An FGCU student made such an impression on internship recruiters- he was offered a full-time position to work at Bank of America in New York City.
First-generation college student Jordy Fuentes became interested in finance in his junior year of high school after taking an economics class. As he learned more about the topic, he took it upon himself to help his parents with their personal finances.
“I’m the first in my family to go to college so I felt like I had a lot of weight on my shoulders to set a good example for the rest of my family,” Fuentes said. “Because of that, I got into finances mainly to teach my parents basic financial concepts.”
Now a senior pursuing a double major in finance and business management with a concentration in international business, his passion for assisting people to grow and manage their money continues.
In his sophomore year, he participated in two semester-long programs at JP Morgan: Career.edYOU and an Early Insights program.
The Career.edYOU program specializes in teaching students about JP Morgan and what areas they offer job opportunities in. Then, participants choose one of those areas to learn in depth in the Early Insights program the following semester.
Fuentes has recently completed two study-abroad opportunities.
Last year, he traveled with the Honors College to Peru.
“We helped a local hospital decrease their expenses and find better access to resources for cheaper,” he said.
Because of his concentration in international business, he also went to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia over the summer. The group traveled through both countries visiting different universities and companies.
Four days after he returned from the Middle East, Fuentes flew to NYC to start his internship as a Wealth Management Analyst for Bank of America.
Fuentes was one of the 25 selected candidates from a large applicant pool of 1,500 people.
When searching for an internship opportunity, he knew he did not want to stay local to Florida.
“I wanted something different, so I just applied online and waited for a response,” he said. “I reached out to people on LinkedIn and I looked up the Bank of America recruiter in New York City. I started sending a bunch of emails trying to reach out to people and put my name out there. I think that’s what sets me apart from other students.”
Within his position, Fuentes was on the Thought Leadership Team. His tasks were to read reports, data and write economic outlook reports for the bank.
He had one main project to complete throughout the whole summer.
“I was partnered with another intern, so there were two of us on the floor. We had to do research and give a recommendation to the Chief Investment Office as to whether they should overweight or underweight emerging markets,” he said.
Employees of Bank of America helped the interns whenever possible.
“When you come in as an intern, they just expect you to have good communication skills and be coachable. They do not expect you to know all these finance terms or to understand other things within finance. I think that was helpful because they [the employees] will explain certain things very well which made the project go smoother,” Fuentes said.
At the end of the summer, Fuentes was offered a full-time position to work at Bank of America after he graduates.
Since the beginning of the fall semester, he has served as the Treasurer for the Student Trading Optimization Club on campus. The goal of the club is to teach different investment processes to students.
“So far it has been great. I’ve learned a lot about time management, getting people together and being able to speak with people. This semester was one of the first times that I got up in front of a group of people and presented something. Before, I didn’t think I could do it, but now I give it a shot,” he said.
Within the organization, Fuentes works directly with Thomas Mathews, the advisor of the club.
“What Jordy has done for the club, the way he represents himself at different venues and how he has shown what FGCU has given to him makes us very proud of students like him,” Mathews said. “He truly embodies what we are trying to accomplish here at FGCU. He is a great example for the rest of the students in our business school and the university.”
Eventually, Fuentes wants to get into the real estate business. However, his ultimate goal is to help as many people as possible.
“I have this goal in mind. I’m helping my parents with their finances, but I can also help other underrepresented communities,” he said. “If I’m able to, the main goal is to provide education opportunities to those in rural towns, where access to education isn’t as accessible as in other parts of the world.”
