Jason Thomas: Proud to be a graduate of Brighton Business School

Jason Thomas is a graduate from the University of Brighton Business School (2011) with a 2:1 BSc (Hons) in Finance & Investment. Five years on, Jason is working for Deloitte, one of the Big Four in Financial Services. His responsibilities’ include: Internal audits, trading reviews, liquidity policy and strategy.

We caught up with him recently to ask how his University of Brighton degree has assisted him in his career so far.

UOB: How do you think your course has contributed to your career?

JT: The simulated trading, modelling and economic theory has helped me considerably. I was fortunate enough to get a front office role as soon as I graduated and the trading we did at Brighton (using the Business School’s live trading room) meant I already had a good knowledge base.

UOB: What do you think sets Brighton apart from other universities?

JT: One of the reasons I chose Brighton was that it gave me access to skills and real world experience. It gave me a competitive advantage when I was interviewing and applying to jobs. Graduates from other universities were only taught theory and I feel that this practical experience has enabled me to move more quickly up the corporate ladder

Personally, I don’t think I was the most motivated student at school and it wasn’t until I came to Brighton that I began to develop the skills needed to succeed, I think for the most part a lot of this was down to the quality of the teaching and subject area. Rob Hayward in particular, acted as a mentor to me and helped me considerably during my studies.

UOB: Where do you see your career going in the future?

JT: I’ve never been one for accounting, as I’ve always had a trader mentality. The course at Brighton afforded me the choice of many different areas within finance, including investment banking, wealth management and my current career path working in treasury.

JT: I am very proud of what I achieved at the University of Brighton, I always recommend it to anyone thinking of going to University. I have a little brother who is 11 who I hope will attend when he is older.

Jason is now looking forward to moving to CitiGroup, a multinational investment banking and financial services organisation, with approximately 200 million customer accounts.