Andrew Campbell

University of Tennessee, Haslam College of Business

“I am a passionate, detail-focused leader who loves to laugh.”

Fun fact about yourself: I love coffee-flavored ice cream.

Hometown: Maryville, Tennessee

High School: Greenfield High School

Major: Double Major with Finance and Accounting

Minor: N/A

Favorite Business Course: Either Investments & Portfolio Management or Tax Accounting

Extracurricular Activities, Community Work and Leadership Roles During College:

President of U.T.’s Financial Management Association – FMA is U.T.’s oldest finance organization. As President, I lead meetings featuring former alumni and industry specialists who share career advice with our members. I also led a trip to New York City, visiting Bank of America, Bloomberg, the NYSE, and others.

Fund Manager on the Haslam Torch Fund – I worked with a team of other students to manage a portfolio of around $1.8 mm in securities, following a 60-40 top-down investment strategy. I developed stock pitches, wrote in-depth performance reports, and led an end-of-year presentation in front of my donor. Our fund beat our benchmark by more than 300 basis points over the course of the year.

Senior Analyst and Lead Bloomberg TA in the Masters Investment Learning Center – I help teach aspiring finance students how to navigate a Bloomberg terminal and do investment research. I also was the Teaching Assistant for the Bloomberg Advanced and Fixed Income courses.

I tutor finance students in my free time and held positions with the U.T. Investment Group, Presidents’ Council, Haslam Student Advisory Council, and Chancellor’s Honors Program.

Where have you interned during your college career?

Investments Intern at CrestPoint Wealth Management in Knoxville, Tennessee

Commercial Banking Intern at Regions Bank in Nashville, Tennessee

Where will you be working after graduation? Corporate Banking Analyst at Regions Bank in Nashville, Tennessee

What is the biggest lesson you gained from studying business? How to treat people. If you do not know how to treat your clients, your coworkers, and anyone else you interact with, it matters very little what you learn in the classroom. The people that I want to work for and work alongside are people who are kind, respectful, and dependable. Learning how to be friendly and reliable will do more for my career than any technical lesson I could learn.

What advice would you give to a student looking to major in a business-related field?

1. Ask Lots of Questions – Knowing how to ask the right questions and how to listen to advice is vital to success. It demonstrates your interest and helps you learn.

2. Prioritize What is Important – If you go to a large school, there will be countless things to do and ways to get involved, but knowing how to pick the right classes, organizations, relationships, etc. has been a huge reason for any of my success. I am a big believer in specialization; it is better to excel in 2-3 things than be spread thin and burnt out.

What has surprised you most about majoring in business? Coming into my first year of business undergrad, I was expecting to learn a lot of technical skills, and I have learned a lot of important skills which will help me succeed at the next level. However, walking away my senior year and looking back, my development as a student of business has been far more dependent on my relationships and ability to lead and interact with others than what I studied from a textbook.

Looking back over your experience, what is the one thing you’d do differently in business school and why? I would have been more intentional about making connections and meeting other business majors my freshman and sophomore years. To build a good network, it is important to start early and build strong relationships with people who can help you succeed.

What business leader do you admire most? Charlie Munger of Berkshire Hathaway. He has a very specific way of looking at companies, financial statements, and the world. Some people would perhaps call his methods and outlooks old fashioned, but he has firmly held beliefs and follows these religiously. I think many people, including myself, could learn from his ability to consistently make decisions in line with his convictions and all the information available.

Which academic, extracurricular or personal achievement are you most proud of?  I am most proud of my involvement on the Torch Funds. I think it has developed me more than any other class/program has. It has allowed me to meet and work with some of the smartest people I have ever met, and I cannot believe I was given this opportunity as an undergraduate.

Which classmate do you most admire? Jeremy Meanwell is a classmate and co-worker of mine. If you were able to chat with Jeremy for five minutes, you would know that he is extremely motivated and hard-working. He is an excellent leader and an effective communicator. He loves to learn and is not afraid to be the person to raise their hand and ask a question when they do not know something. He knows his goals, and he works hard to achieve them. He shines in all the areas I think I could most improve.

Who would you most want to thank for your success? I had a teacher in high school named Miss Farmer. She was my high school Algebra II and Precalculus teacher. She believed in me more than anyone else I know. She was a lifelong learner, and she instilled this worldview in me. Ms. Farmer was the first teacher who taught me the importance of being well-rounded and the ability to think critically. She also instilled in me a belief that you should do whatever you want with your life despite what outsiders think.

What are the top two items on your professional bucket list?

1. It has always been a dream of mine to speak on an earnings call or at a shareholder meeting.
2. I would like to have my own book of business by 27.

What are your hobbies? I love watching and analyzing films; my favorite ones are the weird cult classics (think American Psycho or The Shining). I like to go for long walks in the park and listen to music when I have time to. I have been a diehard fan of the Tennessee Vols and the Atlanta Braves my entire life, so any day I can watch either of them get a win is a good day.

What made Andrew such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2023?

“When I think of a student who I would most like to have in class and to whom I would give my strongest recommendation for employment, it is Andrew Campbell. Andrew gratefully accepts instruction and advice, and he is generous with his time and ability to not only do his best, but to also help those around him achieve their potential. Andrew Campbell is the FMA President, served as a top performing student investment manager for the Haslam Torch Fund, and works as the lead Senior Bloomberg Analyst in the Masters Investment Learning Center. His awards and honors include: Finance Scholars Academic Achievement Award, May 2022; Deans Circle Scholarship, Aug 2021; Torch Funds Outstanding Promise Award, May 2022; Truist Emerging Leaders Certification, Apr 2021; Chancellor’s Honors Program; Chancellor’s Honors Events Committee; Haslam Student Advisory Council. Andrew was a unanimous selection from the finance faculty. He differentiated himself throughout the Honors finance series of courses. In fact, he was one of the top students in the MBA level finance capstone course, being recognized as a top contributor by his group to a series of complex real-world projects. He has maintained a 4.0 GPA at UT. After graduation he is headed to Regions Bank as a Corporate Banking Analyst in Nashville TN.”

Tracie Woidtke
Department Head
David E. Sharp/Home Federal Bank Professor in Banking & Finance
Charlie & Carolyn Newcomer Faculty Research Fellow
Department of Finance

“Andrew is among the top 1% of students I’ve taught at UT (a total of nearly 400 students). He isn’t merely brilliant and/or good at exams, he is genuinely intellectually curious, excels in quantitative and qualitative, and is incredibly ambitious in the academic challenges he chooses to undertake. Andrew’s peers look to him for advice and assistance and he routinely delivers. Peers don’t only respect Andrew’s brain, but also his leadership and service. He’s been consistently active throughout his time at UT, and you won’t meet a more genuine and kind person. I believe there’s not a field within business that Andrew couldn’t rise to the top of and I can’t wait to see all that he becomes and achieves along his journey of excellence.”

Ryan Farley
Torch Fund Program Director
Clinical Assistant Professor

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