Victoria Whiteford

Victoria graduated with a BA (Hons) in Scottish History and Theology in 2019.

The key skills which I learnt during my studies at UHI were research and interpretation, and I continue to use them every day at my job. I work in Valuations, where we value companies for different purposes.  

To do this, we must research the company thoroughly to understand their place in the wider marketplace as well as their unique selling point. We also interpret different forms of information, not just financial! For example, in each job, I must read through the Articles of Association for the client company and, although Articles tend the feature the same or similar information as other Articles, they do not necessarily express that information in the same manner. Sometimes we must discuss our interpretation with the client’s lawyers, and if our interpretation is not how the Articles were intended, then they need to be redrafted, as they should only be read as having one explicit meaning.  

The Articles also often express financial concepts, such as how funds would flow if the Company was bought, verbally, and we have to interpret that language to create a financial model in Excel. Having an eye for detail and a sensitivity to language are vital to my job, and these were skills which I developed at UHI.