Thanksgiving is a time to get together, eat, relax, and give thanks for the abundance around us. Each year, the Jerome Fisher M&T community is lucky to host its own Thanksgiving due to the generosity of AQR Capital Management. Current student Will Morgus (M&T, ’21) reflects on this favorite tradition.
Among the busyness of life at Penn, it is rare that so many M&T students can be found in one place. Yet every year without fail the entire community converges for one momentous event: AQR Thanksgiving.
Walking into a packed Huntsman classroom that Thursday before break was a warming sight to see. There’s nothing quite as pleasantly overwhelming as walking into the room and seeing 100 familiar faces and an overflowing table of food! The crackling fire on the projector, lively music and the voices of dozens of M&Ts really got me in the Thanksgiving spirit.
Once everyone’s plates were full, we heard from Michael T. (M&T. ’17) and Michael G. (M&T, ’18), two M&T graduates working full-time at AQR. Both had interned at the company and were now employed as research analysts. They emphasized how AQR really enabled them to use both aspects of their interdisciplinary education to excel at their jobs.
Hearing from Michael and Michael, it was inspiring to see people who were intellectually challenged by, but so clearly enjoyed their jobs. The strong relationship M&T has with AQR was exemplified so well by what Michael and Michael had to say. And, their presence showed that M&T alumni care enough about the community to make time to come back to talk with current students.
AQR Thanksgiving served as a pleasant reminder that there are lots of like-minded students on campus who are just as excited to enjoy the M&T community as I. We are so fortunate to have each 
other! That tight-knit community is really what makes M&T so special and we’re lucky to have AQR Thanksgiving to celebrate that. I’m already looking forward to next year!
Will Morgus is a member of the Student Board and part of the Class of 2021. He is majoring in computer science and concentrating in business analytics and entrepreneurship management. After graduation, he plans to work in the tech industry and is specifically interested in small and fast-growing companies.