Meet Aarushi Sharma ‘21. Aarushi received a BSBA, Finance & Information Systems. She is currently a Financial Consultant at Deloitte. To get to know more about Aarushi and her post-graduation journey, see the Q&A below:
Q: What did you like most about the program you were in?
A: My favorite part about concentrating in Finance and Information Systems, and Questom in general, was how caring and knowledgeable the faculty was. Having professors that have industry experience meant not only that lectures were filled with examples of real world applications to what we were learning, but also projects and assignments were relevant once we graduated. In addition, professors did a good job of getting to know their students, especially if you made an effort on your part, and these connections were really valuable. For example, I have had professors give me career advice, written letters of recommendations, and even let me know of any career opportunities I might be interested in. You can tell that the professors really want their students to succeed inside and outside of the classroom.
Q: Was there a particularly impactful class, skill you developed, or club you were involved with at Questrom that has shaped your career path?
A: In addition to the classes I took at Questrom and all of the professors who helped guide and support me, joining the BU Financial Modeling Club has shaped my career path to date. I was the VP of Marketing, and because I was on the E-Board I felt like I really had to learn Excel so that I could help other members if they had any questions during our general meetings. I use Excel every single day for a large part of my day now, and learning Excel formulas and shortcuts has made me a lot more efficient and faster at my job. Being in a leadership role also meant that I couldn’t skip meetings because I had too much work or was stressed about a midterm, so that really helped me learn how to manage my time better and be disciplined about my work. On top of learning useful work skills and how to manage my time better, being on E-Board gave me access to internship opportunities and gave me a network of students that helped me with preparing for interviews and securing my first job.
Q: What is the most rewarding or challenging part of your job? Did anything from your time at Questrom help you prepare for either?
A: The most rewarding part of my job is how closely I get to work with the Partners and Senior Managers at Deloitte. Day-to-day, I help Partners and Senior Managers price out different engagement options they can use to sell work to the client, create the SOW used for the project, keep track of the different engagement metrics Deloitte uses to see if an engagement is profitable, and if an engagement is going off track I’ll help come up with different solutions to make sure that the engagement turns out to be profitable without taking on any additional risks. I really appreciate how Partners and Senior Managers look at us as the experts of engagement economics, and really take and implement whatever advice we give them. In the same sense, one of the most difficult aspects of my job is when I have to challenge the same Partners or Senior Managers. One thing that I learned in Questrom that has helped me interact with leadership, whether delivering positive or negative news, is how to be an effective communicator. Classes such as Organizational Behaviors and Management Communications really taught me how to be a concise, effective, and persuasive communicator, and are skills that I use everyday.
Q: Based on your experience, what are some effective strategies for building and maintaining a professional network?
A: I would say that the best way to build your professional network is to keep putting yourself out there. Whether it is career fairs, sponsored events, clubs, volunteering activities, or any other activity, the only way you are going to connect with people is if you keep putting yourself out there. And after attending an event, make sure to follow up with the people that you connected with! Sometimes it may take attending a couple of events until you find someone you really click with, but that is part of the process. My other advice would be that once you connect with someone, and are meeting with them one-on-one, make sure you are coming prepared and have an idea on the topics you want to cover in your meeting especially if it is with someone who is much further along in his or her career than you are. People are more willing to help than not usually, but only if you come prepared and seem capable.
Q: Please describe how you’ve stayed engaged with the Questrom community during and/or after your studies. Has the engagement influenced or supported your professional life?
A: Since graduating Questrom, I have stayed connected with the school in a few different ways. I have attended a few guest speaker events that were open to both current and former students as well as been a guest speaker for SM 131 and the ‘What Can You Be with a Questrom Degree’ event. I also still keep in touch with the friends I made in Questrom as well as a few faculty members. All of these experiences have given me a network that I can lean on when I need career advice or to hear another perspective, and this network has been truly invaluable to me.
