Events & Calendars Alumni-in-Residence: "Passion-Fueled Career Pivots-- Combining Finance and Health Care Interests," with Newton Juhng '96

Oftentimes on Amherst College's campus, you may hear that students are doing X or pursuing Y as if they’ve known what they wanted to do all their lives. But the reality is that most students are still exploring and reflecting on what they want to do. They seek to understand what is important to them, what their life’s purpose is and how to find a career that aligns with that.

During his time at Amherst, Newton Juhng ’96 was a psychology major who completed the pre-med track and was a member of the football, track and rugby teams. He thought he wanted to be a doctor but wasn’t really sure.

Three months after he graduated, Newton landed his first job through the alumni network. He spent three years as a research fellow at the National Institute of Health (NIH), conducting research in epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and other neuroimmunology disorders. It was after the NIH, while at Georgetown for graduate studies, that he realized he didn’t want to be a doctor.

After reflecting on his experiences and advice from other alumni, Newton pivoted to finance on a whim. He spent time at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, SunTrust and Piper Jaffray as an equity research analyst in healthcare services. Then he continued to explore the finance industry through other firms, including BB&T Capital Markets and FBR Capital Markets, where he covered disease management, healthcare IT, home health and hospice sectors.

At that point, thinking he wanted to be a CFO of a health care company, Newton decided he needed more experience on the buy side of the finance industry and joined GE Capital Services in their lending group. During his five years there, the firm facilitated over 600 deals. In 2015, his division of GE Capital was sold to Capital One, where he is now a managing director within their health care finance group, providing debt financing to very-early-stage health care technology companies that are disrupting the industry.

Join Newton Juhng ’96 for this presentation and discussion, during which he'll shares stories from his meandering career path and his reliance on passion as his "North Star"-- passion for health care, passion for numbers and passion for helping others achieve their dreams. He believes that everyone should find what they truly care about and then follow it wherever it leads.

This Alumni-in-Residence event is hosted by Amherst College's Loeb Center for Career Exploration and Planning. To learn more about the program and this semester's lineup, visit amherst.edu/go/air.