RBC Foundation gives $350,000 to UNB Centre for Financial Studies
The RBC Foundation is giving $350,000 to the Centre for Financial Studies (CFS) at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton. The gift will secure the future of the Centre’s award-winning Student Investment Fund (SIF) program which gives UNB business students real investment experience in Canada’s growing financial services industry.
Begun in September 1998, the SIF combines a student-managed investment program with a study course for the industry standard Chartered Financial Analyst Level One examination. With seed money from the New Brunswick Investment Management Corporation, the Faculty of Administration students in the SIF program have grown pension fund assets from $1 million to approximately $1.6 million.
The donation will help consolidate the SIF program by adding new software, expanding existing facilities and supporting faculty. It will give the Centre a secure base from which to establish a new Master of Finance program in the next few years.
In 2003 and 2004, SIF students placed first in their category at the annual Redefining Investment Strategy Education Symposium and Competition in Dayton, Ohio. Over 100 schools from four countries participated in the prestigious competition, which is sponsored by the New York Stock Exchange and the Wall Street Journal.