Finance, taught the way it's actually done.
Most finance programs for teens are taught from a textbook. Ours is taught by a CEO who manages real investments and teaches graduate students at McGill — and it was built with a student who sat in a class like this himself.
Two weeks on the campus of Canada's #1 university.
Find out why McGill is one of the world's leading universities: #1 in Canada and #27 in the world (QS 2026), and #3 in Canada for finance (EduRank 2026). Unlike many other pre-college finance programs, ours is taught by an experienced CEO who teaches finance at McGill.
You'll spend your days in a real university classroom in downtown Montreal, 8 am to 2 pm — and see what university life feels like while you're still in high school. Can't be in Montreal? The same class runs live online.
The topics high schools rarely teach.
Finance, investing and investment management: take a university-level course on topics that high schools rarely teach — in three levels, from beginner to advanced.
In Quebec, financial education only arrives in Secondary 5 — and it stops at the basics. AIM goes further: the stock market, reading a company, building and defending a portfolio. Three levels mean you can come back next summer and keep climbing.
Experienced Instructor & Industry Expert
Learn from Ilyas Zakiat, a CEO and McGill finance lecturer who combines real-world investment experience with high-quality teaching — in a supportive, engaging and safe learning environment.
- CEO & Founder of BIASafe AI
- Finance Lecturer at McGill University
- CFA, CAIA and FRM designations
Ilyas Zakiat, CFA, CAIA, FRM
CEO & Founder, BIASafe AI · Finance Lecturer, McGill University
- Finance Lecturer at McGill — graduate-level courses in finance and investments
- Former VP & Portfolio Manager — National Bank of Canada; co-managed $7B+
- Trader and quant analyst — Natixis and Chocolate Asset Management, Hong Kong
- M.Sc. in Investment Management — HKUST, top 1% academic award
- BBA in Finance — HEC Montréal, with high distinction
- CFA Montreal — FinTech committee member, mentor and panelist
Safety first: before a session starts, every adult working with students completes a background check.
Why we started AIM
AIM began with a question from a 16-year-old: why is it so hard to learn how money and the stock market really work before you turn 18? Rami Jaouadi took a two-week finance camp in Montreal, loved it, and teamed up with his mentor Ilyas Zakiat — a CEO who teaches finance at McGill — to build something better: a program with real depth, a real campus, and a real capstone.
The free lessons on this site are Rami's part of the deal — short videos that explain finance the way he wishes someone had explained it to him. The summer program is Ilyas's: eight lessons that take you from your first dollar to your first portfolio strategy.
Hear Why Students Loved This Class
Ilyas has already taught a class like this, and Rami sat in it. We're collecting stories from former students — three questions, in their own words. First stories arrive here soon.
- 1 What did you expect — and what surprised you?
Former students tell us what the class was like compared to what they imagined.
- 2 What do you still use today?
The one idea, tool or habit that stayed with them after the two weeks.
- 3 Would you recommend it — and to whom?
Their honest advice to a friend who is thinking about joining.
Ready to aim higher?
Tell us about you. We reply within two business days — no commitment.