University: The University of Western Australia

Degree: Bachelor of Commerce, Finance

School Subjects: Accounting and Finance, English, Mathematics Methods, Physics, Politics and Law

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Introduction

Hi there!

I am a UWA graduate, where I spent 3.5 years completing a BComm majoring in Finance. I also did a minor in Data Science and a number of Business Law units. Post-graduation, I now work as a Management Consultant.

Similar to most, coming out of high-school I wasn’t exactly sure what to do. Having done ATAR Accounting & Finance plus Politics & Law in school, and enjoying both, it felt like BComm was a good decision, so I went with that.

At the start, I enrolled into Accounting and Business Law. I wasn’t exactly sure what the difference between Accounting and Finance was at the time, but after the first 6 weeks of taking Introduction to Finance – FINA1221 and Financial Accounting – ACCT1101 together (as they’re both required by all UWA Commerce students) I discovered I enjoyed Finance a lot more.

For me, Finance took a lot wider perspective of the world. Accounting was about really understanding numbers and the story they told. Finance spoke a lot more – to my surprise – about people, especially why we don’t act in ways that would be considered ‘rational’ (i.e. in ways that actually make sense). For me, the implication this had on markets seemed far more interesting than making sure Debits = Credits, so I quickly switched over into Finance.

So, what was Finance like? Well, to be completely honest I don’t remember a whole lot content-wise. Being out of uni for over a year as I’m writing this has made me a bit rusty. But there were definitely structural elements that I did and did not like.

What did I like?

One of the biggest elements is freedom – and there are two aspects to this. The first is the physical freedom. Unlike more practical majors (e.g. Biomed), Finance is one that can be done almost entirely remotely. Other than the usual requirement to attend in-person tutorials (each being only 45 mins per week), everything else could be done remotely.

“This is great. I like the lecturer and find them really engaging. Sweet, I can go into uni for the lecture.”

“Wait, I actually got rostered on for my job that day? Never mind, guess I’ll watch it when I get home.”

This was how easy it was to plan my days.

The 2^nd element of freedom came in the degree structure itself. Finance is a very broad topic, so there are a few different directions you can go to get your degree. For those more interested in markets and the math behind them you could go down the derivatives or trading route. For those more people-inclined, you could do units on financial planning or applied financial management. Or you could even do a combination (and try and pick the easier units like I did). Regardless of the direction you lean, the freedom to choose is great.

What didn’t I like?

I think there are trade-offs to the extra freedom you get. I think overall, you come out of a Finance degree knowing a little bit of a lot of things, rather a lot about one thing (e.g. compared to a Math major). This means going into the workforce (which is often more specialised) can feel a little daunting and it can be hard to know exactly what you want to do at times. Additionally, I found it a lot more difficult to meet people and make friends in my degree as you rarely had to be in-person, and wouldn’t often see the same people unit-to-unit, sem-to-sem.

But while there were things about Finance structurally I didn’t like, there are ways to get around this.

Uni is a social hub, so while I didn’t have many ‘finance friends,’ I had plenty of Uni friends from joining social clubs. With regard to specialisation too, I ended up finding the industry I joined through Uni clubs/ organisations such as the UWA Consulting Society and WAUC – and there are plenty more which are really good (SMIF, FAWA, 180DC, just to name a few more finance-related).

Who would I recommend Finance to?

I think if you have an interest in money, markets, people and how these three things interact, then Finance is for you.

I also think Finance is great as a general subject for those unsure what to do. There are tonnes of useful lessons that are applicable to everyone (we all use money). It’s also really easy to switch degrees in uni, so Finance is a great starting point before you discover what else you might really want to do.

Top 3 Other Tips

1. Join clubs;
2. Enjoy the free time (it becomes a lot less once you start work after graduating);
3. Stay on top of things – try not to let all the study become last minute cramming (this is uni heritage).