Senior Evelyn McGreevey at her sales & trading internship at R.J. O’Brien. LINKEDIN / COURTESY
Brooke Della Rocco, News Editor
With a close-knit community on campus, Manhattan University’s finance program proves to continuously produce successful and entrepreneurially focused students into the finance world. Recently, a few of these students have been rising to the occasion, participating in internships with well-known companies while also maintaining full-time or part-time student status.
For Ruby Jazwinski ‘25, choosing a future in finance was not a clear-cut decision.
“When I started college, I wasn’t sure what direction I wanted to take,” Jazwinski wrote in an email to The Quadrangle. “My sister had graduated with a finance degree and showed me all the possibilities that come with it. Once I decided to pursue finance, the professors at Manhattan College were so inspiring and supportive. They really confirmed that I made the right choice.”
Jazwinski has participated in a number of competitive internships with brands such as BronXchange and Tarte Cosmetics. She currently works at Internova Travel Group, beginning as an intern and ultimately turning the work into her full-time job.
“My most recent internship gave me exposure to nearly every role available within the finance industry,” Jazwinski wrote. “It helped me discover which path interested me the most and ultimately led to my full-time position there, which I’m so grateful for.”
Senior student Clay Pinkham has also shown dedication to his academics and work while at MU, with a double major in economics and finance in addition to an internship under his belt. Over the course of the summer, Pinkham worked for First Citizens Bank as a corporate intern in the commercial services division.
“I had almost no expectations going in there,” Pinkham said. “By the end of the summer it made me realize, it was like a family…It made it better for me because it was like they welcomed me with open arms. It wasn’t like they were treating me like an employee…I mean honestly, everything just felt so friendly and open, like they wanted me to succeed.”
Pinkham hunkered down and focused on delving into financial statement analysis at the internship, which includes breaking out the company’s statements and understanding their capital structure. These financial statements are the core of multiple industries, and Pinkham was excited to fully immerse himself and hone these skills.
After being a part of the Manhattan University Investment Fund throughout his entire college career, Pinkham rose to the portfolio head of economics position on the club board in his senior year. In this position, he focuses on leading the evaluation of macroeconomic risks across the portfolio and driving the transformation of the club’s investments.
“My task this year has been to give us a clean slate, liquidate everything and put us on the right track where our portfolio doesn’t have a high correlation between each other, which is what most portfolios aim to do,” Pinkham said. “Also just improve the club in terms of student retention, the trips we go on and the quality of the pitches that our students make.”
Similarly, senior Evelyn McGreevey works with the MU Investment Fund. McGreevey has also been involved in an immersive Sales & Trading internship with RJ O’Brien, the oldest and largest independent futures brokerage and clearing firm in the United States.
“Most of our time was spent watching them and them teaching us, which I really loved,” McGreevey said. “Instead of having us do stupid work and pointless work, they were making the experience more important for us. We were benefiting more than they were and I just love that they prioritized us…It was a unique experience, because not only did I get the experience of the internship, but I got to see things, like acquisitions and how it [the company] is affected. It was just interesting.”
An honors finance student, McGreevey is actively involved in several finance-related clubs, including Beta Alpha Psi and the O’Malley School of Business Dean’s Student Advisory Council. McGreevey left the interview with a few words about the finance students at MU and their promise for a future in the job market.
“I would say a majority of the finance students are putting their all in while they’re here,” McGreevey said. “They’re getting any experience that they can, which is awesome, because Manhattan [University] gives a lot of experience. They’re just doing everything they can so that when they go into the field, they will be more than the average person entering the finance field.”