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"We are the only school in the country that places
students with a specialist on a Wall Street trading
floor," declared Dr. Mary Cutler, professor and chair of
the finance department, describing the Wall Street Field
Study, which she says is "like a study abroad course,"
except it's in New York City. A dozen students spend a
week seeing how business works in one of the world's
largest financial districts—and the high point is a
visit with an Exchange specialist.
A Champion of the Finance Department
"I remember CCSU students dropping by my office after
hours when most of the pandemonium had died down and
wanting to know how they could someday land a career on
Wall Street," said Jim McNeil, a 1994 CCSU alumnus with
degrees in finance and economics. As the students and he
strolled Prudential's Wall Street Trading Floor
surrounded by a maze of turret computer screens and
bands of phones, McNeil emphasized the "value" of his
Central education and the importance of earning an
advanced degree for those setting their sights on Wall
Street. "I told them, 'Extract all you can from your
courses, and, if you are motivated, you can get a
phenomenal education at Central, comparable to one at a
big name college.'"
Now at Hamilton Investment Management, McNeil manages
hedge funds for institutions and individuals of high net
worth. He exclaimed, "I'm a big champion of the Finance
Department, because the 'open door' policy of its
faculty provided me with a great advantage. I was able
to go to a professor and confer for an hour or longer if
needed. At some major institutions one might get to talk
to a graduate assistant, but not receive quality time
with the professor."
McNeil is only one of many Finance Department success
stories. Dr. Cutler cited a recent survey of graduates
showing that: two-thirds of respondents found their
first positions in finance; two-thirds are currently
working in the field; and two-thirds have already
received, or are currently pursuing, advanced degrees.
If a prospering and supportive alumni base falls on the
plus side of the Finance Department's ledger, so does
its new headquarters, the Robert A. Vance Academic
Center, which houses the School of Business in style,
with spacious classrooms and computer labs. Here finance
majors—almost 200 strong—take on the rigor of a major
requiring the integration of economics, mathematics, and
statistics. As future financial professionals—whether in
corporations, financial institutions, or governmental
organizations—they are prepared to evaluate all business
and financial risks and returns in business decisions.
To become future financial managers who will direct
funds acquisition, funds management, and investments,
students must learn economic theory and the techniques
of accounting and statistics. "We teach theory and
application, computer and analytical skills," states
Cutler.
A Faculty Ambitious with Exciting Ideas to Pursue
"The department's chief strength is the faculty, with
its excellence in teaching, active scholarship, and
practical experience. We are a small but vigorous group
committed to a quality program that prepares students
for careers and advanced study in finance," said Cutler.
The faculty, all Ph.D.-trained scholars with extensive
backgrounds in financial management of both domestic and
international business, enrich the academic material
with their own professional history. Cutler, before
joining the Central faculty in 1987, was the financial
director of the international division of a Fortune 100
multinational corporation and was responsible for
financial management in 29 foreign subsidiaries and for
investment decisions around the globe. Dr. Kathy Czyrnik,
who segued from being a Yale chemistry graduate, to
receiving an MBA from Columbia University, then a Ph.D.
in finance from the University of Connecticut, brings a
wealth of private sector knowledge, having been
assistant treasurer at the Bank of New York and an
investment director at Aetna. "We are a faculty
ambitious with exciting ideas to pursue," she observed.
"We all share the same core value of educating students
well. We strongly encourage finance students to do an
internship or a Cooperative Education experience,
because finance is a hands-on subject." Cutler adds, "In
generating these job opportunities for themselves,
students learn to be self-starters and to learn how to
negotiate in the professional world."
Jennifer Wilbert, a senior finance major, pronounced the
finance program "sound." She said, "The faculty relate
to what's happening in the world. Dr. Eric Terry, for
example, has taught at the Wharton School of Business
and ran his own consulting business before teaching at
Central. The highest compliment I can pay to my
professors is that they all wanted me to succeed. They
were there for me."
Students enjoy other supportive resources as well. A
tutoring program, taught by paid upperclassmen, helps to
buttress students undertaking difficult studies, which
often require highly analytical and formidable
mathematical skills. An active Finance Club, which
brings prominent guest speakers to campus, "helps us to
understand what it takes to be competitive in business
today and serves as a meeting place to form friendships
with fellow students who share the same interests and
passions," according to club president Jaime
Cordova-Mendoza. Drew Loughlin, vice-president of J.P.
Morgan and a 1993 graduate, told the club, "My strong
work ethic and taking what I learned at CCSU and
applying it on a day-to-day basis has contributed to my
success."
On the horizon for the Finance Department is refreshing
its curriculum and standards to ensure that graduates
are trained in state-of-the-art finance theory and
applications. To that end, three undergraduate
concentrations—investments, insurance, and banking—are
being developed. This will involve all members of the
department, including, besides Cutler, Czyrnik, and
Terry, Drs. Zakri Bello, Scott Mackey, and James Parker,
and Mitchell Charkiewicz. "Skills for this millennium
will be needed to use our changing technology, to
continually refresh statistical knowledge, and to
understand constantly evolving finance theory," said
Cutler. "Finance theory, which surprisingly is only 50
years old, has completely revolutionized the world. No
wonder that since 1990 five finance theorists won Nobel
prizes for contributing knowledge proven to benefit
mankind. Our students and faculty are living and
learning in an historic time. As has been observed in
Business Week ‘the study of finance is the mainstay of
business education.' A sailor myself, I can appreciate
what that means. If the mainstay, which holds up the
mast and sails, is loose or broken, you're dead in the
water; you're not headed anywhere. I'm proud to say, the
Finance Department is a strong and sturdy mainstay
equipped to educate students full speed ahead."
—Geri Radacsi |
