Brandon Chin Loy

Opportunistic Shift

By Naser Al Wasmi

As a fresh graduate, Chin Loy holds a job that most consider to be promising, secure, and arguably the future of finance. His education at NYU Abu Dhabi prepared him to work, and excel, as a data analyst on the vanguard of this unique intersection of worlds between computer science and financial engineering that is increasingly in demand by bankers. He’s in a job that has a bright future, if he chooses to pursue it, but it’s a different lesson that NYUAD imparted upon Chin Loy that has him exploring beyond.

Initially Chin Loy had been dead-set on going into a graduate degree in the nascent field of computational finance. In his last semester at NYUAD, and in the midst of the pandemic, he began applying to pursue his masters at universities in the UK and was accepted into the majority of the programs of interest. It was during this time that Chin Loy began to question whether making the move in the midst of COVID-19 was a sound decision. As he agonized over the decision, he began to wonder if he even sees himself pursuing a career in computational finance at all.

Instead of being led astray through over-analyzing hypotheticals, the Guinness World record holder for most chest-to-ground burpees by a multinational team, returned to his home country of Jamaica to accept a role as a data analyst in the country’s leading National Commercial Bank. It’s a role much in demand in the banking sector and one in which he along with a team of bankers are implementing in unique fashion.

“We choose to let the data do the work. We dive into the databases with an open mind and strive to observe patterns, trends or exceptions in the data, which often leads us to novel business ideas. That being said, if I were to briefly describe the company, I would say it is a hub of innovation in banking,” he said.

Reflecting back on how the year went, Chin Loy believes that adjusting to the tailspin of COVID-19 allowed him to focus on what he intends on pursuing, to be bullish on his academic pursuits, and to continue this path of avoiding contemplating “if’s” and instead finding out. One thing he knew for sure is that he did not want to pursue an MSc during the pandemic, “This is why I returned to Jamaica and decided to work at a financial institution in a technical role, to fulfill those same computational finance learning goals through work, rather than school.” It’s an outlook on interests he says NYUAD fostered in an educational environment that is conducive to giving students the opportunity to discover themselves and understand who they are both as young intellectuals, and as adults. “Essentially, I achieved the same goal of exploring computational finance, but through different means,” he said. 

As for advice that he has gleaned from his admirable pursuit of discovering his academic and career calling he advises future students to make use of NYUAD’s encouragement of discovering the various options available.

“I implore you to seek ways of personal, professional and/or intellectual development that are practical within your own surroundings during COVID-19. I knew that I needed to stay productive, especially because I intended on applying to graduate school in the coming year. I was prepared to utilize the resources at my disposal to make constructive use of my time at home and strengthen my admissions profile. Each of us has our own set of circumstances, so I will not say that there is always a way. Instead, I implore you to seek ways of personal, professional and/or intellectual development that are practical within your own surroundings during COVID-19. Do not become stagnant.”