Originally posted by Jordan Fujiwara.

Evan Carrigan describes himself as “a pretty big fanboy” of the program. “Everyone thinks their program is different, but when I try to be as objective as I can I really think this one is different; it’s not a cookie cutter program, they really take on angles that other programs just don’t look at.” We’ve heard this over and over, and it’s true that as current students we are going to be biased. But let’s see what has got Evan so “blindingly loyal” (his words) to this program.

First, this Nova Scotia native (Stellarton) was impressed with the application process. “To be honest, Dalhousie was the last place I actually looked at. I did my undergrad at Dalhousie [B.Comm, major in Business Management] and was looking elsewhere to do a Master’s, but I ended up attending a grad fair at Dal and was able to look at the program. I decided to apply.” Evan noted that applying to other schools felt more like answering standard short questions, whereas Dal’s personal essay and interview process encouraged him to reflect. “I felt like it was the most rewarding application process. That, and the attention that everyone at Dal gave; you could tell they really cared about you applying. Afterwards, it was pretty much a no-brainer,” he says.

The curriculum did not disappoint. Evan was particularly fond of the summer intensives: “I loved how we’d be in literally from 8 to 5 for five days a week. We’d be making presentations and have minutes left to finish it, then go up and present… day after day, over and over again!” Evan describes it as a “crazy whirlwind.” He even went as far as to say that the design made the accounting course exciting!

“It’s amazing. I enjoyed my undergrad but I didn’t really feel driven by it, y’know? Every aspect of this program is just amazing, especially the way they push you. There are so many aspects they design on purpose, like the stressors. In the real world there are problems, things go wrong and things get stressful. The team at Dal, they’re not just looking to teach you the topic. They are consciously putting stress into it too.”

The model of purposely building lifelike stressors into the program prepared Evan for his current position. He works with Scotia Capital in the Corporate Banking Division as an Analyst in the Credit Analytics Group. From his perch on the 62th floor in the massive Scotia Plaza building in Toronto, Evan is blasting through financial statements and loan documents for corporations who need massive lines of credit. He might be generating internal credit ratings (which can determine the cost of a loan to a corporation) or making sure loan covenants have not been broken. “It’s one thing to do a practice question in a textbook, another to do it for real: when you’re faced with a 200-page report with complicated notes, some of it maybe written in Spanish [Evan recalls translating some things line by line on Google] and you need to find hundreds of items within it… well, it was difficult at first. Doing it over and over again and getting used to it was one of the greatest challenges I faced and was able to overcome.”

It’s intense, but Evan is really enjoying the autonomy, fulfillment and opportunities that the position has afforded him: “You come in in the morning, grab your task list, and then it’s up to you to decide how to manage your time and prioritize. They’re not ever looking over your back or anything like that. It’s also cool to see how your work is making a direct impact; there’s a real sense of accomplishment because you know that when a deal goes through you played a part in it.”

A particularly interesting opportunity has arisen for Evan because of the Corporate Residency’s 8-month timeline. “You know how most co-op are, like, 4 months long, right?” Evan begins excitedly, “well, we have some of those students there and it’s just starting to wind up for them. Since we’re the Dal Corporate Residency students, when the new 4-month co-op people come in, they’re going to get paired with one of us so we can help them ease in to the role. How many other co-op programs do you know of that allow you to take on a mentorship role like that?!”

I don’t know about you, but I think Evan’s “fanboy” status is justified! He leaves us with these words: “Anyone who’s interested in learning more about yourself, and business, and life… this program is it. Take that extra step.”