High school seniors had the corporate world at their fingertips as they gathered at Bentley University for a week-long summer residential camp. The Wall Street 101 business camp allows students to engage in the fundamentals of Wall Street through a technology-rich and interactive curriculum.

Students used Bentley's state-of-the-art Trading Room to explore the stock market and discover the process of investment, learning about the financial industry and various business fields. Through a number of classroom and hands-on exercises, participants were taught how to conduct simulated trading sessions, explore the intricacies of the stock market, and investigate certain processes of investment and portfolio construction.

“Wall Street 101 offers students a unique opportunity to learn sophisticated financial concepts in a state-of-the-art facility while incorporating industry standard software applications,” says Trading Room manager Amy Whittaker. “Additionally, the residential nature of the camp gives students a taste of university life. Field trips to Boston-based investment firms and accomplished guest speakers reinforce the theory taught in the classroom with real-world experiences.”

Guest Speakers this year included Chris Foti, managing director at FX Sales, BNY Mellon; and Jeannette McMenimon, Institutional Sales, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Company visits included Fidelity and State Street Corporation.

During the residential program, students lived on the Bentley campus, where they had an opportunity to use the university’s athletic facilities, eat in the cafeteria and join in various social activities such as movie nights, barbeques, and field trips into Boston. The camp is offered annually to rising high school seniors.

Students enjoyed the combination of learning and life experience:

• “I had a terrific time at Wall Street 101 last week! I learned so much about finance, but still managed to have a lot of fun. The other students were awesome and I am sure I will keep in touch with many of them.”

• “The program was a great opportunity and I feel like I learned a lot. It was fun and an excellent experience inside and outside the classroom.”

• “I cannot overstate the amount of education, networking opportunities and fun I had during Wall Street 101. This course certainly confirmed for me that business/finance is exactly the professional path I would like to follow.”