Summer in India with Unitus Capital
Happy July to all Blue Devils enjoying this month of summer! My name is Zoe McLeod. I am a rising junior (T’20) from Orlando, FL studying Public Policy and pursuing the MMS certificate. For the past 6 weeks, I have been working as a summer analyst at Unitus Capital, an investment bank in Bangalore, India. Unitus is an impact investment bank that helps social entrepreneurs gain capital for their businesses.
Positioned on the other side of the world, this internship was the perfect intersection between my interests in investment banking and social entrepreneurship. This experience has provided me with a greater understanding about how social enterprises can affect healthcare, agriculture, financial inclusion, education, renewable energy and women’s empowerment. Unitus is primarily involved in the capital-raising and debt restructuring process for companies in these various sectors. Currently, I am working on an information memorandum for a biotech company that produces affordable medical screening devices. Another active project requires me to provide a market overview for an early-stage housing finance company based in Delhi. Overall, my internship experience has offered me exposure to the inspiring social impact space across diversified industries in India.
Working at Unitus has taught me a great deal about microfinance. However, the most valuable lesson I learned was the importance of working with people you like in an office setting. Throughout my internship, I have had the privilege of learning from a diverse range of lively and engaging individuals. I encourage students to consider the types of people they will interact with in their future career endeavors. Such a humanistic element adds even more meaning to purposeful work across professional fields. Forging meaningful relationships with passionate and knowledgeable people will create everlasting learning opportunities.
This upcoming fall, I intend on continuing my entrepreneurial pursuits by participating in start-up challenges and Duke’s Program for Entrepreneurs. I highly recommend MMS students take C.J. Skender’s Principles of Financial Accounting course. This class offers practical financial knowledge that was extremely useful for any business-related internship. After such an influential summer journey, I am excited to return to Duke and apply my newfound knowledge. Please feel free to reach out if interested in this program or other Duke in India initiatives. See you on campus!
Zoe is writing as part of our Summer Guest Blog series. We will be featuring students in MMS all summer as they travel on study abroad trips and internships. For updates on future students' experiences, follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
