Daily Deacon

Profile: Todd Gilbert // David Blue

Todd Gilbert doesn’t see himself pursuing a Journalism career, but in the last year he has developed a budding interest in the practice. The Wake Forest University senior explained that this interest stemmed from a documentary he watched.

“I never got much English or writing experience in college,” Gilbert said. “However,” Gilbert continued, “this past fall, I did watch a documentary (Trader, 1987), featuring businessman Paul Tudor Jones in which he recommended that all college students take a journalism class regardless of their major.”

Gilbert, an economics major with a minor in global trading commerce, is pursuing a career in the financial and business sector. He has already accepted a job for next fall with the New York City firm Chilton Investment Company, where he will be doing equity research. He explained that his job entails him researching and providing insight into companies and stocks in order to benefit his firm and its investors.

While Gilbert sees no future for himself in journalism specifically, he believes that taking a class in the subject could vastly improve the the skills needed to succeed in his career.

“Part of my job will be going to conferences or meetings and listen to people speak about their company, and then reporting the information back to my bosses” explained Gilbert. He also expressed the importance of research, and that he may even have to interview company executives in order to get information on their companies.

Gilbert never anticipated taking a journalism class during his time at Wake Forest, but after watching Trader, he felt that he had the requisite skills to succeed in journalism and thus his career in finance.

“I’m a very good analytical writer” said Gilbert, “which hopefully will serve me very well in my business career.”