Jacky Tan

When Jacky Tan was looking to pivot his career, he started searching for a program that would fit his needs. With a background in finance, business analytics and mathematics, the China-native had been working as a CPA after graduating from Indiana University. His career path eventually led him to working in risk management at a regional bank, but Jacky was looking for a change. 

“I was looking forward to transitioning into a more front office role, and that's why I picked the master in finance degree at Emory,” Jacky says. “I chose to pursue a Master of Finance because it was a match of where I was looking to be, and it was a skill match with what the program provided and what I needed.” 

More specifically, there were two attributes that appealed to Jacky in entering the Master of Finance program at Goizueta. One being the smaller class size. “You get to know everybody, and you have people from all over the world,” Jacky says. "You get to work in a setting like you would working professionally.” Additionally, Jacky enjoyed learning from professors and individuals who brought real-world experience to the classroom.

“These are people who are working in the field and can bring you the resources that you need to be successful in this field,” Jacky says. “The Master of Finance is an experiential program, and that means we're actually doing projects that are coming from the real world.” 

During many of these projects, students have the ability to work with imperative tools they would use in a professional environment. “Because I have this skillset, it helps you to stand out among interviewees, and I think this is an important skill to help us, especially in a world that's becoming increasingly automated, to become more competitive candidates.”

Beyond the classroom setting, Jacky says one of the most important and influential parts about being in the program is the people who have helped push him beyond his comfort zone. “Professors and also mentors from the professional field will help you and guide you along the way,” Jacky says. “I would say the thing that surprised me the most was the ability to work as hard I did with the right group of people. It's always the people that bring the best out of me.”