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SWS students get career tips from Warren Buffett

Undergraduate | Feb 13, 2018 |

With a climate of uncertainty surrounding the stock market, many people are looking for advice from the experts. Most have to be content with reading articles from or about them.

Four members of the Gabelli School’s Smart Woman Securities (SWS) chapter got to hear firsthand from the “Oracle of Omaha,” Warren Buffett.

On a trip to Omaha with 15 other SWS students from schools including Cornell, Harvard, UPenn, UVA, Columbia, NYU, Brown, and Boston College, the Fordham students visited local businesses, networked, and participated in a Q-and-A with Buffett himself.

The renowned investor shared advice on a number of topics with the audience of around 200 people, and out of the 19 SWS students, Julia D’Arecca, BS ’20, was chosen to ask a question. Her question on women in finance was particularly apt for the SWS group.

Buffett said “that he is ‘bullish’ when it comes to women’s advancement and success in the workplace,” D’Arecca reported. He also “spoke about how the country only used half its talent, but now it is ‘moving toward using 100 percent of the talent’ by including women in the workforce.” Finally, D’Arecca recalled, Buffett noted that “if you are able to make money for people, then they will not care [which gender you are].”

Other takeaways from the session:

‘Find a job you would take if you didn’t need a job.’ [Buffett] admits that the first job out of college might not be it, but it’s important to work on figuring out what interests you.” —Lorem Basile, BS ’18

“Stay in touch with old mentors! Remember how they helped you, and offer to mentor others in return. Fordham has such a strong network of individuals, and Mr. Buffett reminded me of the importance of staying in touch with that community and giving back.” —Jenna Florendo, BS ’19

“The people we surround ourselves with shape us little by little without us knowing, so it is important at our integral transition into the adult world that we constantly look for opportunities for growth.” —Jennifer Dunn, BS ’19

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