Grad-to-Great
The School of International Relations and Pacific Studies (IR/PS) trains leaders who can operate effectively in a world characterized by globalization, rapid change, and increasingly complex government-business relations. Here are recent graduates talking about their first job after graduation:
Succeeding in the Pacific Century
Graduates talk about their first job after graduation
"I was fortunate enough to be accepted into a competitive training program with insurance-based Zurich Financial. The Global Associate program allows me to learn all aspects of the business; claims, IT, finance, law, underwriting, and risk engineering, while every other month going to Zurich, Switzerland to train and build closer ties with the other 108 Global Associates across the world. I even get to spend 3 months abroad working in a country of my choice before I return to the US and settle on a location and specialization. Currently, I am learning commercial property underwriting and risk engineering, however, the flexibility of the job will allow me to get into anything from business development and sales to finance and management. What most impressed my hiring manager was the diversity of skills I refined while at IR/PS. Being exposed to everything from finance, strategy, and regional expertise to my travel experience, teamwork, and classes outside of IR/PS at UCSD, I was really able to differentiate myself from the other candidates and still obtain a degree from a top tier university."
Joshua Hackett - Zurich Financial, Global Associate - Los Angeles, CA
"I started working at BlackRock New York office in July as an analyst at Account Management Group Japan Desk. BlackRock is an asset management firm with approximately $1.2 trillion assets under management. It is a firm with over 25 offices across the globe and clients from all over the world. My team’s responsibility is to act as a bridge between our Tokyo office and the New York office. When the Tokyo office has questions, such as our views on markets or issues with compliance, they contact us. Then, we will talk to our portfolio managers or appropriate group in New York to get the answers. I also write periodic reports, organize client meetings, and do some marketing/sales Because of the breadth of my work, I am utilizing everything that I learned at IRPS. For now, I hope to learn as much as I can, and I am very excited about it. When I am more familiar with the company’s structure as well as the business, I wish to be transferred to Tokyo to work on the front line."
Keiyo Hanamura - BlackRock, Analyst - New York, NY
"I work for Charles River and Associates International (CRAI) as an Associate in the Oakland Office. CRAI is an economic and business consulting firm that provides businesses, governments and law firms with economic and financial analysis to assist them with legal issues, business strategies and public policy concerns. I work in the competition practice, which primarily deals with legal cases involving mergers, acquisitions and predatory pricing. As an Associate, I work with small teams to analyze financial and economic issues using data analysis skills acquired during my time at IRPS in the economics, accounting and quantitative methods courses. In addition to quantitative analysis, I also regularly research historic documents and case specific information and write informational memos to assist the project manager or lead economist in drafting legal reports we produce for law firms and the government. In all, my career in economic consulting is enabling me to put many of the tools and knowledge gained at IRPS to use and providing me with an opportunity to explore and learn about a variety of industries."
Brandon Hickie - Charles River and Associates International, Associate - Oakland, CA
"As an analyst at Belkin’s Corporate Development Group, I am responsible for providing strategic offsite planning and analytical support for Mergers and Acquisitions projects and competitive analysis for senior executives. This is exactly the job I was looking for as it is an excellent combination of the research skills that I’ve developed at IRPS and my desire to pursue a career in Strategic Planning and the IT industry. Although being in a fast-paced and multitasking environment is sometimes tense, working in this group is very exciting. I am learning the company’s business and strategy in a comprehensive way by communicating with internal and external multi-functional teams, domestically and internationally. While most of the analytical and planning work is done in the office, I am now looking forward to attending conferences and trade shows that may require international travel in the coming months!"
Cynthia Hsu - Belkin Corporation, Junior Analyst - Los Angeles, CA
"I am completing a one-year post-Masters research fellowship with The National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR), a think tank located in Seattle which publishes research on Asian affairs and informs U.S. policy towards Asia. NBR contains centers that focus on politics and security, economic issues, and social issues. As a fellow, I support ongoing research programs, particularly projects investigating China's ongoing military modernization program, relations with its neighbors, domestic politics, and nonproliferation efforts. I also conduct my own research project examining the likelihood of the emergence of revisionist regimes in China and Japan and implications for their respective foreign policies. The goal of this fellowship is to have my original research published in a peer-reviewed journal. At the conclusion of my fellowship, I plan to apply the skills I have gained at IRPS and refined here at NBR in a position with the federal government related to international security."
Winston Le - National Bureau of Asian Research, Research Fellow - Seattle, WA
"I was hired as an Economist for the Louis Berger Group, a multi-disciplinary consulting firm which specializes in infrastructure development. I work on international infrastructure and road projects funded by USAID, ADB and the World Bank. As an Economist, I will be on teams conducting economic and social impact assessments of these projects abroad. The skills that I acquired at IRPS in the Quantitative Methods series, Field Research Methods and Cost-Benefit Analysis will be extremely important as most of my project work will involve estimating the economic impact of new infrastructure on the poor though surveying and data analysis. Additionally, when we are not traveling for projects or working on proposals, we are encouraged to conduct research and submit papers for publication. I am currently working on a paper on good governance and poverty alleviation (which, of course, makes use of my trusty PMP toolkit)"
Nina Merchant - Louis Berger Group, Economist - Washington, DC
"I started at KPMG about a month after graduation and it has been fantastic so far. I perform both valuation and transfer pricing analyses. The job is very interesting because I use skills learned in accounting, finance and economics classes at IRPS, while also relying on my research and writing abilities to prepare reports that discuss the client's business and industry. My summer internship, Career Services, and IRPS Alumni were all key components in my job search. An IRPS alumnus arranged for my summer internship abroad, thus introducing me to the wonderful world of transfer pricing. Then, at one of the Alumni Connection events hosted by Career Services, I met another IRPS alumnus who was working at KPMG and she provided me some contacts. Through these contacts, I eventually found a KPMG partner who was familiar with the firm at which I interned over the summer, and he passed my resume to a manager with Economic and Valuation Services, who, it turned out, was also an IRPS alumnus. I have a terrific job at a great, internationally focused company with potential to work abroad. Just what I wanted when I started IRPS!"
Keith Plemons - KPMG, Economic & Valuation Services Associate - Mountain View, CA
"I’m working in real estate development at Steadfast Companies in Newport Beach, California. Steadfast Companies is a multidiscipline real estate firm which develops multifamily residential, commercial, business, and resort properties in the United States and Mexico. I’m the Senior Acquisitions Analyst and focus on developing affordable housing using Lower Income Housing Tax Credits (non-profits, state and local governments, and investors in tax-exempt securities to help LIHTC) and tax-exempt bonds. My primary responsibility is to model a project’s cash flow into the future based on its historical performance and forecasts of the future. The best thing I did to prepare for my job at Steadfast is take all of Professor’s Kane classes and thoroughly learn Excel. I feel very lucky to be with Steadfast as my colleagues are well educated and talented people whose efforts result in the greater availability of affordable housing."
Landon Scott – Steadfast Companies, Senior Acquisitions Analyst - Newport Beach, CA
"My first encounter with CBH was at the 2007 UCIBC career fair. I am now working in the company’s Financial Services and Gaming division. CBH is a growing 75 person corporate performance management consulting firm that focuses on enterprise planning and business intelligence. Despite being headquartered in Irvine, our consultants are dispersed throughout the U.S. and spend the majority of their time on the road at client sites. Thanks to travel I enjoy frequent flyer programs, great food, and the excitement of working in a new city nearly every month. Currently I’m working on a project to revamp and automate Allied Waste’s budgeting system in Scottsdale, AZ. Despite working for a garbage company, I'll have you know the facilities are first-rate and trash free! The dynamic nature of consulting drew me to the field, and I have not been disappointed. The hours are long, but the projects are interesting and my colleagues are great. With upcoming projects in China and Venezuela I’m hoping some international travel will be in my future."
Erin Stevens - CBH, Consultant - Irvine, CA
"As a Web Editor in the R&D team at Bloomberg LP in New York, I make sure news and information from all over the world is being delivered to customers efficiently and consistently. My language skills have come in handy because Bloomberg's customers are all over the world -- with the fastest growing market in China -- and they can search news content from 9,000 Internet sources in any one of 25 languages through their Bloomberg terminals. I spend a lot of time researching Chinese- and Japanese-language news sites, and making sure they work properly and are searchable on our system. I do the same thing for German and French sites, and also work with developers on supporting more languages and adding more resources. I meet regularly with Bloomberg's customers in Wall Street's biggest firms, helping them to get the most out of the news that's delivered on their terminals, and I also train Bloomberg News reporters internally. The company is a great place to work, and offers plenty of chances to interact with people in a variety of industries all around the world."
Stefan Whitney – Bloomberg, Web Editor - New York, NY
