Intern Feature: Connor White

This summer I interned for Morgan Stanley in their Wealth Management Division. My main role was to prospect for new clients and bring new business into the Firm. I made roughly 150 to 250 phone calls per day - reaching out to potential clients, qualifying them, gaging their interest level, and inviting them to informational seminars. I gathered key information such as email addresses, home addresses, and first and last names. This information was used to market Morgan Stanley and the North Point Group (a team of financial advisors and associates I worked for). I sent specific information on the Firm, the North Point Group, and official invitations to informational seminars. I also was able to prepare multiple marketing pieces such as PowerPoint presentations and pitch books for new and existing clients. I put together investment detail reports for existing clients. The Firm held weekly focus meetings, sales meetings, and representatives from other companies pitching a product that I was able to attend. I attended seminars, which were free informative events on a specific financial or investment topic, held by the North Point Group in an effort to bring in new clients and provide this service to existing clients. I also was able to attend panel meetings hosted by Morgan Stanley’s Global Investment Committee.

How did you find this opportunity?

In the Spring semester of 2015 I attended almost every information session Isenberg offered. I went to networking events, signed up for trial interviews, and worked closely with Chase Career Center Advisors to polish my resume and LinkedIn profile. I applied to over 40 summer internship positions at various companies including SAP, Oracle, JP Morgan, and Alku to name a few. I connected with UMass alumni on LinkedIn and reached out to business professionals I knew. Fortunately, I connected with a financial advisor at Morgan Stanley who lived in my hometown of Wyckoff, New Jersey. I expressed that I was seeking a summer internship position in the finance industry. He quickly responded to my LinkedIn message, I sent my resume, and shortly after I was invited to the office for an interview with him and his partners. The interview went well and I began my internship on May 11th, one week after the Spring semester concluded.

What has your experience been like and what have you learned?

My experience has been tremendously exciting. I am extremely fortunate to have had the opportunity to work for such a prestigious company and for genuine business professionals. Every person I encountered at Morgan Stanley was very friendly and welcoming, and willing to offer their professional knowledge and opinions to anything I was unfamiliar with or inquired about. The people were really motivated to make my experience a valuable one. They provided me with useful advice, wisdom, and knowledge of the industry that significantly expanded my professional mindset. It also gave me insight into the specifics of getting into a career as a financial advisor for Morgan Stanley. They detailed the specifics of being hired right from college and what the future career path would look like. Being able to bounce ideas off these individuals and ask questions and listen to their conversations was an incredible learning experience. I learned the career path of a financial advisor for Morgan Stanley coming out of college. I learned how to effectively market to prospective clients and how to deal with rejection and failure. I learned how to handle a new lead, relay information to my superiors, and manage multiple tasks and deadlines. I also learned to put all my effort and attention into every project or task I was assigned, to go above and beyond expectations, to build a good reputation, and to deliver A level work - every day. I was able to get a good sense of the finance industry and what Morgan Stanley does. I learned what it meant to be a financial advisor and how to market yourself as a brand and to build trust with your clients.

What advice do you have for other students?

Work extra hard. If you are going to spend your time doing something - whether it be studying for a test or tying a tie before an interview - give all your effort and attention to it and make sure your work is done right. We are at the age where we have the world at our fingertips. Anything is possible and achievable if your work hard enough and have the passion to accomplish it. GPA is very important for securing your dream internship or job out of college - so make that one of your top priorities as a student. Networking and making valuable connections with your peers, professors, and industry professionals is also essential for securing a position at your dream company. I always have found that the harder I work, the luckier I get. Grind it out now, work the long hours, spend less time partying and horsing around, and spend more time investing in yourself, your knowledge, and preparing for the long life ahead of you. You are going to UMass so you can get a good job. You want the college investment to pay off so you can be successful, have financial freedom, and be happy. These great things life has to offer only come to those individuals who work hard for it and want it more than anything. Do the gritty dirty work and spend the time that no one else wants to do, so later in life you can live like most people can’t.