NEW YORK 鈥 A select group of 26 business freshmen and sophomores at the University of South Florida took the trip of a lifetime during spring break.
The immersive trip 鈥 a culmination of their first year in the Finance Talent Pathway program 鈥 took them to some of the storied sites and historical pillars of the global financial markets.
Students toured the trading floors of the New York Stock Exchange and experienced the closing bell from Nasdaq鈥檚 MarketSite studio in the heart of Times Square, as the closing bell broadcast live to global markets.
These experiences, together with other company visits, gave the group a deeper understanding of the evolution of modern financial markets, trading, and the institutions that shape how capital moves around the world.
鈥淭he Finance Talent Pathway program provides targeted training and mentorship to help our top finance students excel and compete successfully in highly selective internship and job markets,鈥 said Gary Patterson, dean of the Kate Tiedemann School of Business and Finance.
Launched in fall 2025, the program at the USF Muma College of Business prepares freshman and sophomore finance students for careers in the most competitive areas of finance.
鈥淭he program offers career-focused technical interview preparation, mentoring support, and soft-skills development starting early in students鈥 academic careers,鈥 said Wendy Liu, professor of instruction in finance and the program鈥檚 founding director.
鈥淏y developing industry-ready graduates, the program supports a strong talent pipeline for finance organizations operating in and outside Florida,鈥 she said.
Students receive structured weekly training, which integrates valuation, financial modeling, market discussions, and professional development.
The recent trip to New York City gave students the chance to put that classroom training into action with meetings and networking events at leading financial institutions.
At Goldman Sachs, students participated in multiple panel discussions and fireside chats moderated by USF alumni Gabriel Mocelin, Lan Phan, and Fabio Favari, learning about global banking and markets, asset and wealth management, and specialized areas such as fund financing and multi-asset trading and risk.
At KeyBanc Capital Markets, USF alumnus Taylor Zick hosted students within the equity research division and arranged a trading floor tour, offering real-time insight into how investment ideas are developed and executed.
Students also visited Morgan Stanley, PIMCO, Nomura, Neuberger Berman, Rothschild Redburn and Third Point to learn about a range of investment approaches, capital markets functions, and institutional investment processes, while gaining practical advice on career development.
The trip concluded with a reception where students connected with over 60 USF alumni and finance industry professionals, further strengthening the program鈥檚 expanding network.
Early outcomes signal the program is having an impact.
Some Finance Talent Pathway students have secured 2027 summer internships in highly competitive roles, including in private equity at Koch Equity Development, in private credit at Jefferies Credit Partners, in sales and trading at Soci茅t茅 G茅n茅rale, in corporate banking at Royal Bank of Canada, and in equity research at Citibank.
鈥淲e are grateful for the support from the Kate Tiedemann School, the Muma College, and alumni and friends of USF. We hope to elevate our hard-working students and strengthen the university鈥檚 presence in the national finance talent pipeline,鈥 Liu said.