One MSc International Business graduate's career path to BlackRock

With San Francisco’s skyscrapers piercing the azure sky Joshua Lucas’ new office at BlackRock has the kind of view that befits the world’s biggest asset manager. 

Behind BlackRock is software giant Salesforce’s towering headquarters and with gleaming towers all around the MSc International Business graduate’s office, it is certainly an appropriate setting for someone whose career is definitely on the up. 

Raised in Farmington, New Mexico – “a small town of about 50,000 people” – the 26-year-old grew up far from the world of international finance.  

After high school, the American embarked on a two-year volunteer mission in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, teaching in Portuguese and navigating a culture entirely unlike home.  

“It took about seven months before I was fluent,” he says. “But it was incredible - a real stretch experience.” 

That early immersion in another culture has become central to his academic and professional identity.  

After completing a strategic management degree at Brigham Young University in Utah, Joshua sought a postgraduate path that would broaden his perspective even further.  

The one-year MSc International Business at WBS – rather than the usual two years for a Master’s in the US – gave Joshua the highly accredited postgraduate course he was after and a truly international experience, with a cohort drawn from all over the world plus the chance to explore the UK and Europe.  

“It was totally different from my undergrad experience,” says Joshua. “The cultural differences were enormous.  

“Learning how different cultures see the world was eye-opening. I had conversations about politics, religion, economics - everything.” 

And those international friendships started at WBS have endured.  

“I was just messaging one of my Iranian friends yesterday,” he says. “With everything happening in Iran recently, being able to understand those perspectives because I’d actually studied and lived alongside people from there has been huge in my job. That network will stay with me my whole life.” 

BlackRock is, by many measures, the biggest investment manager in the world, with Business Insider reporting that its assets under management surpassed $14 trillion in 2025. 

And so, landing a job at BlackRock is hugely competitive. Joshua says the knowledge and cultural insights he gained at WBS were vital in him succeeding in the lengthy interview process, though it was good old-fashioned networking that got him his chance with the US financial giant.  

“My uncle invited me to play golf, and we happened to meet the owner of the golf club,” he recalls. “He asked what I wanted to do, and when I mentioned international business and wanting to work for a multinational, he said, ‘would you like to work at BlackRock?’” 

That chance encounter led to a call with a BlackRock senior manager, who encouraged him to apply and to take the Security Industry Essentials (SIE) qualification. 

“Coincidentally, my brother was studying for it at the same time,” says Joshua. “So, we studied together. I passed, emailed the BlackRock contact, and within 12 hours he said, ‘get on a call with me tomorrow’. Suddenly he was saying, ‘you’re the perfect candidate. We’re going to get you a job’.” 

International experience that employers value

What followed was a rapid, intense recruitment cycle: multiple interviews, a day of back-to-back meetings, a portfolio-based presentation and, finally, the call offering him a role as Market Analyst in the finance firm’s US wealth advisory team.  

“I went through multiple iterations of my CV with the WBS career services, and the interview prep was excellent,” says Joshua. “I felt very confident going into the BlackRock process. 

“Having an international Master’s degree helped massively. In the interviews, when they asked about diversity or global perspectives, I could talk about working in genuinely international teams. That experience is exactly what BlackRock values. 

“Being able to take an international focus to the economy is really what I do now in my job at BlackRock. I have a much greater understanding of the world's economy and how a lot of these pieces fit together, specifically because of my time at Warwick.  

“I think BlackRock and all these multinational firms specifically do look for that global perspective and awareness. Warwick and the course were certainly pivotal in me getting this job at BlackRock.” 

Remarkably, Joshua was not content just to study international business; he also decided to buy a small tech start-up after pitching the idea to angel investors. 

“I wanted to apply what I was learning immediately,” he says. 

The company, Inca, offered automated text response services for small businesses and Joshua used his WBS coursework to overhaul it.  

“From my accounting module, I did an audit that added 20 per cent to gross margins right away,” he says. “Then from international marketing and strategy classes, I built a full sales and pricing strategy. That grew revenues by another 50 per cent.” 

By the end of his degree Joshua had negotiated a ‘letter of intent’ to sell the business for three times what he paid for it.  

“It was totally remote, just me and my brother,” he says. “But Warwick gave me the tools to scale it. In my BlackRock interview, when they asked about my biggest accomplishment, I talked about that. They were very impressed, especially given the tech culture in San Francisco. But I would not have been able to do that without what I learned at Warwick.” 

Looking back, Joshua says WBS changed not only his CV but his worldview.  

“It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life,” says Joshua, who also helped the University of Warwick American Football team to the British Universities and Colleges Sports (BUCS) national final while at WBS.  

“Coming from a university in the US where everyone was like me, to a place where I was unique in every way - it has reshaped how I understand the world. My mother always said: ‘dream big and go make it happen’. My parents insisted we do something to be of service to humanity and make the world a better place. 

“I chose BlackRock because of their overarching purpose: ‘to help more and more people achieve financial well-being'. 

“It’s been a wild journey to get to BlackRock, but Warwick was instrumental - absolutely instrumental.” 

Discover more Change Makers at Warwick Business School.