said, came from his classes, which helped him pinpoint an interest and facility in accounting over investment banking. “I learned I was good at accounting,” he said. “The courses opened my eyes to other opportunities … and helped me learn my strengths and weaknesses.”
Petty came to Fordham from Chicago on a football scholarship. At first, the transition from a game played with friends to the pressures of being a college scholar-athlete was rough. But he quickly learned from his coach to “take every play one at a time.”
“You can relate this to your life,” he pointed out. “When I’m at football, all I’m thinking about is football. When I’m in class, all I’m thinking about is class. You put a mental lock on it and focus. Once I’m at work, the same thing. You have to be locked in, in order to succeed.”
Success, Petty said, also comes back to confidence. “A big thing is, don’t sell yourself short,” he advised. “You may think you’re not qualified. Take a leap of faith.”
These are lessons he learned participating in the Sponsors for Educational Opportunity (SEO) program, which offers education and career services to young people from underserved communities. Fordham is one of SEO’s university partners. It was an email from SEO that helped him learn about the Goldman Sachs summer opportunity.
Petty will be commuting from Fordham to the Jersey City office of Goldman Sachs while attending the Gabelli School summer session but said he is ready for all of the challenges and experiences this will bring. He hopes the internship will also help him hone in on exactly what he wants to do in the future.
“This is my first actual job, so I’m hoping to take away a lot from it,” he said. “It will be a learning experience to find out who I am, where I fit in, and what I want to do.”
