This past Tuesday, March 2, the Drexel Finance Association (DFA), Drexel Investment Group (DIG) and Undergraduate Career Services hosted its annual Top Finance Co-op Employer Event.

Representatives from Susquehanna International Group (SIG), Goldman Sachs Private Wealth Management*, PENN Capital Management, CIGNA, New York Life, and Northwestern Mutual presented on the benefits of their company’s respective Co-op program. For the latter part of the evening, students were invited to network and learn more about these great opportunities.

Attendance was extremely high, so on behalf of all the sponsoring organizations, we hope you enjoyed the event and continue to take advantage of the College’s great networking and recruiting resources.

*In attendance, but did not present on behalf of the company–networking only

Last night, the Drexel Finance Association (DFA) held its first General Body Meeting of the Winter Term in front of a record attendance of 63 students. This surpasses the organization’s previous record of 61 students, which was set last term and is indicative of the DFA’s staying power within the LeBow community. In fact, last night’s attendance represents a roughly 250% increase over last year’s on a comparable meeting basis. In addition to this feat, the DFA had plenty of business to discuss, all of which can be found below.

*Upcoming Events for Winter Term (2Q10)*

February 8, 2010 @ 6pm in Paul Peck: “Market your Dreams, Finance your Future” is a collaborative effort between the DFA, Drexel Marketing Association (DMA), and Undergraduate Career Services (UGCS). This event will highlight the leadership development programs available at Lockheed Martin, Vanguard, Susquehanna International Group (SIG), and GMAC. Students will gain an understanding of how participation in corporate programs at these companies will provide short and long-term career benefits. More information will be sent out via Facebook and e-mail, as well as a Ticker post the week of the event.

March 2, 2010 @ TBA in Paul Peck: “Top Finance Co-Op Employers Event” will be co-hosted by the DFA and Drexel Investment Group (DIG) for the second year in a row and will most likely feature companies, among others, that have participated in networking/professional events with both student organizations in the past. The Top Finance Co-Op Employer Event is very popular with students as it gives them the chance to meet with representatives from companies with highly desirable Co-Op opportunities.

*Spring Term Guidance (3Q10)*

The DFA is in the process of finalizing plans for two professional events and one charity event in the Spring, all of which have been published in the organization’s previous guidance released in December 2009. The two professional events include a panel discussion on the hedge fund industry featuring Drexel alum and DFA-event veteran Rob Delany (CFO, Sciens Capital Management). The second event is still in the planning phase but is expected to feature Danielle Hughes (CEO, Divine Capital Markets) to lead a discussion on the emerging role of women in finance, among other topics. Lastly, the DFA plans to hold its Third Annual Charity 3-Point Shootout at the DAC, which has raised a sizeable portion of money for notable causes.

*DFA Shadow Program*

After a successful trial last year, the DFA has elected to run the Shadow Program again. This gives interested students the opportunity to attend Executive Board Meetings and contribute to all facets of the organizational process. The program lasts roughly 10 weeks (Spring term), but based on performance students may be asked to permanently join the Executive Board for the upcoming year.

Students are invited to submit their resume to dufinance@gmail.com and please be sure to reference the program in the subject line. Interviews will be granted to qualified applicants in the middle of February.

Finally, the Drexel Finance Association would like to thank everyone who attended last night’s General Body Meeting. We hope you enjoyed yourself and will proudly wear your DFA T-shirt!

This past Monday, November 30, the Drexel Finance Association (DFA) hosted its 2nd General Body Meeting of the term–the first time the organization has ever had two in one term.

A modest turnout of just over 30 students received an in depth overview of the events the DFA has planned (so far) for the remainder of the year.

These events include*:

1) Finance Leadership Development Program (FLDP) Event (2/8/2010)–This event will highlight various corporate finance positions at well-known companies around the world.

2) Top Finance Co-op Employers Event (March 2010)–The DFA will co-sponsor this event with UGCS and DIG. Many prominent companies will be on campus for a networking session intended to discuss co-op positions.

3) Hedge Fund Management Event (March/April 2010)–Rob Delany (Drexel alumnus), CFO of Sciens Hedge Fund Management, will present along with several of his collegues the fundamentals of the hedge fund industry.

4) Divine Capital Management Event (April/May 2010)–Danielle Hughes, CEO of Divine Capital Management will lead a discussion on the role of women in business.

5) Networking Event with Young Alumni (May/June 2010)–The final event of the year will feature a host of Drexel alumni who are now working in the finance industry (may also include accounting, consulting, credit rating, etc.).

As always, the DFA welcomes any feedback or suggestions–please email dufinance@gmail.com

*The events listed above are subject to change and may not reflect actual future outcomes. Therefore, anyone reading this after December 2, 2009 is advised to refer to the most recent DFA news release for any event-related updates.

Last evening, November 10, the Drexel Finance Association (DFA) held its second event of the fall term, featuring senior members of the Society of Financial Service Professionals (SFSP).

Providing an in depth discussion of how they went from “books to briefcase,” the three panelists, Michael Fellmeth, Stephanie Walsh, and Frank Files, all shared unique stories of how they found their true calling in the finance industry.

Fellmeth and Walsh are both chartered life underwriters as well as chartered financial consultants, meaning they ensure the protection of their clients’ assets through individualized financial products.

Files, a certified financial planner, touched upon his atypical journey into the world of finance, which began as a biochemistry major at the University of Pittsburgh. However, Files is now Senior Investment Officer and Portfolio Manager at the Haverford Trust Company. In that position he routinely makes calculated investment decisions, on behalf of his clients, based on internal and external equity research, among other considerations.

All three panelists vehemently expressed the importance of networking as a means of breaking into the finance industry and even offered students assistance in their own job searches.

The evening concluded with a brief question and answer period followed by a networking session.

The Drexel Finance Association would kindly like to thank our panelists as well as all of the students that came out to the event.

We look forward to seeing you at our NEWLY added 2ND GENERAL BODY MEETING of the fall term, scheduled for Monday November 30, time and location TBD!

This is a reminder to students of all majors to attend DFA’s first general body meeting of the term on Tuesday October 6!

The location has been set for Matheson 309 and we will begin at 7:30 PM.

Here is your chance to meet the DFA Executive Board and other students interested in finance. Our discussions will include a look into our exciting schedule of events for this school year.

Food/Beverages will be available.

FREE DFA Sweatshirt give away! 

Hope to see you all there!