Inara Rupani (MS Finance '26) When I first started my internship at Biz2Credit in New York City, I thought underwriting was mostly about numbers, spreadsheets, and probably drinking too much coffee. I was right about the coffee part. But what surprised me was how much the role is actually about people, decision-making, and understanding the stories behind businesses.  As a Credit Underwriter, I’ve had the opportunity to evaluate small business loan applications, analyse financial statements, assess risk, and collaborate with different teams to make lending decisions. Every application feels like solving a puzzle, except sometimes the puzzle comes with 400 pages of tax returns and a business owner who says, “Everything is in the folder,” when it definitely is not.   One of the most important things I’ve learned during this internship is how to balance analytical thinking with practical judgment. In finance classes, you often work with clean datasets and textbook scenarios....

Sibel Sude Baskaya (MS in Information Systems, Data Analytics '26) This semester, I interned at Collection 18 as a Sales Analyst Intern. Honestly, when I first started, I wasn't entirely sure what that title meant in practice, but a few weeks in, I understood it very well. Collection 18 is a fashion accessories company that works directly with major retailers and brands in a B2B model. That means when something goes wrong—a product gets miscategorised, inventory numbers don't match, a line sheet goes out with outdated pricing—the impact isn’t internal. It ripples outward to the client. I learned this not from a handbook, but from real moments where precision actually mattered. Day-to-day: buy sheets, line sheets, and a lot of attention to detail A big part of my role involved preparing buy sheets and line sheets—the documents used to present the product portfolio to clients during sales meetings. At first glance, it looked like a spreadsheet task. But I quickly realised the...

Karuna Pahari (MS Finance ’26) This semester, I interned as an underwriting intern at Biz2credit, where I helped in reviewing small business loan applications. Going into the role, I expected it to be mostly about working with numbers, however it ended up being much more about judgement and decision-making. The most important thing I learned is that underwriting is not just about analyzing financial data but it’s more about analyzing and understanding risk. In many cases, the numbers don’t tell a perfectly clear story. Part of the job is recognizing when something does not fully add up and thinking critically about what that might mean. The shift from just reviewing information to evaluating it was something I hadn’t fully appreciated before. For networking, our company partakes in this fun activity called “Throwback Thursday” where someone secretly sends their childhood picture to HR and has the entire company guess who that could be to win prizes. If no one gets it right, the person ...

Doyeon Hwang (MS Real Estate ’26)  Breaking into commercial real estate private equity requires more than textbook knowledge. It demands the ability to synthesize market data, build financial models under pressure, and communicate investment theses with conviction. My internship has been one of the most formative experiences of my career, and I'm excited to share what I've learned along the way.  The Most Important Lesson: Underwriting Is Both Art and Science  The single most valuable thing I've learned is that financial underwriting is never purely mechanical. Yes, I spend hours building DCF models, running IRR sensitivity analyses, and stress-testing capital stacks. But the real skill is knowing which assumptions matter most. Early on, I thought precision in Excel was the goal. I quickly learned that a model is only as useful as the judgment behind it. Understanding how debt structure, cap rate movements, and exit timing interact to shape returns requires a kind of intu...

Siddhi Kataria (MS Business Analytics '26) During my internship at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), I worked within the IT Operations and Client Support team, primarily supporting the onboarding process for new hires, rehires, and employee transfers. My responsibilities included reviewing onboarding requests in ServiceNow, validating employee information, coordinating with hiring managers, and ensuring employees received the correct system access and equipment. I also worked with reports and operational data using tools such as Excel, Power BI, and SharePoint to help monitor workflows and improve efficiency within the team. In addition to my day-to-day responsibilities, I was encouraged to identify inefficiencies in existing processes and find ways to improve them. This gave me the opportunity to take initiative and work on automation projects using Power Automate and Excel. Through these projects, I helped streamline manual reporting and administrative tasks, which...

Maham Hassan (MS Statistics '26) If you've never heard of the New York City Independent Budget Office, you're not alone. Most people outside of city government haven't. The IBO is a nonpartisan city agency whose job is to provide independent fiscal and policy analysis on the New York City budget. Think of it as a check on the Mayor's budget office, an independent voice that tells the City Council and the public what things actually cost, without a political agenda attached. I spend my days reading the news, tracking policy proposals, attending City Council hearings, and contributing to research reports. Right now, my primary project has been helping build IBO's cost estimate for making all New York City buses fare-free, a major proposal championed by newly elected Mayor Mamdani. That means reading academic literature on fare elasticity, analyzing MTA ridership data, drafting sections of the report, and building R models that compare ridership responses across ne...

Henal Gandhi (MS Finance ’26)  Finance carries such a broad spectrum, and when most people hear the word, they immediately picture banks, investment firms, or Wall Street. Honestly, not too long ago, that was me too. But moving to New York changed everything. Stepping into the world's financial capital, I started discovering just how vast this industry really is. Beyond the headlines and the trading floors, there's an entire ecosystem of private credit, venture capital, fintech, asset management, and structured finance, each with its own world, its own language, and its own way of moving capital.  When I arrived in the city for my master's, I quickly understood one thing: networking wasn't optional. And my approach has always been there's no one right way, so do it all. LinkedIn, Handshake, cold emails, cold messages, talking to classmates, reaching out to seniors. I've tried everything, and honestly, each method has given me something. Nothing was wasted.  My f...

Sadhami Caraza has a Bachelor’s degree in finance with a minor in Economics. In 2026, she completed her Master’s in Information Systems with a concentration in Data Analytics at Baruch College, transitioning recently from New York City to a corporate tax role at The Walt Disney Company in Orlando, FL, where she works on tax matters related to Disney+ and Hulu. What Really Motivated Her to Pursue This Opportunity at The Walt Disney Company Disney has always been one of Sadhami’s favorite companies, and she has closely followed the opportunities the company offers. When she came across the internship opportunity for recent graduates in Corporate Tax at The Walt Disney Company, it immediately caught her attention. The role was not just about traditional tax work. It also involved data management, process improvement, and working with different systems. That combination stood out to her and motivated her to apply. With a strong foundation in finance, and growing interest in how dat...

Isha Thakkar, MS Business Analytics ‘26 When I started at Homads for my summer 2025 internship, I had no background in the mid-term rental space. I found the internship on Handshake through the Blackstone LaunchPad Summer Internship Program (https://www.blackstone.com/our-impact/blackstone-launchpad/), which connects students to opportunities at Blackstone portfolio companies and startups. I didn't know what to expect. Looking back, that uncertainty turned out to be one of the best things that could have happened to me. Homads (https://homads.com/) is a mid-term rental marketplace that connects property owners with renters who need furnished housing for about 30 days to 12 months. That includes remote workers, traveling nurses, students on temporary assignments, and families displaced from their homes after events like fires or floods who need somewhere to stay while their insurance covers the cost. What makes Homads different from platforms like Airbnb is that it's not a booki...

Catheryn Chen, an online MBA student at the Zicklin School of Business, is making history as the first Zicklin Online MBA student to serve as President of the MBA Club. Juggling coursework, career, and leadership responsibilities, she is committed to fostering a more connected and inclusive MBA community for both online and non-online students.  From Online Student to Presidency  Although her classes are held virtually, Catheryn prioritizes building strong relationships with her classmates and staying engaged with the broader MBA community.  “Being an online student doesn’t mean being disconnected,” Catheryn said. “It’s about finding meaningful ways to engage, both digitally and in person whenever possible.”  Catheryn’s decision to pursue a leadership role was inspired by another Zicklin Online MBA student, Heather Stewart, president of the Zicklin Black Graduate Student Society. Witnessing Heather actively involved...

At Baruch College, graduate students often face a gap. Undergraduates can apply to join Baruch’s Investment Management Fund, a student-managed investment fund on campus, however before recently, graduate students did not have an opportunity to join a student-managed fund. Founded by Zicklin MBA Daniel Jordan, DogBone Capital (https://www.linkedin.com/company/dogbone-capital/) is a paper student-managed fund and was created to bridge that gap. For Zicklin MS Finance alum Pankaj Lamkhade (https://www.linkedin.com/in/ca-pankaj-lamkhade/), the fund became a platform for him to apply what he had learned in finance classes, develop stock pitches, enhance his skills, and accelerate his career. More than just a student-managed fund, DogBone Capital serves as a launchpad for growth, providing graduate students with practical experience, hands-on skills, and mentorship to help them in their journey toward competitive finance careers.  Pankaj is a finance professional with a strong foundation...

The tips listed below were created from the experiences MS Finance alums: Candas Kirnaz, Paola Cepeda, and Mahendra Waghamare had during their time at Zicklin. We hope this list helps students with some additional direction and structure on how to maximize their time and activities while at Zicklin.  Candas Kirnaz  (MS Finance ’25), Financial Analyst at Grant, Herrmann, Schwartz & Klinger LLP :   “During my MS in Finance program at Baruch College, everything on this list came from real experiences that helped me find my way as an international student in New York. Connecting with classmates, alumni, and professional communities made the biggest difference. Those relationships gave me support, confidence, and opportunities I  didn’t  even know existed.   Using resources like GCMC, career fairs, and workshops helped me understand the job market and feel more prepared. Attending immigration-focused events made the journey far less stressful. I hope this li...