Financial Analyst
Westar Aerospace & Defense Group, Inc.
Tiffany is completing an MBA at Southern Illinois University – Edwardsville. She returned to campus in 2003 as a Financial Management Association speaker.
She is pictured in one of the Boeing buildings in St. Louis.
Area of Finance specialization: Business Financial Management
Hometown: Staunton, Illinois
FIL 349 Advanced Financial Theory. We did an analysis of a company that gave students a taste of what financial managers do in the real world. It was very interesting, and provided a thorough overview of the financial issues that corporations face. It got me excited about finding a job where I could deal with a larger company's internal financial and management activities.
Football games and homecoming festivities were always fun. The Financial Management Association field trips were also fun, and they really helped me in my career planning. We went to Dean Foods and Discover Financial Services headquarters near Chicago, and had a great St. Louis trip to the A.G. Edwards headquarters, the Federal Reserve Bank, and Anheuser Busch. One of Anheuser's top financial managers actually came to the hospitality room and talked to us while we had Budweiser samples – those who were 21, that is!
Although the earned value management idea that my job at Boeing focuses on does not relate directly to the topics covered in my Illinois State business classes, my Finance major gave me a good basis for thinking in financial terms, and for understanding what a business has to do to survive in a competitive world. That overall knowledge has been very important to me in my work. My undergraduate finance courses also prepared me well for the finance course work I have taken in my graduate program.
It's a great program, with dedicated professors, and it does a good job of preparing you for your life after graduation. You get the opportunity to look at companies and their financial situations through course assignments, and through groups like the Financial Management Association. FMA and other student groups also give you the chance to network so that people who can help you, and maybe even hire you, will get to know your name and interests. And you should take advantage of the fantastic facilities across campus, including the new College of Business Building.
