As a student panelist at the upcoming Christiana Foglio DC ’84 Douglass Career Conference for Women, Xinhua Huang DRC’22 is using her experiences in the business world to act as a role model to her fellow students
A business analytics and information technology major with a minor in Chinese, Huang has eagerly taken on challenging opportunities, allowing her to further develop her creativity and critical thinking skills. This past summer, she interned remotely at Ayco, a subsidiary of Goldman Sachs. While there, Huang worked on a team project exploring the differences in financial trends between traditional Ayco clients and Gen Z.
“While tackling the project, I also had the opportunity to attend professional development and financial counseling trainings,” Huang said of the experience. “The most important thing I learned from this experience was that being uncomfortable is a part of the learning process.”
After the summer finished, Huang turned her summer internship at Ayco into a longer-term position. She continued to work under an account manager, where she now helps in compiling income tax projections and asset allocations to present to clients. Her experiences in the financial industry, and the professional skills she’s learned along the way, make her an excellent resource for other Douglass students looking to advance in their careers. As an intern during the pandemic, Huang also has expertise on how to make the most of a remote career experience.
“I’ll be speaking on the finance panel at the Career Conference next month, and I’m so excited about helping my fellow Douglass women in navigating their career paths!” said Huang.
In part, Huang credits her employment success to her time as a part of the Reilly Program at the BOLD Center for Advancing Women’s Development. Through the Program, she secured an externship, a one to two-week professional experience in which Douglass students are paired with professional mentors, most often Douglass alumnae.
“Through my externship, I really gained the confidence I needed to reach for more opportunities and continue to test my own limits. The Douglass network is also one of the most supportive and inspiring groups I’m a part of!”
To Douglass students who might not be able to make it to her panel next month, Huang leaves some balanced words of advice:
“Never give up and never stop trying to improve yourself,” Huang said, “but also know that it’s okay to take a break sometimes.”
In addition to her academics and employment, Huang is a BOLD Empower student as well as a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion ambassador.
To learn about the Douglass Career Conference taking place on October 3rd, please click here!
