Sameer is a senior in the Canfield Business Honors Program studying finance. He grew up in Georgia, and UT Austin caught his eye with its reputation as a large state school with spirited sports culture. Moreover, Canfield BHP would provide him with a small community within UT and case-based classes, which would be the perfect blend.
To immerse himself in the UT business community his freshman year, Sameer joined Alpha Kappa Psi Business Fraternity (AKPsi), which hosted weekly events and helped him meet many of his friends. While Sameer knew he wanted to pursue a career in finance, he was not sure what specific avenue he preferred. Therefore, in sophomore year, he joined Texas Stock Team (TST), which became his main focus. He received mentorship from upperclassmen and learned about different finance careers. Ultimately, TST was one of the biggest reasons Sameer succeeded in investment banking recruiting due to the comprehensive training it provided. Therefore, he became Director of Education his junior year in order to give back.
Sameer also joined Investment Banking Association (IBA) and Wall Street for McCombs (WSFM), organizations that help with high finance recruiting. He was an executive member of IBA last year, where he was able to help sophomores while refreshing the knowledge he needed to succeed in his internship last summer at JP Morgan.
Investment banking interests Sameer as it is fast-paced, provides a lot of experience and responsibility early in his career, and surrounds him with successful people who are willing to teach and mentor him. Through his internship, he was able to confirm these factors as he had an amazing summer and is excited to return to JP Morgan full-time. He was a part of the Financial Sponsors Group, where his team was pulled in any time a private equity sponsor was involved in a deal. Through JP Morgan’s deep relationships, he worked with many top private equity firms. Moreover, he collaborated with many JP Morgan industry teams and got cross-staffed with a San Francisco team, giving him broad exposure and allowing him to be at the center of the action.
Outside of the classroom, Sameer enjoys football, traveling, and dogs. Now that he is a senior, Sameer is more relaxed and is enjoying the remainder of college through his interests. Last fall, he studied abroad in Italy with a Canfield BHP friend and visited fourteen different countries. More Canfield BHP friends visited during Thanksgiving break, and the whole semester became a highlight of his college experience. Additionally, due to his constant desire to give back, he is getting certified to volunteer at the Austin Animal Center.
Sameer’s biggest piece of advice is to not be intimidated by UT’s size. Because UT is so big, there are many student organizations and opportunities to meet people. Moreover, Canfield BHP does a great job putting students in small groups and making it easy to meet people early on. Odds are, you’ll become great friends with other Canfield BHP students. In fact, Sameer’s roommates from sophomore year onwards were in Canfield BHP. Ultimately, he urges students to put themselves out there, because they will definitely find their group.