Allyson Bakos and Tina Grant have been awarded the 2025–2026 Columbia University Wealth Management Advancing Opportunity Fellowship, a merit-based fellowship designed to support and accelerate the careers of outstanding professionals committed to excellence in the wealth management industry, particularly those who have navigated significant challenges in their lives.
Last month, Bakos and Grant joined the other students in their cohort at Columbia’s Morningside campus to participate in a three-day, in-person residency program that allowed new students to meet and build community with their fellow Columbia SPS peers, faculty, and staff.
“We are so pleased to welcome these two incredible students as this year’s Wealth Management Advancing Opportunity Fellows,” said Tracy Schwartz, the Master of Professional Studies in Wealth Management’s senior program director. “It’s an honor to offer this opportunity to talented wealth managers like Tina and Allyson. Their success paves the way for future opportunities in generations to come.”
Since its establishment in 2021, recipients of the fellowship have been future and current leaders in wealth management seeking to formalize or level up their expertise through a Columbia degree program. These individuals help their firms innovate, solve challenges, and expand their client engagement while strengthening efforts to attract and develop top talent in the industry.
“Joining Columbia’s M.P.S. in Wealth Management program through the Advancing Opportunity Fellowship is both a personal milestone and a chance to grow into the kind of leader who uplifts others,” said Grant. “I’m excited to deepen my expertise, expand my global perspective, and use this experience to help transform the communities I serve.”
Born in Jamaica, Grant placed strong value in the power of education from early on, and her journey to wealth management has been shaped by both achievement and adversity. Raised by her grandmother from five months old in a home without electricity, she often left at 5:00 a.m. to make the long commute to her high school. Buoyed by love and encouragement, she excelled academically and graduated from one of the country’s most prestigious high schools. Determined to build a better future for herself, she migrated to the U.S. in 2011. While completing her bachelor’s degree, she worked part-time as a teller at TCF Bank—a strategic move that gave her early exposure to client service in a financial setting and sparked her interest in wealth management.
Now, with nine years in the industry, Grant is a High-Net-Worth Financial Advisor at LPL Financial. She approaches her work with a focus on educating through financial planning, and understands the varied financial mindsets of her clients, shaped by culture and lived experience.
Grant sees this program as a pivotal step in preparing for the future of wealth management, embracing innovation, navigating regulatory shifts, and helping democratize access to financial advice.
Wealth management was always an aspiration for Bakos, who discovered her passion for finance early on. Now an investment adviser representative and chief compliance officer at Bakos Investment Management, she prioritizes building deep client relationships and guiding them through pivotal financial and life decisions.
Her path to the industry, though seemingly direct, was marked by personal challenges. Navigating a loved one’s medical struggles, she cultivated extraordinary resilience, balancing career growth with her role as a devoted caretaker—cherishing every milestone along the way.
Bakos’s deep understanding of the importance of holding such valued relationships close is reflected in everything she does, including as a wealth manager. “My biggest strength in my duty of care as a fiduciary is that I care immensely about both the quality of service I provide to clients and how I treat them,” she said.
As a student in the M.P.S. in Wealth Management program and a recipient of the Wealth Management Advancing Opportunity Fellowship, Bakos plans to build a platform to share knowledge and lift up others within the industry.
“I am so grateful for the opportunity to receive a formal education in wealth management, and honored to be selected as a fellow to represent such an exceptional and diverse cohort of students,” she said, adding, “I cannot wait to collaborate and learn from my peers and the Columbia faculty, as well as serve as a steward for women in this industry.”
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.
Learn more about the program here.
