Alumni Voices: Adriano Albarosa ’18
Investment Banking Analyst, J.P. Morgan
Hometown: Budapest, Hungary
Major: Business and Finance
Minor: Mandarin Chinese
Adriano Albarosa’s Mandarin skills turned out to be key to his success in starting his finance career in Hong Kong and landing a job at one of the world’s largest banks, J.P. Morgan, setting him apart from other candidates. Adriano shares how students can make the most out of their time living and learning in NYU Shanghai’s unique academic environment.
Why did you decide to come to NYU Shanghai?
A lot of my high school classmates went to college in the UK or US. I happened to hear that NYU, which was one of my target schools, had just opened a campus in Shanghai. I just threw myself into the adventure. The first year was definitely not easy, especially adapting to the language and food. I remember the first semester I wanted to quit, but I never lost sight of why I started this journey in the first place.
I did my best to adapt to the local culture, doubled down on Mandarin Chinese, traveled Asia and soon I overcame that initial hurdle and hardship and started loving my college experience. I essentially went from wanting to come back to Europe to staying in Asia for over 10 years.
What do you think makes NYU Shanghai unique?
Another thing I really liked about NYU Shanghai is the small class sizes. I knew almost all of the Class of 2018 by name! The university also has a plethora of student-run organizations that are great for getting involved.
The student population is very unique. I met students from almost all parts of the world and all cities in China. During our first year, we roomed up with Chinese classmates and this was a great opportunity to help each other with language learning. Some of us even visited our Chinese friend’s home and sometimes our Chinese friends also visited Europe, especially during study away semesters.
Last but not at least, what I love about NYU is that it is a great combination of rigorous (not excessive!) academics with the flexibility to travel and explore the world. I studied away in both Florence and New York, it was awesome.
How have your Mandarin skills helped you in your work?
Mandarin is becoming a skill that employers in Asia appreciate more and more and I think it's something that you just have to put your mind to and make sure you learn if you go to college in China.
When I was working in Hong Kong, I used to cover subsidiaries of US and European multinationals in Asia and many client stakeholders based in mainland China preferred to speak Mandarin.
In addition, I also used to work on some transactions with other mainland and Taiwanese banks who had a preference for Mandarin. Both in HK and London, I have many Chinese employees who appreciate when a foreigner speaks to them in Mandarin.
I still watch Mandarin TV shows on YouTube and take lessons in my free time to improve my language skills!
You just recently transferred to JP Morgan’s office in London. Where do you see yourself in five or ten years?
In London, I work as an Investment Banking Analyst within the Acquisition & Leveraged Finance EMEA team. I support companies in the non-investment grade space to gain access to the capital markets.
I chose this team specifically because it is a deal-driven team with the opportunity to build up a strong technical skill set. I also like the fact that we help clients raise money in a variety of contexts, so the exposure is fantastic.
My long-term aspiration is to become a valuable resource for the bank with versatile experience that allows me to bring the most value in the future.
A lot of NYU Shanghai students reach out to you for career advice. What do you tell them?
Never lose sight of the fact why you’re at uni— to build a strong foundation that will allow you to start out well in your professional career.
While I think it’s important to get good grades, it is definitely not the whole package. What is equally, if not more, important is to best utilize campus resources, connect with professionals and ultimately land an opportunity that suits you best.
Well-roundedness is key to achieve that - employers always like to hire interesting people. Do a fun study away semester, lead a student-run organization, immerse yourself in Chinese culture - do something that you’re excited to talk about. That is the most important thing.
Last but probably most importantly, get into the habit of connecting with people and networking! This is the single most important thing and the more you do it the better you become. Even if 1 out of 25 people reply to your cold mail that is fine, shoot it out - at the end of the day you just need one job and not 25!
To move internally within J.P. Morgan I reached out to more than 90 people over the course of 10 months but in hindsight it was so worth it and I am really glad I pushed for it! The truth is you learn so much while networking and you also get a better sense of what you really want to do by hearing what others say about their roles.