Stefanos Valoumas

The thing that Stefanos enjoyed the most about his course is how it provided him with a solid foundation and understanding of the demands of the industry, the real-life application of theory in practice, as well as the support he received from the expert Academic staff.

When talking about the key benefits of the course, Stefanos said: “I was surprised of how many intra- and extra-curricular and industry-relevant activities one can do to best prepare you for the Finance Industry. 

• You can join the Student Managed Investment Fund, where you will learn the foundations of managing an Investment Portfolio and investing in companies, as well as network with many other ambitious and like-minded students (who might end up being the next industry leaders).
• You can get your CFA Level I sponsored from 3rd year onwards – the University of Stirling is the only University in Scotland that can do that. Such a milestone can put an individual so far ahead in their career (speaking from personal experience).
• You are able to earn exemptions from accounting/finance courses for Professional Qualifications – another big benefit, so a Stirling student will need to take less exams when joining the industry.
• You are able to interact with Professors (that are always willing to help) that have experience in the industry in Accounting and Finance, are CFA Charterholders, and so you can understand better how markets work and where you see yourself fit in them. They can give you invaluable advice on where you could potentially work relating to your interests and connect you with their network of senior professionals.
• Get access to direct-industry tools such as the Bloomberg Terminal, Capital IQ, Thomson Reuters. Such tools are being heavily utilised by Finance Professionals and students have the opportunity to learn them prior to work through their courses.

After graduation, Stefanos joined Barclay’s Finance Graduate Scheme in Glasgow, a two-year programme that provides an opportunity to gain experience across different teams including Treasury, Trading, Private Equity, Financial Accounting, Management Accounting and Auditing. 

Having just finished his CFA Level III examination, Stefanos said: 

“The studies gave me a base to start and understand exactly what I could potentially do, what I enjoy working on and where I would see myself having a very rewarding career that I would be passionate about.”

The advice that Stefanos would give to prospective students coming to Stirling is “Just do anything you might find interesting and genuinely pursue it to truly see if you like it or not. You have such a great flexibility at Stirling and the resources to strongly support and elevate you along any path you might want to take”.