“I lit up in my economics classes,” said finance and economics major Maxfield Davis, C'21. “I have the ability to think freely.”
During his freshman year, he and a friend visited the Mount’s Career Center on a weekly basis. They learned the basics of résumés and interviews. Personally and professionally motivated to succeed, Davis applied to 110 different firms and after an extensive four-and-a-half month process, landed a competitive summer internship at the United States Federal Reserve System in Washington, D.C.
The internship emphasized what he learned in class. “It was cool to see it applied in the real world. I could speak up in meetings and know what I was talking about,” he noted. Davis continued learning and soon decided the public sector wasn’t for him. This summer he will intern with Prudential in the New York City area for 10 weeks while learning about trading, compliance, operations and investment analysis.
The NCAA DI thrower walked on the track and field team his freshman year and earned a scholarship his sophomore year. He’s also the president of the finance club. “We use actual money from the school and teach people financial literacy, how to trade stocks, what a stock is and financial management,” Davis explained.
Davis advises prospective students to stay open and learn what they do and don’t want to do. When he first came to the Mount he studied criminal justice and sociology before figuring out economics was his real passion. He thought he wanted to work with the federal government before deciding he wanted to enter the private sector. “Things change,” he said. “If you learn to fail well and reflect well on your failure, you won’t make those decisions again.” He applies this advice to academics, sports and even trading stocks.
Relationships have proved invaluable. Teammates on the field, classmates in the finance club and professors in the classroom have encouraged him to consistently work toward a brighter future. He also met his girlfriend at the Mount. “She amazes me every day,” he said of the mathematics major. “We go back and forth about which stocks to buy with her technical analysis and quantitative analysis versus my fundamental analysis.” She’s opened a new world to him—including travel. “I needed her to show me that life isn’t just about work and your GPA,” he said. “I can be human, too.”
Underlining the importance of ethics in finance, he speaks about his grandmother, Katheryn, who passed away in January. “She was my best friend and someone who served others first,” he explained. “I want to help others who feel left out and fall behind. I want to help them see a new perspective on life.”
He also credits his parents for his positive mindset and motivation to lead a significant life. “The whole experience here,” he said as he sums up the goals for his life and his education, “is to be open and take what everyone has told you and not just squander it—but synthesize it. Listen. Apply it for the betterment of yourself and others.”