A native of the Bahamas, Andre Carey (’89) graduated from Acadia with a BA in Economics and has spent the last two decades working as an Investment Banker specializing in Asian Equity. Recently, he became a partner in a group that is importing rums into Hong Kong. He gives Acadia great credit for developing his ability to interact with diverse cultures in business as well as social milieus.

“I went to Acadia because I had my arm twisted by a few colleagues during a summer internship at a private bank in the Bahamas. Three of my colleagues were Acadia alums and when they heard that I was still undecided about where to study, they did a fantastic job of selling me on the benefits of studying in Canada in general and in particular their absolute love of Acadia.

“Without a doubt, Acadia was a welcoming place. It was a small community, but I was pleasantly surprised with the diversity of the student body. I think every one of the new international students was seriously surprised at the genuine warmth that was displayed to us on our arrival. Not that I should have been surprised; my old colleagues had been right on that score.

“My favourite profs were in the Economics department. Rudy French was Head of Economics at the time and he made a special effort to make all Caribbean students feel at home. I think as a Jamaican himself he felt it was his duty to make sure we all settled in and had a father-figure around. That said, he definitely pushed us a little harder too, and I think we appreciated that in the end.

“Another of my favourites was Maurice Tugwell. Professor Tugwell was a fantastic teacher and always had time for us. I made it a point to try to get into his classes when I could, which turned into a real blessing for me in one particular class – Mathematical Economics – where I don’t think I would have been able to make it through without some really serious one-on-one help from Professor Tugwell.

“I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Acadia to other international students. I really enjoyed my time there and the fact that I still maintain many friendships from that time is testament to the great experiences I had and the types of students that prospered there. Acadia is the place for a student looking to immerse him or herself into his study, his college and his friendships all in equal measure.

“Interestingly, as I get older, I’ve started to reassess the skills I learned at Acadia that have become more important for me. Early on in my career as an investment banker, it was the strong academic backbone Acadia provided that allowed me to make sense of and excel in the crazy world of finance. As I progressed and grew in my career, it was really my ability to relate to and understand different cultures that was of the most value. The huge diversity of students at Acadia and the fact that on a small campus you are forced to interact and learn about each other came in really handy.”

Written by Jim Prime (’69)

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