Page 40 - EQ Mag-2019

INVESTMENT CLUB RESOURCES
How To Start An
INVESTMENT CLUB
in High School
Courtesy of Kate Sundquist, CollegeVine
Why Start An Investment Club?
An investment club is a great way to gain insight and
experience into the world of finance. You will learn
about investing money, playing the stock market, and
pursuing careers in finance. You might also even gain
some experience with trading, whether through
simulations or, in rare cases, the investment of real
money.
Starting your own investment club is a great idea if you
have an interest in finance but no club at your school
available to develop these interests. In an investment
club you can expect to learn more about making smart
financial choices from like-minded peers, mentors, and
guest speakers.
Furthermore, starting your own club reflects well on
your college applications by showing your ability to
take initiative and lead effectively.
How to Start a Club
Starting a new high school club isn’t always easy.
Generally, you will have to follow your school’s
prescribed path to find a faculty adviser, apply for club
status, and outline a budget and operations plan.
You’ll also need to recruit club members. In the case of
an investment club, you will probably find club
members if you advertise your club heavily through
math, econ, and other quantitative classes. You can
also recruit members by pointing out the positives of
careers in finance, namely that you can rise quickly up
the pay scale after only four years of undergrad
studies.
For more information about forming your own club in
high school, read College Vine’s How To Start a Club in
High School.
39 www.equitymovement247.com
What To Do At Your First Investment Club Meetings
You might think that cutting through the red tape to
actually form your investment club is the hardest part,
but that’s only the beginning. Once the club is approved
and operational, now you’re suddenly responsible for
running it.
At your first meeting or two, the focus should be on
introductions and team-building. Make sure that your
club members are growing as a team and bonding
together. Ensure that everyone knows everyone else’s
names and a little about each other.
Once that’s happened, your focus can move on to
electing or appointing club leadership. After you have a
solid leadership team in place, you’ll no longer be the
sole person responsible for planning every club
meeting.
Club Activities - Build Common Knowledge
Most likely, your club will need to begin with some
background information to ensure that all members of
the club are fluent in certain content-specific
vocabulary and are familiar with the most basic
elements of investing.
Towards the beginning of the official club meetings, be
sure to give a broad overview of the field of investment.
Then, move on to the specific vocabulary and concepts
that every member of the group needs to know in order
to be able to participate. You should assume no
common knowledge to start with if you want all
members of the club to be on even footing.
The introductory concepts that you cover should at
least include: what the stock market is, what a stock
represents, equity, ways to trade, strategies, indicators,
and reputable places to do research on stocks.
You should also consider watching some informational
videos about investments and smart financial decision-
making. The Bill Ackman video is straightforward and
gets good reviews for approaching the topic of finances
from a beginner’s perspective. At around an hour long,
it’s probably the right length to spend an entire meeting
watching and discussing. Another good place to start is
the shorter video from Warren Buffet.
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