BA (Hons) Accounting and Finance graduate Boris Dubovenko is now an SME Compliance Officer for First Heartland Bank in Kazakhstan. Here, he shares his story of studying at ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵ and his career to date.
Boris said: “My interest in the UK was sparked when my parents started traveling there for business. As I grew up I decided that I wanted to visit and subsequently, I chose to stay and live in the UK. I chose ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵ because I was attending a summer school in the town. Applying for the BA (Hons) Accounting and Finance was a logical next step, as I was always good at maths and geometry and was interested in the financial world.Â
"At the time of starting my degree I did not have a solid plan of what I would do after graduating, but I knew that the placement element would be a real advantage. I have fond memories of my tutors and the course content has stayed with me. I still refer to some of my assignments when talking to work colleagues.
"Away from the course itself, the beach at ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵ is one of my most enduring memories. That feeling when you have just handed in your assignment and are heading to the beach for a well-deserved barbecue will always stay with me.Â
"Finding an internship for my placement year was tricky, as it coincided with the time of the credit crisis, but eventually I secured a position with the audit department at Deloitte in Moscow. After graduation, I knew that accounting was not my field, but I was fascinated by the opportunities that the finance world could offer and took on a compliance project with JPMorgan Chase in ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵ.
"After seven years of being in the UK - first in ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵ and then in London - I decided to come back to Almaty in Kazakhstan. I drew on my experiences to join a young and developing bank, where I am currently an SME Compliance Officer. The role enables me to use my UK experience to build a new compliance department and combine local regulations and global best practice. The knowledge and skills I gained at ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵ help me every day, as does the independent and self-driven approach that I developed while studying. My advice to other graduates is to never give up. My friend and I collectively applied for 110 internship positions back in 2008 and after all the setbacks we still managed to secure amazing opportunities which gave us a good start in our careers." Â