This Program Is Teaching HBCU Students How To Trade In The Capital Markets Like Professionals

HBCU students are getting a direct pathway to a viable career in finance thanks to an immersive program sponsored by Bloomberg for Education and Bloomberg Human Resources.

The two organizations have expanded their Trading Challenge to new universities, allowing more students from undeserved communities to learn key skills in navigating the capital markets.

“The new focus on developed markets stocks builds on last year’s ESG-specific challenge to introduce another layer of difficulty and further replicate real world experiences,” said Emily Perrucci, Global Head of User Support at Bloomberg in a news release. “Fund managers often must consider ESG factors as part of managing a much larger, diverse portfolio. We want to ensure students have a well-rounded understanding of market indices to be best prepared for future careers in finance.”

“The advice I would give to future participants is to take advantage of your resources,” said this year’s winner, Jaeden Patterson, a Senior at FAMU in a news release. “The mentor that was provided through the challenge helped me navigate unfamiliar functionality on the Bloomberg Terminal. Additionally, I was able to take the Bloomberg ESG Certificate Course, which enabled me to identify ESG investment strategies and apply them to develop a profitable portfolio.”

“Florida A&M University School of Business and Industry (SBI) has a long legacy of training students to be capable and well-prepared young business professionals. Bloomberg plays a role in that training process,” said Dr. Inger M. Daniels-Hollar, Assistant Professor of Finance at FAMU in a new release. “Bloomberg access enables us to simulate for our students the experience of sitting on a real-life desk while they’re still in college — much like a law student might argue in a mock courtroom before becoming a lawyer.”