CISI Educational Trust Global Awards 2023 total £19,000

For the first time the CISI Educational Trust Awards has this year expanded to include universities from overseas.

CISI’s partner universities have nominated their best performing undergraduate and postgraduate students from four regions: Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe, and India, for the 2023 awards. The CISI Educational Trust is therefore delighted to announce the 12 finalists of its CISI Educational Trust Global Awards 2023.

The Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI), which funds the CISI Educational Trust, is the global charity and chartered professional body for those working in wealth management, operations, capital markets and financial planning.  

In addition to their nomination, each winner was invited to submit an essay of 500 words or a PowerPoint presentation for the opportunity to attend an interview with the CISI Educational Trust. The next stage of the process then offered candidates the opportunity to achieve a further financial award based on interview performance, a general knowledge test and knowledge of the CISI.

This year first^, prizes of £1,000 were awarded to the winning postgraduate and undergraduate students from their CISI region.  In addition, a number of additional prizes of £500 were available for Highly Commended essays and PowerPoint presentations.

The two highest scoring students from each region were invited to the CISI Educational Trust Global Awards interview event in February, where they were interviewed online by the CISI Educational Trust practitioners.

The event’s overall winners were awarded a cash prize of £4,000 each and the opportunity for work experience in London with expenses paid by the CISI Educational Trust.

Following an intensive interview process, CISI is delighted to congratulate Aarathi Kannan Govindu top-performing undergraduate student from Christ University, India, who received an additional £4,000 and Viren Vishwanathan from ISBR Business School Bangalore as the top performing postgraduate student who received an additional award of £4,000.

In addition, two highly commended winners: Oluchi Kem-Ajieh from the University of Lagos, Nigeria, and Othniel Lewis from the University of Greenwich, received additional awards of £1,000 each.

The top performing students were invited to attend the CISI Annual Awards Ceremony this year.

On receipt of her award, Aarathi Kannan Govindu (left), top performing undergraduate student from Christ University, India, said:  “I am delighted to share my experience of winning the undergraduate category of the CISI Educational Trust Global Awards 2023. It is an honour to receive such recognition, which has boosted my confidence tremendously as I pursue a career in finance. As an intern with CISI and holder of the Investment Operations Certificate, I've been able to gain knowledge from industry experts, which has been invaluable. The opportunity to participate in the competition and present the impact of inflation on global economies challenged me to research and learn about a dynamic topic relevant to the current economic situation. I cannot speak highly enough of the CISI's commitment to supporting and recognizing young finance students. The competition was a fantastic experience and has been nothing short of remarkable, and I look forward to continuing my journey with the organization as an ambassador for the future.”

Viren Vishwanathan (right) from ISBR Business School Bangalore, top performing postgraduate student,  said: “When big dreams are fulfilled, it is always a glorious feeling. Before I decided to take up the IOC exams of CISI, I have to say that I was contemplating the decision as it felt like a daunting task. As I cleared level 1, I realised the wealth of knowledge I have gained from a global markets standpoint. Being the only merit holder from my college with a score of 46/50, it gave me an opportunity to participate in the CISI Educational Trust Global Awards. As I won the presentation round for my region, there was a spring in my step and a real desire to participate and win the finals. It also gave me an opportunity to interact with some industry experts and practitioners who gave me some valuable insights on the current markets scenario.

“There was an outpouring of emotions when the winners were announced as this has been one of the proudest moments in my life, to win a prestigious award organized by a stellar organization in the world of finance and investments. Having previously worked with Deutsche Bank Group as a financial analyst, I have always had the willingness to learn, excel and grow in the financial services space. I am also delighted to announce that I have cleared level 2 (Global Securities Operations), which has elevated my knowledge in this industry.

“Lastly, I would like to take this opportunity to wholeheartedly thank the CISI for this huge recognition and more importantly, for giving me this platform to work and build on, which has paved the way for big dreams to come true.”

Frank Moxon CF, Chartered FCSI(Hon) Chair of the CISI Educational Trust, commented: “Every student participating in the CISI Educational Trust Global Awards was already a Regional Champion.  The judges were impressed with the high standard of entries and enjoyed interviewing the candidates, especially their fluency and presentation skills and the intelligent and interesting questions that they asked us.  The undergraduate and postgraduate Global Champions showed passion and in-depth understanding of the subject matter.  We congratulate the winners and wish all who took part every success with their future career plans.”

CISI Educational Trust Global Awards 2023 winners