This summer program allowed me and my peers to expand our knowledge on financial literacy, career options, building a strong network, asset allocation/investments, and many more topics. But, most significantly, this program allowed me to remotely collaborate with students to create professional Capstone Projects to present to Lazard professionals. 

This taught us students to take on leadership roles by splitting into groups with peers to analyze company data and conduct financial research. As students during the pandemic, we appreciated the experience of participating in knowledge-driven group work which seemed to be a scarce opportunity in many of our classes. Moreover, this program opened doors for students to unfamiliar concepts. One of our first tasks in 2021 was to create exceptional personal resumes, where we achieved an understanding of how to produce one and edit it over time. In fact, I used the resume that I created in this program when applying to colleges in 2023. 

Not only did we establish professional resumes as high school students, but we were also given the opportunity to network with Lazard associates from different professions to introduce us to a variety of careers. We cultivated questions to ask them and each panelist exceeded our expectations by elaborating on every topic we were curious about. They brought us down their career journey stories and substantially broadened our options for the future, which was very relieving to students who needed direction when deciding on colleges and their future plans.

This 2023-2024 school year, I joined Pace University’s Pforzheimer’s Honors College as a Finance major, and I can proudly say the guidance and inspiration I gained from the Summer academy set me in the direction I needed. Most of all, this  program set their students to be ahead of others and build leadership skills that will be needed in future

professional positions.