Last updated on April 22nd, 2022 at 08:55 am

One of the many reasons students attend an Imarticus course is to change the course of their career. Take Ami  for instance. She came to us with a Masters in Engineering having never worked in finance and left us with a job with Gravitas, a leading financial services firm focused on the research. It’s not easy and entails a lot of work but Ami was extremely focused. She constantly engaged with faculty to ensure proper learning. Ami’s success proves that there’s nothing to beat a combination of hard work, ambition and the right course. It’s been about six months or so now and we caught up with Ami and had a quick chat on how she was doing.

1. Tell us something about what you do now? What does your new job entail?

"I work as a credit research analyst at Gravitas Technology Pvt Ltd, which is one of the leading service providers to the alternative investment industry. My new job entails building and maintaining financial models from a credit perspective and drafting my research findings and observations for credit focused clients."

2. What do you enjoy most about your new job?

"Since I am doing project-based assignments for the clients at Gravitas, I get to analyze a variety of public and private companies of various sizes and sectors."

3. Walk us through a normal day at Gravitas?

"A normal day at Gravitas would involve a typical credit analysis of a company which would include:

• Industry analysis, company analysis, Key ratio analysis, Fundamental credit analysis (e.g. making a capital structure table, leverage analysis), Writing about the Credit outlook of the company

If available, I also read the company reports published by the top credit rating agencies like Moodys, S&P, Fitch as I get to understand their methodology in assigning a particular credit rating to the company. I also read initiating coverage reports of public companies as it helps me better understand the company’s business and the risks involved."

4. What was your favourite subject at Imarticus and why?

"My favourite subject at Imarticus was Equity Research. We got started by learning the basics of equity research, the different types of equity research reports, how to analyze an industry and company, financial analysis and finally writing an equity research report. This helped me tremendously even in my role as a credit research analyst as it taught me financial statement analysis and also basics of industry and company analysis."

5. How has Imarticus contributed to you in your new role? Which subjects have been most useful?

"I would give most of the credit in my new role to Imarticus for aiding a non-finance graduate, like myself, to secure a job as a credit research analyst in about 4 months. They started by teaching accounting basics, learning about company valuation, writing an initiating coverage report and delivering a M&A pitch presentation, all in a matter of months. All subjects in the IFAP course have helped me in my career so far in some way or the other-so it is hard to pick out a subject which hasn’t been useful. The curriculum is well designed for any new person who is venturing into the world of finance."

6. How do you relax?

"I unwind by meeting my friends or by spending quality time with my family over the weekend."

7. Any resolutions for 2015?

• " To successfully clear the CFA Level 1 examination in June 2015
• To further my skills in financial analysis
• To have a healthy, fun-filled year"

8. What advice would you give to current students in the IFAP program?

I would advise them the following:

• Take advantage of the resources at Imarticus (e.g. Experienced faculty, training in soft skills)
• Don’t procrastinate and rely on the class lectures alone to ace the course. Since this is a short course, it will involve a lot of self-study from your side
• Don’t be afraid to ask questions"

If you are interested in making a lateral career shift to financial services, please come talk to us at Imarticus Learning. We offer free counseling sessions.