QMUL work experience led to a job in New York for Liam Fallon
"My name is Liam and I am pleased to say I am now a Queen Mary University of London graduate, having graduated last summer. I come from South Africa originally but grew up in the UK so it is London I mostly call home. I live with my mother who lectures English and my sister who studies in London."
"For me, QMUL was the place to be because of the truly diverse range of students and staff. This University hosts people from all walks of life - I have befriended a billionaire from Cairo and refugees from Eritrea - and we all study side by side in an ethnically interesting location.
"I studied Mechanical Engineering, which included a year working abroad in California and Manchester for technology companies. It was while I was studying I applied to QConsult, an employability programme run by the Careers department, for a work experience placement. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work with J. P. Morgan who had teamed up with local organisations with the aim to develop students’ social capital within a consultancy capacity – this was an area which I was increasingly becoming interested in.
"All successful applicants were divided into groups of five, and assigned a short project brief outlining details of a particular business challenge. We were given a period of time to plan and were expected to pitch our ideas to representatives at the end of our project. I was working on data analytics for use in anti-money laundering and anti-terrorism financing. This project has been a wholly influencing factor in my current job; I now work in financial crime prevention with HSBC Securities USA Inc. in New York. I couldn’t have got here without the programme and the invaluable experience it gave me.
"This project was made possible by the alumni support which helped QConsult, via the Annual Fund, provide students with tangible work experience that developed our employability skills. I would like to thank those who funded this project with my utmost sincerity because it directly created the opportunity needed for me to seize a life-changing step on the career ladder. I am deeply grateful for this experience and will never forget the conversation I had with the Vice President of J. P. Morgan, on the 28th floor overlooking a twilight London, on his sentiments of how work can be meaningful.