Paulo Pereira Filho - University of Massachusetts, Amherst

IMG_5871.jpg

This past semester at UMass, Amherst got off to a quick start and was fast-paced through its entirety. At the beginning of the semester, I had to fill out a credit-overload form so I could enroll in 8 courses (21 credits) consisting of subjects such as Finance, Real Estate, Biochemistry, and Physics. Also, I switched my major from Business Management to Finance and remained on a Pre-Medical track. I established that a major in Finance encompassed more of my interests than Business Management since I want to pursue a career that combines my passion for financial markets, current events, and how current events can influence investment strategies within the financial markets. UMass continues to present new opportunities for me to stay involved on and off-campus. When I don’t have classes, I’m either at the library being productive or attending various club meetings. I’m still participating in many clubs, including the UMass Pre-Medical Society and Isenberg Real Estate Association. This semester, I joined the Isenberg Finance Society and the Isenberg Investment Club. Through the Investment Club, I was a finalist in a stock pitch competition where I pitched an investment strategy on a company's stock to a panel of judges from the finance-related Funds at Isenberg—I placed in the top 5. On top of coursework and extracurriculars, I’ll begin volunteering at BayState Hospital in Springfield this coming semester for me to increase my exposure in the medical field. Most recently, I've been applying to numerous summer internship positions in Massachusetts and New York that would allow me to gain first-hand experience and expand my knowledge of finance/financial markets. I continue to grow and keep learning new things every day. I'm forever grateful for the opportunity MVYouth has given to me and extremely thankful for all the generosity and support!