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Bloomberg analyst returns to alma mater to host technology sessions for business students

Jason McGorman who works for Bloomberg talk to students about the Bloomberg terminals in the School of Bloomberg on February 12, 2020.

Jason McGorman, a 2008 Liberty University alumnus and equity research analyst at Bloomberg L.P. in Manhattan, visited several business classes Tuesday and Wednesday to demonstrate and showcase the various facets of the Bloomberg Terminal, a complex software tool that is used throughout the financial world to track real-time data, news feeds, stock charts, and more.

Liberty has 12 Bloomberg terminals at its new School of Business building, which opened last fall. The technology provides business and finance students with another tool to train for a growing, competitive, global business market.

“There’s a need for data-driven efforts out in the workforce,” said McGorman, who graduated with a finance degree and also holds an M.B.A. from Duke University. “Having these tools, like the Bloomberg Terminal, really gives the students an advantage, because the competition is tougher than when I graduated.”

Students have the opportunity to explore all the features of the terminal, which is utilized by roughly 330,000 users around the world every day. Students can even receive special Bloomberg Market Concepts (BMC) training and, with faculty supervision, use the terminal to trade in real time.

The terminal was created in 1981 by Michael Bloomberg. In the private marketplace, the terminals cost roughly $25,000 each per year, but Liberty was able to obtain the terminals at a discounted price for an educational institution.

“At Liberty, we have all the tools, like the Bloomberg Terminals, which allow our students to do world-class financial research and to get a certificate that will make them more attractive on the job market,” said Dr. David Brat, dean of the School of Business. “I am very happy that we have alumni like Jason McGorman who come back and share state-of-the-art industry tools with our students.”

McGorman showed students how to leverage daily news for stock trading, compare industry-specific data, and utilize Bloomberg’s 24-hour help desk.

“It primarily shows business information, but there’s economic data and company-specific data that maybe you wouldn’t have expected but can be really helpful,” he said. “The terminals help you develop analytical skills which, at the end of the day, is what really sets people apart: understanding how to analyze and put different conclusions together.”

McGorman said one of his main responsibilities at Bloomberg L.P. is building and maintaining detailed financial models to quantify market opportunities for different medical devices and research trends in the healthcare industry.

He uses the Bloomberg Terminal every day to accomplish his goals in the professional world, and he said Liberty’s business and finance students have an incredible device at their disposal to build their skillsets and decorate their résumés and portfolios.

“The Bloomberg Terminal is a premium product,” he said. “It can be overwhelming at first. … But if you ever run into problems, there’s always help which is great.”

McGorman said that while analytical thinking is important for the business market, the ability to hold and maintain a strong moral compass is desperately needed.

“That’s my hope: that students will see this as an opportunity to flourish under this Christian value system (at Liberty),” he said. “I’m hoping to send the message that this is a great tool, and that the university has been blessed. If the students put time into it, they can really get a nice benefit to position themselves for success in the real world.”

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