Steven Koren, a graduating senior from Sandy Hook, Connecticut, has excelled both professionally and academically as a student within the AACSB Accredited Gabelli School of Business at Roger Williams University. Steven graduated in May 2023 with his Bachelor of Science degree in Finance with a double minor in Marketing and Psychology. Throughout his four years at Roger Williams University, Steven has shown true dedication to both academic and career advancement through internships and campus involvement opportunities.
Steven explored his passion and drive for the financial industry through his internship opportunity at Santa Buckley Energy as a Propane & Oil Sales Intern. Steven gained essential interpersonal communication skills as he successfully prospected new business through strategic cold-calling and email campaigns. He was successful in creating leads for Sales Executives and maintained excellent collaboration skills with sales representatives. From here, Steven chased the excitement and passion for strengthening, analyzing, and building clientele through Dr. Michael Melton’s Center for Advanced Financial Education (CAFÉ) program at Roger Williams University. Steven has shown true leadership, commitment, and professionalism as he fully integrated into several roles in the Center for Advanced Financial Education (CAFÉ) in June 2022, starting as an Equity Analyst and Student Fund Manager. Steven had to work cross-functionally to actively manage several portfolios with differing objectives, which allowed him to expand his knowledge of the financial industry, actively engage in daily marketing reports to stakeholders, and ensure the success of each portfolio by utilizing fundamental, technical, and behavioral analysis techniques.
Based on his impressive role and leadership potential as an Equity Analyst and Student Fund Manager, Steven served as a Portfolio Manager for the Center for Advanced Financial Education Growth Fund. From there, he oversaw and developed strategic opportunities within the CAFÉ investment portfolio in efforts to generate alpha, and served as a lead for weekly reports and direct communication with Board of Directors. Upon taking a leadership role in the CAFÉ program led to opportunities for Steven to connect with an impressive network of alumni and explore potential career paths to indulge in after graduation. Overall, Steven excelled in the CAFÉ Program with his commitment to excellence, strategical thinking, and hunger for knowledge which expresses the true values of a Gabelli School of Business education at Roger Williams University.
Upon graduation, Steven will be pursuing a full-time position at HRC Financial Group on Wall Street, a financial investment group that specializes in marketing and creation of registered investment companies, SMA, and alternative investments that seek to meet under-served needs, where he will serve as an Internal Sales Director Steven credits his success to the rigorous academic experience he gained while at RWU through the mentorship and guidance of Dr. Melton and the support of his fellow CAFÉ alumni David Balise, Peter Hillburn, Brian Schiller, and Noah Walsh, who have provided several RWU students and alumni opportunities within HRC.
We cannot wait to see what success the future holds for Steven, and we look forward to connecting with yet another incredible alumnus from the Gabelli School of Business Finance program.
