Suleyman Karibov
Suleyman Karibov, who currently serves as a risk analyst at Nordic real estate investor NREP in Luxembourg, enrolled in ICEF MSc Financial Economics in 2019 and holds his bachelor’s from Plekhanov Russian University of Economics. Here’s how Suleyman managed to keep up with the leaning pace at ICEF, why makes academic mobility a useful experience, and how to land a job in Europe with no experience.
How to get re-admitted to ICEF Master’s programme
When I was about to enter my Management programme, I was still undecided about what I wanted to do professionally, and it wasn’t until I earned my bachelor’s that I finally decided. I wanted to major in something else. As a school student, I had a passion for mathematics, so by the time I was due to graduate from Plekhanov University, I decided I should study economics and finance, mostly their technical side. My original choice was NES, I did its prep course in mathematics, probability theory and mathematical statistics, and there was one guy who told me about ICEF and its master’s degree. ICEF sounded an interesting choice, so I decided to learn more about it, its faculty, graduate stories, curriculum and admission requirements.
I applied and was invited to the interview. Thanks to the prep courses, I was able to score high enough to be admitted and thus started my master’s course, but I somehow failed my first three exams and got expelled. I spent my next six months working real hard on my mathematics – it is the course that ICEF requires strong knowledge of – and this is how I got re-admitted, this time with a much more responsible attitude and improved skills to keep me prepared for the learning pace. What also helped me keep the pace was my friend, who is now a PhD student in Madison University in the USA and who I did extra math with. It wasn’t after my first winter exam that I was able to slow down and even do a couple of optional courses in Python which are available at ICEF.
How to do parallel studies at ICEF and University of Luxembourg
It has been my dream to start an international career, but I didn’t think I had enough experience in finance. I had been working in the family business during all my years as a student. ICEF offered study abroad opportunities, so I decided to take one and eventually graduated with two degrees, one from ICEF and the other from the University of Luxembourg.
The curriculum content did not quite match that of ICEF’s programme, but it wasn’t a downside. Eventually, I was able to get credit for all core courses at ICEF thanks to my individual learning path. Unfortunately, the pandemic interfered and made it impossible for me to fully experience the learning environment of my university in Europe, for in-person instruction was limited and we all studied mostly online. In the end, having defended my two theses, I was awarded two diplomas. Interestingly, as a student of the University of Luxembourg I had the choice between academic research and internship-based applied research. I chose to go with the first option, for by that time all office work had been moved online and I didn’t think I could any decent problem-solving experience as one a team.
Still, I hoped I could start a job abroad. I turned to ICEF Career Services, my resume soon got noticed and I got my first internship offer.
How to start a job in Europe
The company I interned with was a real estate software developer. My role there involved assessing the value of real property in Europe and the UK – I mostly did the critical analysis of ready-made evaluation models. It was a six-month internship, but I can’t say it had given my job skills any real boost. I instead wanted to deal more with the technical side of finance and be able to fully apply my math skills.
So, I started another search and ended up in the Nordic investment company NREP, which deals with commercial real estate and direct investments. My current role as a risk analyst at NREP is a far better fit for my interests and potential. I deal with risks to funds under NREP’s management.
NREP appreciates the theoretical background I received at ICEF. My director said he was impressed with my level of knowledge
Originally they were looking for a candidate with 2 to 5 years of experience, but I got hired with none. My interviewers said my strong theoretical background was exactly what would make the job easy for me. I can now say with confidence that ICEF grads enjoy high employment rate globally and are preferred candidates with many employers.
The selection involved five stages, and the whole process from application to offer took approximately three months. There was a personality test to pass and logical reasoning, and these were followed by personal interviews led by HR manager, director general, staff, and local director – quite a bit of stress. But, considering the time and expense the company is ready to invest in you as a new hire, all this is worth the effort. NREP covers all employee training costs. I am currently preparing for my CFA test and am planning to obtain a CQF (Certificate in Quantitative Finance).
