Jumpstarting a finance career

Sharing the same hometown as Beyonce isn’t the only thing Mackenzee Balzer shares with the superstar. Balzer, too, is a female trailblazer.

Balzer, ’23, hit the ground running with an internship after her sophomore year.

“I didn’t have a ton of real-world experience leading up to the internship, but I was determined to start building my professional brand,” she said. “I was one of only two rising juniors selected to take part in the program, and I even received recognition from the vice president of supply chain who was very interested in my project.”

Balzer took initiative in all aspects of her Moore School experience; it’s something she recommends for all incoming students.

“Being willing to ask questions and participate in class is something valuable that I have learned is important,” she said. “Asking questions shows the professor that you care and allows you to dive deeper into the material.”

Balzer said one thing that surprised her is how all business majors are interrelated.

 “I have learned concepts in my supply chain classes that allowed me to better understand my accounting classes,” she said. “It shows the importance of each business class and how the degree is very versatile in the workplace.”

Along with her dedication in the classroom, Balzer’s campus involvement led to many meaningful connections. She participated in more than five extracurricular activities each semester, including USC cheerleading, Phi Chi Theta and being a University 101 Peer Leader. She completed five internships during her time at the Moore School: University of South Carolina, Continental Tire, Boeing Company, AgFirst Farm Credit and Sealed Air Corp.

Along with her impressive college resume, her professional bucket list further solidifies Balzer’s ambition. She said she hopes to conduct an alumna informational interview by a current Gamecock and open the market on the New York Stock Exchange.

Until then, Balzer is working at Ernst & Young as a financial service consultant in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Paving the way for women in the finance industry

Laurel, Maryland, native, Katherine Hyde, ’23, found her love for investment banking through her favorite class — her investment banking practicum.

“This course allowed me start my journey to finding a career within the investment banking sector,” Hyde said. “It taught me to polish my presentation skills and the importance of quick problem-solving.”

During her time at the Moore School, Hyde said she learned the pertinence of financial literacy.

“The biggest lesson I gained from studying business, and more specifically finance, was the power of financial literacy,” she said. “When I took the Student Managed Investment Fund class, I was able to handle the financial advising of $1.3 million through purchasing exchange-traded and individual securities.”

This newfound knowledge showed her how male-dominated the world of finance is and made Hyde want to change the narrative.

“I saw a striking difference between the men I worked with over the summer and their financial literacy versus my female coworkers,” Hyde said. “I started encouraging my female friends to research investing and have also shared the podcast, Girls That Invest, with a lot of them.”

As she learned finance, Hyde also split her time between a plethora of extracurricular activities and internships. Some of her on-campus roles included being president of Carolina Fund, a Finance Scholar, a Darla Moore School of Business ambassador and part of the finance staff for Dance Marathon. Hyde interned for Northrop Grumman as the business management intern and for J.P. Morgan Chase.

She credits her success thus far to the Moore School’s supportive faculty, specifically finance professor Greg Niehaus.

“Neihaus helped to dispel my impostor syndrome. His support and belief that I could do big things meant a lot to me,” Hyde said. “All the students can feel how much he believes in us and our abilities. That is all you can ask from a professor!”

Hyde is working for J.P. Morgan Chase as their investment banking analyst in diversified Industries in New York City.

Making serious moves as an entrepreneur

Jordan Fowler, ’24, took full advantage of learning through experience while he was a Moore School student by founding a slew of businesses, Shaw Circle Management, Shaw Circle Entertainment, Shaw Circle Solutions and Single Soul.

He says the Moore School enhanced his vigor for taking such business leaps. While many would shy away from such ambitious ventures, Fowler embraced the challenge with the help of his fellow Moore School finance students.

“During my time at the Moore School, I founded Shaw Circle, a hedge fund aimed at democratizing alternative finance in South Carolina,” Fowler said. “After graduation, I intend to build upon the foundation laid during my time at Moore School.”

As co-founder of Shaw Circle Management, Shaw Circle Entertainment, Shaw Circle Solutions and Single Soul, Fowler proudly credits the Moore School for teaching him to learn from his mistakes while unapologetically dreaming big — hence his many startup ventures.

“As a Moore School student, I learned that consistently working hard, performing high-quality work and learning from my mistakes means nothing is impossible, so dream big,” he said.

Though being a CEO and co-founder of multiple businesses before graduation is arguably one of his proudest moments, next in line is joining the Carolina Finance Scholars program, a rigorous undergraduate program for students interested in top finance positions.

“During my sophomore year, I was gratefully admitted into the Carolina Finance Scholars program,” Fowler said. “Through this experience, I found other students who shared my academic and intellectual interests. Not surprisingly, the individuals I collaborated with on the case would go on to become some of my closest friends at USC.”

Experiences like those in the Carolina Finance Scholars program taught him to lean on your curiosity.

“Nurture your curiosity by relentlessly questioning the status quo. Explore the reasons behind established processes and the motivations driving people’s actions,” Fowler said. “This habit of inquiring and exercising critical thinking will be what allows for the most amount of growth and will set you apart from others.”

While he dove headfirst into challenges as a Moore School student, he says there were still things that surprised him about the world of business.

“What I did not anticipate is that relationships play a much larger role in defining the impact of that number on a tear sheet or a finance statement, “Fowler said. “I did not realize when beginning my course of study that a technical background only assures that you will understand the things said in rooms — not that you will be present in them.”

With his newfound knowledge and companies already underway, he is continuing as CEO and co-founder of his companies in Charleston, South Carolina.

“Continuing as CEO, I will focus on growing our asset base, building our team and enhancing our suite of machine learning and quantum technologies to ensure we deliver the best possible investment service that we can offer,” he said.

Initially, Fowler dove into finance for more than just money. Five years ago, Fowler’s sister was paralyzed due to a fluke staph infection. After a series of surgeries, together they co-founded Single Soul, an online boutique to celebrate women’s bodies.

His sister, Sydney, worked with Fowler to start Single Soul as a way of coping with being in a wheelchair.

“A cute outfit makes her wheelchair invisible,” she said on her website. “All eyes are on the cute outfit which makes the wheelchair just disappear.”

Fowler said his sister’s upbeat attitude despite adversity inspired him to work hard and pour his energy into Shaw Circle while he was still enrolled as a student.

“The person I would like to thank the most for helping me achieve my goals at this point is my younger sister, Sydney,” Fowler said.

Lessons learned overseas

Jordyn Osofsky, ’24, will tell you that one of the most exciting things about her is that she lived in Thailand for two months while studying international business. A close second is attending the Moore School to pursue her international business degree while minoring in Chinese and Spanish.

Originally from Fair Haven, New Jersey, Osofsky has made a habit of taking risks and putting herself in new learning situations.

Dedicated to life abroad, Osofsky split her time between her studies and campus organizations, including being part of the International Business and Chinese Enterprise (IBCE) cohort, for unique overseas experiences.

“Through the International Business and Chinese Enterprise cohort, I was able to study abroad at the Chinese University of Hong Kong,” Osofsky said. “I was one of 12 students chosen to study abroad for that program.”

Although the IBCE was one of her most memorable experiences as an undergrad, she also challenged herself by enrolling in the SC Honors College and participated in the Women in Business Council, Alpha Gamma Delta, Carolina Finance and Investment Association, Carolina Fund and Chabad.

Not only participating, Osofsky also took on leadership roles in Women in Business, Carolina Finance and Investment Association, and Recalc Finance Academy, all while maintaining a high GPA. She was also awarded the Darla Moore Alumni Scholarship.

Osofsky also learned through a few internships.

“I interned with UBS Financial Services, Inc. in New York City,” she said. “I also had the pleasure of interning at Equity Research as their summer analyst.”

While she worked hard and took full advantage of her time at USC, Osofsky credits her mother for encouraging her.

“I want to thank my mom. She has been an incredible part of my support system from my very first day at USC and always encouraged me to go out of my comfort zone and learn as much as I can,” she said. “My mom worked so hard to give me so many opportunities, and I am beyond grateful for her.”

As a new alumna, Osofky encourages incoming students to read and learn as much about the business world as possible.

“Read as much as you can about the world, current events and history,” she said. “Be prepared to take a stance on current issues and back up your thinking.”

She said the main lessons she learned at USC and in her time abroad were respecting other cultures abroad and absorb differing perspectives while also remaining true to herself.

“The world of business, specifically international business, is extremely complex,” Osofky said. “You must know how to think critically, how to navigate different cultures and different interests while staying true to your morals and ethics.”

As of July, Osofsky is working at Jefferies in their Houston office as an investment banking analyst for their Energy Transition Group.