“Always reach out for help.” M.P.S. in Wealth Management alumnus and self-described introvert Brian Wang credits the program’s dynamic, student-centered coursework and the availability and generosity of its scholar-practitioner instructors with helping to break out of his shell.
A veteran of the financial services industry for more than 20 years, Brian is a registered Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) who has a strong educational background. He received his undergraduate degree from University of California, Berkeley, and pursued a Master of Business Administration (MBA) at San Francisco State University. He is currently a portfolio manager at Capital Advantage, where he now confidently engages in meaningful client interactions.
What is your current professional role?
I am a portfolio manager for a registered investment advisor (RIA). This means I spend my day constructing and implementing investment strategies for a variety of client circumstances. When a prospect presents a portfolio of investments, my team works with them to decide what to keep and what to sell. When economic variables change (for example, when the Fed raises or lowers interest rates), we make adjustments in our strategies to capitalize on those events.
Besides selecting investments, it is also my job to add value to clients by minimizing any taxation that results from managing their portfolios. It is very satisfying to have a client email our team to state that they are grateful for our recommendations.
What attracted you to the M.P.S. in Wealth Management program at Columbia?
I had been considering a master’s degree for quite some time. However, I was in no position to stop working and attend classes full time. I had never heard of a graduate program like this one that was both online and asynchronous. I was very grateful that I could watch the lectures when it was convenient for me. I could also complete and submit assignments as early as I wanted. Being an early bird drove some of my classmates insane, but that’s what worked for me.
Another issue was that I didn’t want to do a master’s degree just to do it. For me, the degree had to have some measurable prestige. Columbia’s M.P.S. program clearly delivered on that variable. I am always grateful, humbled, and proud to say that I am an alumnus of Columbia University.
How would you describe your work/school/life balance during the program?
If I could communicate one thing to potential students, it is that this program is designed specifically for working professionals. The faculty and staff understand that we work full-time. They understand that we have families and personal lives. My cohort had numerous students with children. Some have grandchildren too. That is my message to potential applicants: this program is doable!
That being said, it must be stated that this is indeed an Ivy League graduate program. There is a tremendous amount of work you must complete. Since home has too many distractions, I spent most weekends at my desk at work completing assignments. That was just what worked for me. My advice to students is to find a quiet place that suits you and commit to completing your assignments as quickly as possible.
What value did this program bring to you?
If you’re a bit of an introvert like I am, this program forces you to overcome that. In every class, you will be assigned projects that must be completed in groups. This technique is called Problem-Based Learning (PBL). Your PBL group is assigned by the lecturer, and it is a great way to meet your classmates.
Not even a month into the program, I had an assignment that had me stumped. I reached out to my PBL group for that class, and we worked through the assignment together. It’s worth noting that the assignment in question didn’t require us to work in a group, but they volunteered their time anyway. I was relieved to have classmates like that. I highly recommend that students in the program always reach out for help. There is no reason to struggle through an assignment. If you have questions about something, chances are other people do too.
A second source of value is that the lecturers in the program are extremely generous with their time. As an undergraduate at the University of California, Berkeley, I was usually in classes with hundreds of others, making the professors essentially unavailable. In this program, the lecturers are industry leaders who encourage you to reach out to them. I quickly learned the value of attending office hours for feedback on major assignments. You’ve got to speak up. It’s worth it.
What were your favorite topics from the program?
I am not a client-facing employee, at least not very often. Clients rarely want to talk to the boring portfolio manager. For this reason, I was especially interested in the areas involving client interactions, an area I felt I needed to address and improve in myself.
As such, the classes Financial Psychology and Communication and the Client Experience were especially helpful to me. The interactive techniques and extensive client simulations came in handy recently. A client dropped by the office and wanted my opinion on whether I would recommend investing in a risky asset class. I chose to focus on the techniques I just spent a year and a half learning. I purposely spoke in simple and reassuring terms, highlighting that I was his family’s fiduciary, meaning that my sole job was to act in their best interests. The investments in question were simply not for them. My boss, the CEO, later told me that he was quite impressed with my response, and the client was as well. If that isn’t applying what you’ve learned, I don’t know what is!
About the Program
A 16-month online program with asynchronous instruction, specially designed to accommodate working professionals, Columbia University’s Master of Professional Studies in Wealth Management program is taught by distinguished faculty with deep applied experience in their respective fields. Additionally, it is a CFP Board Registered Program designed to help students meet the educational requirements for CFP® certification.
