Hannah Slagsvold

About you

What work experience/internships did you have before beginning with Imperial College Business School?

The most relevant experience I have had previously is a summer internship within Sales, Trading & Research at Nordea Markets. Previously I have had a summer job within the accounting department of DNV GL and worked as a student assistant in an insurance company.

Why did you decide to study an MSc Investment & Wealth Management at Imperial College Business School?

I choose Imperial because of its great reputation and it seemed to be especially forward-thinking and innovative compared to other traditional universities. MSc Innovation & Wealth Management appealed to me because of its focus on quantitative methods, financial theory and application of programming to a majority of the modules.

Did you receive a scholarship?

I received the Women in Finance Scholarship. The benefit of this was that I have been able to meet other students across programmes, including events related to the scholarship.  

Programme

What aspects of the programme do you most enjoy the most?

I enjoy the fact that all of our modules are interlinked, but at the same time they teach us different things. It is also very applied, so it is easy to understand how the things we learn at university can be used when entering the workforce, which is really motivating and exciting.

Which has been your favourite module so far and why?

So far my favourite module has been Asset Allocation & Investment Strategies. I like it because in addition to learning the underlying financial theory, we also have several case studies where we examine and analyse real-life events related to the theory we have been taught.

What has been the most rewarding part of the programme?

The most rewarding part of the programme is that I feel like I have gotten an extensive insight into the pricing and behaviour of various financial instruments. This, in turn, has given me a much broader understanding of the continuous movements of capital markets including FX, Fixed Income, Derivatives and Equities.

What has been the most challenging part of the programme? 

The most challenging part of the programme is the modules where programming is heavily used, as I have no prior experience with this. Nevertheless, it is extremely useful to know coding when wanting to work within the financial industry, so I am grateful for the opportunity to learn this. 

Opportunities

What has been the greatest opportunity you have had at Imperial?

I think the greatest opportunity is to be the Chief Investment Officer of the Student Investment Fund (Fundamental Department). This has allowed me to set theory into practice and get to evaluate real-life investment opportunities and actually execute them.

What clubs, societies or other activities have you been involved in at Imperial?

Currently I am the Chief Investment Officer of the Student Investment Fund. This has been an incredible opportunity as it has allowed me to use my knowledge of fundamental analysis to go through with real-life investments in the equity market. It has also been great way to meet people across programmes.

Have you had opportunities to work/socialise with students across programmes within the Business School?

Yes, there have been several events both across the Finance masters’, but also across the whole Business School.

Career

What are your future career goals and how have they been realised since being at Imperial?

My future career goal is to work in a leading investment bank in a financial hub like London, New York or Hong Kong. Since I enrolled at Imperial, I have secured an internship within Sales & Trading at Morgan Stanley in London. During the programme I will be rotating between different summer sales and trading desks within Fixed Income and Institutional Equities for 10 weeks. 

How did the services from Careers help in your professional development/securing employment?

Careers helped me by setting up mock interviews and providing services for practising various online tests that the majority of investment banks require you to take before progressing to the interview stage.

London Location

What have been the benefits and challenges of moving to London? 

I truly enjoy moving to new places and getting to know new people, I think a change of scenery and new impulses are exclusively positive. For me, one of the biggest reasons I choose Imperial was that it is located in London. The city has numerous social, academic and work-related opportunities and is generally a very inspirational place to live. The advice I would give is to explore the city as much as possible and also to take advantage of the various extracurricular activities Imperial offers, such as being part of the Student Investment Fund or the Finance Club. 

"The city has numerous social, academic and work-related opportunities and is generally a very inspirational place to live."

Tips

What advice would you give someone who is thinking about applying for the programme?

Be certain that the MSc Investment & Wealth Management programme is what you want to do, because it is a very intense programme. Especially if you have not had much experience with maths and programming during your undergraduate degree. It can be very challenging, but nevertheless interesting and rewarding.

When you start the programme be ready to work hard from day one, so you do not end up having lots to catch-up with when exams are coming up. Also, be systematic when dividing your time between job applications and studying, so you have everything covered and will be ready for exams despite having to prepare for interviews and assessment centres.