Bison off the Hill: Henry Contich

 Features Assistant

OBU has fostered some of the most accomplished people in today’s workforce.

However, one of the largest hurdles that these individuals face is finding a job in their field right after graduating college. 

Business management graduate Henry Contich currently works for Bass Underwriters, an insurance firm based in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.

“I am the assistant manager of the catastrophic program,” said Contich.

“[This] basically means I help my boss analyze what might be considered a high or low risk that the company might take on. For instance, if someone repeatedly has damaged property then they might be considered more ‘high risk’ than someone who doesn’t if that makes sense.” Contich previously interned for this company before he graduated, and they offered him a job right when he graduated because of this.

“Initially I didn’t expect to go into insurance after I graduated,” said Contich.

“I didn’t think it had much to do with business management…but when I got here I kind of realized that I used things like excel and I analyze various things daily that kind of coincides with what I learned at OBU, so I’m definitely thankful for that.”

Contich commented on how he responded to receiving the job he currently holds so early in the game.

“I didn’t really expect to get a management position off the bat, which is what my degree really focused on, but the position I’m in now still uses a lot of elements that go along with management,” Contich said.

Contich described what his job looks like on a daily basis.

“It’s on a smaller scale…a large portion of my job day-to-day is filled with responding to emails and answering phone calls…but I still use a lot of things I learned.”

Last week, Contich passed his first insurance exam out of three he needs to take to get his license. 

Once he has his license, Contich plans on working at Bass Underwriters.

“I passed the first course and there are three courses total,” said Contich.

“I plan on staying in insurance for a while…as of right now I see myself at least staying here another five years or so then after that who knows where I’ll be with my career. I think that by then I’ll probably know substantially more about insurance and will probably have a better idea of what my next step is going to be.”

Contich originally got in contact with the manager there through his neighbor, who works at the same firm.

 “I think the key to getting a job close to your chosen field is to be open minded,” said Contich.

“I don’t think you can really expect to get an amazing job immediately…it takes work and requires you to build connections which you kind of begin doing when you accept an entry level position.”

Contich then went on to explain the importance of interning somewhere in your chosen field before you graduate.

“You learn way more out in the real world then if you were in a classroom,” said Contich.

“I mean OBU gave me some valuable tools, but I think that the experience I gained from interning and working [at Bass Underwriters] is something that I couldn’t imagine I would’ve learned in a classroom.”

Contich reiterated the importance of internships.

“Hands on experience is in my opinion, something that can’t be substituted,” Contich said.

“Once you graduate school, I’ve kind of come to realize that you never stop learning, you just learn in a different way…and at a much quicker pace.”