Dr. Daniel Fischmar, standing left, and Benjamin Nelson ’06, standing right, with past participants in Analyst Program. Standing from left are Fischmar, Ann Marie Bayma ’15, Raechel Pusateri ’16, Haley Barger ’15, Rebecca Bradnam ’16 and Nelson. Seated from left are Ian Davis ’15, James DeBone ’15, Zachary Kraus ’16 and Alyssa Fyock Caroline ’16.
Analyze This
UNIQUE INTERDISCIPLINARY PROGRAM CELEBRATES 10 YEARS
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By HALEY S. BARGER ’15
hat began as a classroom exercise in Dr. Daniel Fischmar’s Financial Economics course more than a decade ago has blossomed into a thriving interdisciplinary internship program that is a true exemplar of the liberal arts.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Westminster College Analyst Program, which gives students from all disciplines practical, hands-on experience developing a Moody’s-style rating for various companies. Students and experts, including alumni advisers, discuss the industry, financials, policy and related matters that ultimately allow students to form a company rating that is then compared with the Moody’s rating. Designed to replicate a Wall Street internship, the program was born after Benjamin Nelson ’06—currently vice president and senior credit officer at Moody’s
Investment Services in New York City and a member of the Westminster College Board of Trustees—suggested to Fischmar that his Financial Economics analysis project could become an internship-style program with a professional mentorship element that Nelson could provide. “We realized during the Great Recession that Westminster students needed access to real-world applications of what they were learning, to see in real time how their work will one day translate in the working world,” Nelson said.
W e s t m i n s t e r C o ll e g e M a g a z i n e 3
