Junior Malik Bauer finds finance opportunities through KU, MBSP connections
Malik Bauer is a junior majoring in finance. In addition to the Multicultural Business Scholars Program, Bauer is in the KU School of Business Jennett Finance Scholars Program and is vice president of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity.
Please share some of your achievements from your time at KU.
Before coming to KU, I was passionate about track and was a two-time Junior Olympian in triple jump and Guinness World Record holder for being a part of the fastest marathon relay ever recorded. I decided to come to KU after attending the KU Summer Venture in Business and gaining admittance to MBSP and the Business Leadership Program.
During my time here I’ve been able to make the Dean’s Honor Roll every semester and maintain a 3.94 GPA. Last year I was accepted into the Jennett Finance Scholars Program, which helped me land a private equity internship last summer at Great Range Capital and my investment banking internship at Deutsche Bank this summer. This school year I’ve been focused on my position as vice president of Sigma Phi Epsilon and working towards winning IFC chapter of the year for the third year in a row.
What are your plans for this upcoming summer?
This summer I will be living in New York City with fellow MBSP scholars Jaylyn Hunt and Tae-Vheon Alcorn, and I will be working at Deutsche Bank within their Investment Banking division. I’m super excited for this opportunity because I love big cities and have always wanted to visit New York, so I’ll have the whole summer to develop professionally in the financial capital of the world and explore everything NYC has to offer with some of my best friends.
Deutsche Bank is one of the largest investment banks and advises some of biggest companies in the world, so I can’t think of better place to develop and gain exposure to world of high finance. My responsibilities will resemble those of a first-year analyst which includes, financial modeling, pitching to clients, deal analysis, and providing assistance to full-time employees.
How have you been able to balance your academics as well as social involvement?
It has been difficult, but as I’ve progressed in college it has gotten easier. One thing that has helped me a lot is utilizing a calendar, which Steven [Johnson Jr.] convinced me to do during a one-on-one meeting sophomore year. I was usually able to wing it during high school and freshman year, but as I picked up more responsibilities and enrolled in harder classes, it became clear that I needed to create a visual outline for my commitments to balance them.
Along with honoring commitments, I can’t stress enough how important it is to make time for yourself and your friends whether that’s going out, playing videos games, or diving deeper into a passion that’s not school-related. I think what’s also helped me maintain this balance is surrounding myself with other high achievers who also like to have fun and scheduling some of my courses with friends.
Something I personally had trouble with early in my college career, and think many can relate to, is FOMO (fear of missing out), but this year has shown there is plenty of opportunities to have fun in college and if you plan ahead, you can get your schoolwork completed while having time to enjoy yourself.
How has the Multicultural Business Scholars Program helped you?
MBSP has helped me exponentially in my professional and academic development. Coming in as a freshman, it was huge being connected to employers and seeing representation of employees that look like me succeeding in the business world. This along with the uplifting advice Steven and Hira [Hamirani] have provided really motivated, and continues to motivate me, to tap into my full potential and seize opportunities.
After telling Steven about some of my passions of entrepreneurship and trading stock options, Steven advised that I look into the Jennett Finance Scholars Program to further pursue my interest in financial markets and connected me to MBSP alumni that were in high finance. I was still an accounting major at the time, but after talking to fellow MBSP scholar Levi Johnson about JFSP, I decided to switch my major, apply to the program, and the rest is history.
I can’t imagine my college experience without being in this program with so many diverse students that actively help each other out and push each other to succeed. I hope to give back to this program in the future as much as it has given to me these past three years.
