Women in Asset Management (WAM) is designed to overcome the important issue of underrepresentation of individuals who self-identify as women in asset management in Canada. WAM is a course and summer internship program that launched in May of 2022, for second year undergraduate students at any Canadian University who self-identify as women and are interested in learning more about asset management. The program includes a four-week classroom experience followed by a 10-12 week paid internship at a Canadian asset management firm (banks, pension funds, hedge funds, etc.).  In 2024 we are happy to be growing the program and accepting a select number of students from any Canadian university.

Thanks to Ivey and our corporate sponsors, admission and program materials are free.

What is Asset Management?

Asset management is the practice of increasing wealth while mitigating risk. Asset management is important because it helps households reach their financial goals, and assists institutional investors such as pension funds, endowments, and mutual funds in aiding their stakeholders to achieve their goals, for example, by providing pensioners with a steady retirement income. Asset managers include pension funds, financial institutions, hedge funds, mutual funds, family offices, and more, and serve both the public and private sectors. They invest in stocks, bonds, commodities, and other assets. Asset management roles include analysts and portfolio managers.

Asset management – through banks, pension funds, and hedge funds, both public and private sector – impacts society in terms of household wealth and retirement planning. The industry provides exciting career opportunities. Despite the opportunities, the participation rate of individuals who self-identify as women in asset management – for example, in terms of mutual fund portfolio management, financial advisory services, and money management fund firms – has not shown substantial change in the past decades.