Meet Aakanksha J.

Banking Advisor Intern

RBC Royal Bank

Summer 2022 (8 month term)

“When I first accepted the offer to work with RBC, I assumed it was the start of something I would look back upon as ‘my short stint in banking’. I was an international student without relevant work experience entering a rather technical field in a rather multifaceted role. And then I went to my first day of work.

I work as a Banking Advisor with the Royal Bank of Canada. I joined the team with absolutely no background in finance or economics, worried that I was bringing nothing to the table. My role called for providing financial, credit and investment advice to clients hailing from various parts of society, with various goals, abilities, constraints and risk appetites. Not to mention I had immigrated barely two years prior, with no knowledge of the Canadian economy at all. It was a delight and a relief to find out that the RBC student co-op position came equipped with not just a very comprehensive job-specific training segment, but also career-coaching sessions, volunteering opportunities, optional complementary training, and one-on-one mentorship.

Quite early in the internship, I started to actively pursue a job in finance as a career goal, and the feeling of being disconnected from my degree never encroached my mind. As I started performing my duties after active training for the first two months, I realized that I was bringing something to the table that could complement the technical training– my attitude, knowledge and skills that I learned throughout the course of my degree. This is something I want to emphasize to prospective AWE students: the beauty of an Arts degree is the transferable skills that come with it. In the end, we bring a fresh perspective, especially to roles that may not be considered traditional for us. The attitude you bring can’t be coached, so don’t be afraid to use that as a major strength in your applications.”

Aakanksha is currently in her final year of her Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in Psychology and Linguistics. She splits her time between school and her work as a Banking Advisor (intern) with RBC Royal Bank.