Varinia Munoz (BS/MS ’19), a student graduation speaker who earned a BS/MS in accounting and joined PwC this fall, says, “A Sternie means being someone who is an innovator and finds nuanced ways to solve a problem.” Munoz discovered her interest in accounting after an internship with a property management company while in high school. The Breakthrough Scholars Program, she said, gave her an opportunity “to attend a school where I was encouraged to be myself and constantly pushed beyond my limit.” She was active in the Stern Accounting Society and became a student mentor. She described her work as an Orientation Leader for first-year students as a transformative experience that helped her gain public speaking skills. “I have learned so much and been surrounded by people willing to help at every turn. I had so many possibilities to explore that would not have been possible without my scholarship.”

Business and political economy major Aldo Gonzalez (BS ’20), a senior at Stern from California, took advantage of the opportunity to spend time studying at NYU London, NYU Madrid, and NYU Shanghai. Calling the experiences “transformative,” Gonzalez says they “taught me how to be comfortable with discomfort and thrive in new environments. I learned how business is done in different parts of the world, and I developed multicultural skills. Once I returned to NYC, I felt confident and ready to carve my own path.” A member of the Stern Street Team and editor-in-chief of the undergraduate business newspaper, The Gould Standard, Gonzalez is grateful that his scholarship has provided him with the education and development opportunities needed to make an impact in the business world. When he graduates, he plans to pursue a management consulting career at the intersection of policy, tech, and business.

Dena Samad (BS/MS ’19), a full scholarship recipient from Brooklyn, completed her BS/MS in accounting at the end of the summer. While at Stern she co-founded the student club Islamic Finance Group, which she said “encouraged me to speak my narrative and allowed me to study an area I was interested in on a larger scale within NYU while stretching the global Stern education we pride ourselves on.” In addition, Dena also served on the Stern Undergraduate Judiciary Committee. “Beyond just a full tuition scholarship, I was able to get the resources, guidance, and ability to live the traditional college career I have always dreamed of,” she said. Dena is now working at Citigroup as a public finance investment banking analyst in NYC.