Philosophy into Action: Switzerland alumna Sarah Mosley’s professional journey begins with SIT

September 20th, 2018   |   Alumni, SIT Study Abroad

Young woman smiling
SIT Switzerland alumna Sarah Mosley

For SIT Switzerland alumna Sarah Mosley, a semester abroad became a chance to develop professionally in the competitive world of global economics.

Sarah studied with SIT’s Banking, Finance and Social Responsibility program in spring 2017, then stayed in Geneva, where she had landed a six-month position as an analyst for INOKS Capital, a hedge fund with an international portfolio. There, she studied companies in INOKS’ portfolio and worked on its annual impact report.

With advice, interview prep, and even practical necessities like access to a printer, SIT staff were instrumental in helping Sarah land that job, she says. The analyst job expanded her professional skills and her French language abilities, but it also opened up new opportunities. When Sarah returned to Occidental College in California, with her experience as an analyst she became a research assistant for Professor Jesse Mora, working in international economics and applied microeconomics.

During summer 2018, that experience in turn helped her secure research grants from her school to return to Geneva, where she investigated the impacts of U.S. protectionism in Europe. Her grants led to research interviews at international institutions like the World Trade Organization, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, and other Geneva-based firms, financial institutions and fund managers.

young woman smiling and showing her muscles in front of distant mountains in Switzerland
SIT alumna Sarah Mosley in Switzerland

“Studying abroad with SIT opened my eyes to new cultures, worlds, and points of view,” Sarah says. “The philosophy of experiential learning is embodied in every lecture and trip you take as a student in the program. When I put this philosophy into action, the opportunities around me became limitless.

“Studying abroad with SIT opened my eyes to new cultures, worlds, and points of view,” Sarah says. “The philosophy of experiential learning is embodied in every lecture and trip you take as a student in the program. When I put this philosophy into action, the opportunities around me became limitless.

“SIT allowed me the opportunity to get outside of the well-worn expectations placed on me as a college student in the US. I learned to network, stand out, and have real autonomy.”