Petra Lundström

Describe your role and what it is that you do overall and on a day-to-day basis.

I work in a team called Real Estate Loan Origination within Investment Banking at SEB. Our team is focusing on financing the largest and most high-profile transactions in the Nordic real estate market. We mainly originate syndicated loans (loans including several banks) and/or acquisition financing, and the clients we work with are large (often listed) Nordic real estate companies.

In my role as an analyst, I perform a lot of financial analyses and modeling on a daily basis, as well as produce internal and external presentation material. Furthermore, I participate in both client meetings and internal meetings daily.

What interested you about the field/company/role you are currently in?

I started this position at SEB just before graduating from SSE. I have always been interested in working within banking, and I also had an internship during my studies at another large bank in a similar role as the one I have now. It was during that internship I got interested in working with financing/debt, which led me to apply for my current role. I’ve also always thought that real estate is an exciting sector, and actually took a course in real estate finance at SSE, which is why I chose to work with real estate companies specifically. 

Why did you choose to study your subject area at SSE?

I did my Bachelor’s degree at SSE, and during that I got introduced to the different fields in which I could pursue a Master’s degree. During all of my studies, I have been interested in both Finance and Accounting, and I eventually chose the Master program in Accounting, Valuation, and Financial Management. I chose the program as it is a mixture of both finance and accounting, and as the courses in the program are very applicable to the working life, compared to finance which I find more theoretical. 

How did your time / education at SSE help guide you to the career journey you have embarked on?

During my studies at SSE, I learned about different possible career paths, both from the school and from other ambitious students that already knew what career path they wanted to take. I would say that SSE is a very inspiring environment and that it helped guiding me in my future career journey. SSE also provides a lot of guidance in the form of career fairs where you can meet potential future employers and learn more about which opportunities there are out there.

Following the time at SSE, do you have any words of wisdom or advice you would like to share with our current students?

My advice would be to make the most out of your time at SSE. The school has endless opportunities and you should really take advantage of them. However, you will not be able to participate in everything. There are so many different activities at SSE that it is impossible to do all of them while studying full time. Finally, I would recommend to use the SSE career portal when starting to applying for internships or jobs. There you can find plenty of job postings and get the support that you need when job searching.

What are three phrases that sum up your time at SSE?

Hard work, lifelong relationships, and endless opportunities.