August 25, 2023
Rising college juniors Cyrus Gaylord and Sophia Wilson participated in the firm’s eighth summer internship program. Over the course of six weeks, they completed several projects and learned about portfolio management, securities analysis and research, trading and execution, client service, compliance, marketing, and operations.
Sophia majors in Economics and Dance at Scripps College, where she serves on the board of the Student Investment Fund and is a member of Claremont Women in Business. Cyrus is an Economics major at Claremont McKenna College. On campus, he is a springboard diver and a member of the Student Investment Fund as well as the Claremont Marketing Group.
Gretchen Lee, Jennifer Maqueda, and Dan Mintz conducted the interviews and selected the successful candidates. Jennifer also structured the curriculum, coordinated projects, and met with Cyrus and Sophia weekly.
Cyrus’ favorite project was working with Chief Operating Officer David Nelson to streamline data templates, which helped him gain insight into the internal, employee-facing operations side of the firm. Sophia enjoyed stock research, looking deeply into what a company does, its competitors, and financial standing, and sharing her analysis and investment recommendation in a research meeting.
Sophia shared that she gained a “practical understanding of not only how an investment counseling firm works, but also how an office and professional job works. It is incredibly valuable to me to understand exactly what each person in the office does—both high-level and day-to-day—and how they contribute to the overall flow and operation of the firm.” Cyrus appreciated the welcoming environment and joining team meetings on client service, equity research, and investment counseling.
Clifford Swan is grateful to Sophia and Cyrus for seamlessly becoming part of the team and working hard to achieve an enriching experience for both them and the firm!
