Fedor Baev Explores Capital Management
10/13/2015 3:14:00 PM | General, Men's Tennis, David G. Kabiller NU for Life Program
By David Herder, Northwestern Correspondent
Being shunted around to update PowerPoints and annotate meetings - "classic intern stuff" - can be a droll bane, but not for Fedor Baev.
The Weinberg senior spent the summer doing such tasks for Evanston Capital Management, and the varsity tennis player reveled in the experience.
"Playing tennis you also learn how to behave when things aren't going your way," said Baev. "So when you have to do something mundane, you know how to endure. If you can take that mentality with you to the office, it will become a lot easier to persevere through the really tough days.
"And I didn't expect this, but I actually loved it. Every single day it was just a pleasure to be there."
The internship came just months after he was named one of the five junior student-athlete winners of the NU for Life Irving Kabiller Memorial Award for Excellence in Character, Commitment and Community, and received a $5,000 grant to be used for his professional development. Additionally, the NU for Life Program assisted him in landing the summer internship.
For 10 weeks, Baev made the short jaunt to the Evanston Capital Management building (located just two blocks south of campus), where he was thrust into the world of hedge funds.
Surpassing his expectations of what his responsibilities would be, Baev was able to update pitch books, gaining an inside view into the operations of the firm. With his nose to the grindstone mentality, "always trying to finish first, even though [he] was the only intern," Baev even went beyond his duties, comparing the firms fee structures to competitors and evaluating where his firm was superior or deficient.
Even the mandatory menial tasks like meetings provided a spark.
"The coolest things in these calls was to learn what to listen for, like what would make a lightbulb turn on, what would be not so good and what would be great, and what you could just ignore," said Baev.
Four years ago, the lightbulbs in Baev's head were not illuminating for his next investment, but for his next shot. In addition to studying at WANG Toppidrett in his hometown of Oslo, Norway, Baev had blossomed into Norway's top ranked under-18 tennis player. But collegiate athletics are not an option in Norway, so young athletes either turn professional or head abroad.
"I didn't feel like I was good enough to go pro, and I definitely did not want to quit tennis because I love it," recalled Baev. "So I decided I wanted to try college."
Baev flew to Bradenton, Florida, to play in a pair of prestigious tournaments: the Junior Orange Bowl and the Eddie Herr International Junior Championships. In the latter, he reached the round of 32, where he was a tiebreak away from defeating Yoshihito Nishioka, who later went on to win the Gold Medal in men's singles at the 2014 Asian Games.
"I went in with the main goal of just 'do well and be discovered," because I knew that a lot of college coaches go to those tournaments just to look for players." Baev said. "Luckily I did play some of my best tennis right there."
The performance did catch the eye of numerous college coaches, and Baev received multiple offers. One stood above the rest.
"I kind of liked the idea of coming to Northwestern. I talked to my parents, and my dad, he actually knew a few professors here, and he said that it would be a great idea to come here because he knew that the school was a great academic institution. Both him and my mom would be very proud if I went here." said Baev. "I came for a visit in January, and I really loved it.
"And I committed on the spot. I came over in September, by myself, and was like, 'here I am, let's do this.'"
With the same drive he had on the court, Baev dove into his academics. Rankled by the hard sciences in during his studies in Norway, Baev turned to economics, and hit it off. Following four years at "the best econ school in the world," he plans to use the rest of the Kabiller funds to pursue a certificate to become a Chartered Financial Analyst.
Before he jumps into the business world, Baev still has his senior tennis season ahead of him. One of the key benefits of his internship was that it was located so close to campus that he could continue to practice with the team.
"I wanted to stay around Chicago, and keep playing tennis this summer, because I think we have a very great team this year," Baev said. "I wanted to be a part of that team and contribute in any way I could to have a chance to win a Big Ten Championship."
Being shunted around to update PowerPoints and annotate meetings - "classic intern stuff" - can be a droll bane, but not for Fedor Baev.
The Weinberg senior spent the summer doing such tasks for Evanston Capital Management, and the varsity tennis player reveled in the experience.
"Playing tennis you also learn how to behave when things aren't going your way," said Baev. "So when you have to do something mundane, you know how to endure. If you can take that mentality with you to the office, it will become a lot easier to persevere through the really tough days.
"And I didn't expect this, but I actually loved it. Every single day it was just a pleasure to be there."
The internship came just months after he was named one of the five junior student-athlete winners of the NU for Life Irving Kabiller Memorial Award for Excellence in Character, Commitment and Community, and received a $5,000 grant to be used for his professional development. Additionally, the NU for Life Program assisted him in landing the summer internship.
For 10 weeks, Baev made the short jaunt to the Evanston Capital Management building (located just two blocks south of campus), where he was thrust into the world of hedge funds.
Surpassing his expectations of what his responsibilities would be, Baev was able to update pitch books, gaining an inside view into the operations of the firm. With his nose to the grindstone mentality, "always trying to finish first, even though [he] was the only intern," Baev even went beyond his duties, comparing the firms fee structures to competitors and evaluating where his firm was superior or deficient.
Even the mandatory menial tasks like meetings provided a spark.
"The coolest things in these calls was to learn what to listen for, like what would make a lightbulb turn on, what would be not so good and what would be great, and what you could just ignore," said Baev.
Four years ago, the lightbulbs in Baev's head were not illuminating for his next investment, but for his next shot. In addition to studying at WANG Toppidrett in his hometown of Oslo, Norway, Baev had blossomed into Norway's top ranked under-18 tennis player. But collegiate athletics are not an option in Norway, so young athletes either turn professional or head abroad.
"I didn't feel like I was good enough to go pro, and I definitely did not want to quit tennis because I love it," recalled Baev. "So I decided I wanted to try college."
Baev flew to Bradenton, Florida, to play in a pair of prestigious tournaments: the Junior Orange Bowl and the Eddie Herr International Junior Championships. In the latter, he reached the round of 32, where he was a tiebreak away from defeating Yoshihito Nishioka, who later went on to win the Gold Medal in men's singles at the 2014 Asian Games.
"I went in with the main goal of just 'do well and be discovered," because I knew that a lot of college coaches go to those tournaments just to look for players." Baev said. "Luckily I did play some of my best tennis right there."
The performance did catch the eye of numerous college coaches, and Baev received multiple offers. One stood above the rest.
"I kind of liked the idea of coming to Northwestern. I talked to my parents, and my dad, he actually knew a few professors here, and he said that it would be a great idea to come here because he knew that the school was a great academic institution. Both him and my mom would be very proud if I went here." said Baev. "I came for a visit in January, and I really loved it.
"And I committed on the spot. I came over in September, by myself, and was like, 'here I am, let's do this.'"
With the same drive he had on the court, Baev dove into his academics. Rankled by the hard sciences in during his studies in Norway, Baev turned to economics, and hit it off. Following four years at "the best econ school in the world," he plans to use the rest of the Kabiller funds to pursue a certificate to become a Chartered Financial Analyst.
Before he jumps into the business world, Baev still has his senior tennis season ahead of him. One of the key benefits of his internship was that it was located so close to campus that he could continue to practice with the team.
"I wanted to stay around Chicago, and keep playing tennis this summer, because I think we have a very great team this year," Baev said. "I wanted to be a part of that team and contribute in any way I could to have a chance to win a Big Ten Championship."
••••••
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