Meet Lara - Associate Director within the Equity Derivatives Trading department at UBS since August 2014. Lara studied an Engineering Grandes Écoles Master's Degree at École Centrale Paris.
Why did you choose UBS?
I've had a strong interest in the financial markets for a long time, which is why I took a gap year in 2012 to do a one-year internship in Trading at UBS. I was really thrilled. I enjoyed it and learned a lot. Completing the internship drove me to apply for a full-time position at UBS in Trading.
What was the toughest part of the application process? And your favourite part?
I believe the toughest part was to be 100% sure Trading was what I wanted to do. Making this kind of decision in my early twenties was not a piece of cake! I kept having second thoughts but at some point you need to acquire self-confidence and be willing to take risks.
I am lucky because I've always enjoyed application processes. I perform well under pressure and thought of the process as a competitive event, and gave my all to succeed.
Were you surprised by anything in the process?
To be fair it was quite straightforward. The process is thankfully very precisely described on the UBS recruitment website. There were no unpleasant surprises.
It's important to be well prepared; i.e. to know as much as possible about the role for which you're applying, to know about what's happening in the world, and be sure that this is how and where you want to start your career.
What three top tips would you give to graduates applying now?
Find out what interests you, strengthen your knowledge and push on!
