His earliest financial experience with delivering the daily newspaper tweeted the possibility of a career in the bank. However, Acadia University beckoned, and their recruiter persuaded the Lank family that, with the necessary effort from Ed, it was an adventure worth taking. He helped bear the cost by working as a waiter in the university dining hall, doing mail delivery, and becoming a residence monitor. In 1948, he graduated with a BSc in chemistry and pre-engineering.