“You can’t pursue a finance career with a liberal arts degree.”
Alumni Stephen Pascoe ’21 and Tim Beer ’13 returned to Christendom this past month to dispel this myth. In the first spring semester Life on Tap, a series of alumni interviews highlighting career options post-graduation, they spoke to current students about the ins and outs of the finance world, interviewed by Mrs. Kristin Stephens, Director of Career Development. Pascoe and Beer are both pursuing successful financial careers, with Pascoe employed as an investor relations associate for Abdiel Capital Advisers in New York City, communicating with investors, managing the firm’s expenses, and preparing regulatory filings, and Beer working as a controller for Sun Design Remodeling, reporting to the CEO about the company’s financial situation and tracking accounts.
Though Pascoe majored in political science and Beer in philosophy, this hasn’t prevented their success in financial careers. Christendom prepares its alumni for a wide variety of careers through its liberal arts education, which seeks to form the whole person in multiple areas. Instead of four years of studying solely through the narrow lens of a finance major, Christendom students interested in finance can prepare themselves much better by studying a broad range of subjects, exploring options outside the classroom, and having a foundation of philosophy on which to shape their worldview and career.
The two alumni shared how their Christendom education prepared them for their careers by developing their critical thinking skills and grounding them in their faith.
“Critical thinking is something that’s not necessarily out there,” Tim Beer shared, adding, “That’s really important in the finance world because it’s not just numbers.”
When asked to share practical tips with the students, Pascoe recommended, “Trade on the stock market, watch YouTube videos, or read books about the industry. Just constantly take in knowledge about it and if you want to really learn trading, you don’t need to be investing your whole life savings. There are great tools out there.”
Pascoe and Beer agree that the main challenges of their careers have been the diversity of work on a day-to-day basis and the stress of the finance industry itself. With a willingness to learn and critical thinking skills developed during their time at Christendom, both were able to overcome these challenges and flourish in their work environment. Beer emphasized the fact that every student, regardless of interest in a financial career, will need finance at some point in life and it’s best to have at least some knowledge about it. The alumni encouraged students to be open to career opportunities outside their normal interests and to establish a relationship with the Career Development Office to expand career opportunities even after graduation.
Most of all, the alumni highlighted that while critical thinking can be taken for granted, it is not an automatic quality found in an employee. This is a distinct advantage of Christendom graduates, who have spent four years perfecting these critical thinking skills through extensive reading, intense writing, and careful analysis of everything from great literature to mathematical formulas. Finance companies are now gladly hiring workers without finance degrees, provided they can think creatively and actively.
Beer and Pascoe’s final advice? Not to measure success in terms of worldly affluence, but to focus on developing good habits of virtue and prayer.
Christendom’s Career and Professional Development Office offers opportunities to hear from alumni at Life on Tap at least three times a semester. In addition, students are given regular chances to attend relevant career workshops, meet with future employers, secure summer internships, and explore a plethora of career paths before they’ve even declared a major. With the support of the Career and Professional Development Office and an excellent liberal arts education, there is no career path rendered impossible with a degree from Christendom.
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Contributed by Bridget Palm ’28.