For soon-to-be graduate Ty Gour, the choice was simple when choosing the Business Administration-Finance program at NAIT: follow the money.
“The program focuses 60% on financial planning, finance theory, and investment classes, and then the other 40% is everything your average business student takes,” said Gour.
A man with a mind for money, Gour’s math checks out for a program that will prepare him for a future leading the financial side of the business world.
Gour believes his program’s concentration on the fiscal realities of business makes it a versatile degree for job opportunities when he graduates from NAIT.
“It definitely opens the door for [jobs] at banks and financial institutions,” said Gour.
“Instead of having to work in an accounting firm, or as a general business consultant, [I’m] looking more so at managing people’s money, like a financial analyst or financial planner.”
While the opportunities that lie ahead excite Gour, this wasn’t always the career he saw himself in.
“I wanted to be a [sports] broadcaster for the longest time,” said Gour.
“In the end, I went with numbers because I’ve always been really good with numbers, and money has always been cool to me.”
The job market is uncertain across all industries, with many of the pillars of the economy operating out of living rooms and office spaces looking apocalyptically sparse. Gour recognizes this challenge and has a working plan.
“Short term, [the plan] is to find a job in this crazy work environment, especially because we don’t know what the world is going to look like in May 2021,” said Gour.
“Long term, I would like to be a financial planner so that I would be managing people’s money and advising them [on investments.]”
On top of his busy class schedule in his graduating semester, Gour has kept the fire of his sports broadcasting dream alive, hosting “The Cold Hard Sports Talk” podcast, discussing the wide world of major league sports.
Gour is keeping his eyes on the prize. Sports may be his passion project on the side, but he’s focused on seeing his financial career to fruition.
Looking back on the overarching lessons he’s learned from his years in the business administration-finance program, Gour says it’s the perspective that will stick with him.
“The one thing I’ve learned through my four years at NAIT is that there’s always something out there,” said Gour.
“If you walk in wanting one angle, and you stick to that angle, you might be missing out on a ton of opportunities. The one thing I’ve learned is just to keep as many doors open as possible.”
Already, Gour has experienced the benefits of his education in the form of an investment portfolio that he set up for himself after his second year and made it profitable.
Gour’s sentimentality for the school goes beyond the classroom and into the arena, where he made a side hustle of working the ticket table.
“I’d say my favourite memories [at NAIT] were spending my weekends watching hockey, basketball, volleyball, whatever was there,” said Gour.
“I loved watching the Ooks, and then I got to work for them in 2019-2020, which made it even better.”
Heading out of the doors at NAIT into a career field shrouded in uncertainty from the recourse of the pandemic, Gour believes he has been equipped with the tools necessary to find his doorway to success and will take the pride of NAIT with him wherever he goes.
