Successful Berklee Alumni #230: Alex Chernik

Alex Chernik
Listen to the interview or download it.

Graduated in 2021 with a major in Music Business. Principal instrument: guitar.

Position: Mercury Finance Advisor (Data Analyst) at Ernst & Young, one of the “Big 4” accounting firms, with over 300,000 employees. He’s on a finance team, one that analyzes internal company data to ensure that they are hitting KPIs (Key Performance Indicators). Some stuff is technical maintenance, making sure everything is running smoothly. SOMe is meeting with partners in the firm to discuss their “book of business”. making sure anthing needing to be built out is built out and mitigating potential risks. Some of his job involves technical maintenance, making sure everything is running smoothly.

Overview: Before transfering to Berklee in 2018 Alex studied business at a small college that didn’t survive the pandemic, and at one point he had an internship at Ernst & Young. After finishing his degree in late 2021 he looked for music industry jobs, but being from Russia he needed to land a job quickly. For several months he did freelance music for a few months, then applied to jobs. Berklee professor Ralph Jaccodine was extremely helpful in coaching him. He started his job in Boston, then transferred to the Calgary office in early 2023.
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You can see Alex’s LinkedIn profile here.

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Choice Quotes: “I have a really interesting role. I have a lot of contact with people who are very successful and understand business in a way I’d like to understand. Some are apprehensive at first, but being able to show my value and become a trusted business advisor is very satisfying.”

“Find as many opportunites to get real on the job experience. Take an internship even if unpaid, just to get experience and connections. That matters most trying to find a full time job out of college. Those EY internships were a lot of work, but without them I don’t know where I’d be.”

“The Berklee courseload we had and all the projects certainly helped me with my current job, learning to prioritize, figuring out ways to be efficient. The business courses were certainly helpful as well. It’s not directly a finance eductaion, but many people at EY have other backgrounds. Diverse backgrounds are celebrated at EY!”

“If you’re interested in a career in data analysis, first make sure it’s for you. It heavily relies on numbers and analysis. If you like to get deep down in the spreadsheet and figure it out, start by taking some courses online.”

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See the full index of successful Berklee alumni.