Aaron Kimber wanted to pursue career opportunities in finance in the United States. That posed a challenge. Aaron had always lived in Canada.

He concluded that a graduate degree from a top U.S. school would provide the access that would help him open doors to the U.S. job market. “Vanderbilt,” he says, “catered to my specific needs.”

In particular, he recalls, meeting the staff at Owen’s Career Management Center convinced him that Vanderbilt was the right choice for him. His instinct proved prescient. “The Owen team,” he says, “was instrumental in helping me get my spring internship and my full-time offer.”

To illustrate his point, Aaron recalls a time when he was in preliminary discussions with Houlihan Lokey in New York. He received a time-sensitive email from the firm’s human resources that required a well-written response. “I immediately went to the careers office to see Megan Nichols,” he recalls. “She dropped all of her work to help me craft the perfect response. The direct result of this response was an interview, which led me to accepting a full-time offer.”

The program also benefited him in ways he hadn’t envisioned at first. For example, he credits the elective Launching the Venture course he took with developing his teamwork and critical thinking skills.

The experience at Vanderbilt, Aaron says, “has completely changed the trajectory of my career path. I will be working for a great firm in New York City. I did not have access to the firm, nor the opportunity to work in the United States, before the MSF program.”

Fun Fact: A “huge” hockey fan and player himself, Aaron has worked with players in the National Hockey League. His favorite place in Nashville? Bridgestone Arena—where the Nashville Predators play.

“I will be working for a great firm in New York City. I did not have access to the firm, nor the opportunity to work in the United States, before the MSF program.”