Rising well before the sun, Chris Vecchio ’11 starts his workday at 3 a.m. A currency analyst for DailyFX—the world’s largest foreign exchange broker, he monitors the European markets from the first bell.
He credits his professors with helping him understand “what’s what.” His class with Rose Marie Bukics, Jones Professor of Economics, taught him that difficulty is sometimes the best teacher.
“Professor Bukics’ maxim that the only laurel you can rest on is hard work has stuck with me,” he says. “Her course wasn’t one of my stronger performances, but through the struggles, I learned how to handle myself in tough situations and how to overcome.”
After an internship with DailyFX segued into a part-time position as junior currency analyst, Vecchio spent his final semester at Lafayette commuting to New York City to work. He made an easy transition, thanks to the mentorship of Joseph Blake, adjunct professor of economics.
“It’s important to step away from the textbook and see how theories actually transpire outside the classroom,” says Vecchio. “Professor Blake helped me understand the practical application of the equations and financial theories more than any other professor I had.”
He adds that his fraternity, Kappa Delta Rho, of which he was vice president, taught him how to work with other people and find compromise solutions to problems. “Without that experience, I would not have matured and grown into the person I am today.”