March 29, 2022
Risk management track gives PCSB students a competitive edge
By Maeve Hickey ’21, ’22G
The Providence College School of Business is one of the first schools to establish a risk management track for undergraduates, in response to growing industry demand for professionals who understand financial risk. Students began taking courses in 2019, and they are already demonstrating success.
“We’re a little bit ahead of a lot of the other undergraduate programs,” said Kevin McMahon, a practitioner faculty member in the Department of Finance. “We got at it early and we got at it more vigorously. We’re taking a more expansive, experiential, and educational approach to training the future risk executives across America.”
Dr. Arati Kale, assistant professor of finance, oversees the risk management track. Kale worked for more than nine years in the financial services industry. She hopes that her background in structured derivatives will be a considerable asset to the risk program and feels fortunate to be a part of it.
“I am enthralled by the time and effort that PCSB invests in making students ready for the real world,” she said.
McMahon said businesses are facing additional risks today that prompted the need for such a track. One of the risks he mentioned was managing climate change, which has heightened significantly over the last decade.
“Corporate America’s understanding and investment in their risk resources has changed dramatically and rapidly. Correspondingly, the kind of acumen and skillset that corporate America wanted in their risk departments changed just as rapidly,” said McMahon.
The risk track, also called the risk career pathway, includes electives that were already offered by the Department of Finance. However, the name and structure around the pre-existing courses allows students to highlight the track on their resumes, which will distinguish them to employers in the risk management industry.
After completing the courses, students will be prepared to sit for the Certified Credit Essentials examination. Receiving this professional certification confirms an individual’s commercial credit risk knowledge and supports a potential career as a commercial loan portfolio officer. PC has a 100 percent success rate for this exam since the track was established, a feat that has only been matched by three other universities in the entire country.
Along with the title and preparation for the Certified Credit Essentials Examination, the track includes student networking events with the Risk Management Association and the opportunity to attend a highly respected Master of Risk Management program. The professional association helps PC students gain risk management internships, scholarships, and provides general guidance within the industry.
Work to develop the program began in 2017, when the Department of Finance partnered with the Risk Management Association of America. Recognizing the increasing demand for these skills, a member of the PCSB Business Advisory Committee recommended developing the risk management track to Dr. Vivian Okere, professor of finance, who was department chair. That demand only intensified as the pandemic began negatively impacting businesses.
“Today, risk managers are highly sought after by enterprises because risk managers are always prepared to assist enterprises navigate both the expected and unexpected obstacles,” Okere said.
“The dedication shown by all faculty members and by Dr. Okere and Dr. McMahon, in particular, in guiding students, combined with the grit and success of all the students in the risk management track, make it one of the best in the country,” Kale said.
Students interested in risk management also can join the Risk Management Club, which operates under PC’s finance society. This past year, the club had the opportunity to attend the annual Risk Management Association conference. The RMA waived the conference enrollment fee for students in the club. During the virtual conference, the club members got to hear from some of the brightest minds in the risk management field and about recent news in the profession.
The risk management track has had a handful of successes since it began less than two years ago. PC has had at least one student a semester win the Risk Management Association scholarship contest. The most recent winner of the RMA Scholarship was finance major Catherine Buzzerio ’22.
The risk management program also presents the Freeman Award, named for donor Tom Freeman ’73. Billy Rabah ’21 received the first award in fall 2020. Rabah speaks very highly of his experience with the risk management courses. He explained that finance students who aren’t necessarily looking for a career in risk management should still consider taking advantage of these classes.
“I think that the risk management track courses include pretty cool electives for finance majors in general. Regardless of whether you pursue a career in risk management, these courses teach you things that you would use in any finance-based career,” said Rabah.
The risk management career pathway also has an agreement with St. John’s University, which has one of the most prestigious risk management graduate programs in the country. The arrangement allows PC graduating seniors to take advantage of a streamlined application process to St. John’s University, as well as securing an automatic scholarship upon acceptance.
Rabah has been the first to take advantage of the St. John’s University agreement. He is currently gaining work experience as a portfolio analyst at BlackRock, an investment management company, but plans to attend the St. John’s master’s program in risk management this spring.
McMahon mentioned that along with the Freeman award, several additional PC alumni have stepped in and offered to support the program.
Alumni in the risk management field see promise in the track and have even hired and mentored PC students that finished the track. Most alumni have offered either financial support or to offer their connections within the business world. These alumni want to help ensure PC students on the track have their choice of top tier positions in the risk management field after graduation.
