Smeal College of Business

Unlocking potential: How one Smeal student found his answer in graduate studies

Nikko Genoese has partnered with the Smeal College of Business in his quest to be 'a financial Jedi'

Nikko Genoese has partnered with the Penn State Smeal College of Business to stack credentials to broaden and deepen his business knowledge. Credit: Photo provided. All Rights Reserved.

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — After completing his undergraduate studies in economics in May 2020, Penn State alumnus Nikko Genoese was ready to take a job in investment finance.

The world, however, had different plans. The coronavirus pandemic, along with other factors, led Genoese to choose a different path, one that led him to Smeal’s Professional Graduate Programs.

As an undergraduate student at Penn State, he completed numerous Smeal courses, which piqued his interest, he said. While his short-term goal was to work for a high-caliber firm, Genoese’s ultimate goal was to impact something that outlasts him.

“At Penn State, I pursued every opportunity to make myself better regardless of the risk of failure, and I saw the Smeal Professional Graduate Programs as one of the greatest investments in that pursuit,” Genoese said.

Based on the uncertainty of the pandemic and his desire to explore corporate finance, Genoese decided graduate school was “the most certain route.”

After attending an information session about Smeal’s portfolio of one-year specialty master’s, Genoese enrolled in the Master's in Management and Organizational Leadership (MOL) program, which he started in August 2020.

The one-year MOL program has since transformed with Smeal’s residential two-year MBA to form the Early Career One-Year MBA program. The STEM-designated program is customizable and tailored to students who want to focus on sharpening their business skills while preparing for career advancement. The program will enroll its first class in fall 2023.

“The MOL program allowed me to learn new skills, further develop my resume and business acumen, and stay in school while the job market and the rest of the world was in chaos, and nobody had an idea of what was going to happen,” Genoese said.

Joy Mack, interim director of admissions for Smeal’s one-year graduate programs, assisted Genoese in developing his path throughout graduate school.

“We were able to have a discussion about his experience and his career goals,” Mack said. “After that conversation, it was clear that the one-year general business degree would not only complement a non-business background in economics but also provide a strong foundation for success in the corporate finance program and field.”

Due to the overlap in courses between his bachelor’s in economics and the MOL program, Genoese was given the opportunity to take elective courses that he found interesting and valuable.

“It was more personalized to my career goals and the tools I needed to perform at the next level,” Genoese said.

In his first year of graduate school, Genoese said he learned the foundations of business management.

Driven to succeed

Before graduating with his MOL degree in May 2021, Genoese was admitted into Smeal’s one-year Master of Finance program beginning the upcoming summer.

Genoese said his goal from the start of graduate school was to become “a financial Jedi” and explore business valuation and financial analysis.

During his studies, Genoese said he gained a deeper understanding of financial statements and taxes, evaluating different deliverables through an audit, and thinking in terms of a global corporate entity.

While working toward his finance master’s, Genoese broadened his expertise by pursuing online graduate certificates led by Smeal and delivered through Penn State World Campus.

In January 2022, Genoese began certificates in management consulting, business management foundations and business analytics.

Through credential stacking, Genoese said he explored various subjects and concepts that he believes will “drive change in the real world.”

Additionally, stacking graduate credentials was part of the original plan he developed with the Smeal admissions team.

“The admissions team saw me for what I was — raw talent,” Genoese said. “They knew before I did how valuable I could become going through their programs and graduating as a 24-year-old with a serious education.”

Mack said her first impression of Genoese and his goals made her believe that he was the perfect fit for Smeal’s Professional Graduate Programs.

“He had that motivation to be successful at Smeal,” Mack said. “His career interests really developed in the program, and he was able to learn about the different opportunities Smeal had to offer.”

A team of supporters

While he values his educational pursuits, Genoese explained that graduate school is more than the programs themselves.

“What’s on the other side of the iceberg is your deeper analysis, deeper thinking, deeper perspective and your ability to communicate,” Genoese said.

Additionally, Genoese felt a sense of community within Smeal’s graduate programs as he interacted with staff, faculty and his peers.

“It was the first time that I really felt that I had a team of people, not only my classmates but the advisors, administrators and faculty who were really in it with me and my goals,” Genoese said.

Jason Lunn, associate clinical professor of finance, assisted Genoese throughout his graduate studies by offering him independent study work.

Due to Genoese’s interest in mergers and acquisitions, Lunn had him dive into academic survey articles and present the findings he found interesting on the topic in front of Lunn and other faculty.

“I didn’t know how he was going to perform on it because he didn’t practice with me beforehand, but he nailed the presentation,” Lunn said. “He actually had some very good insights.”

Additionally, Lunn provided Genoese with advice that would help him further develop professionally.

“He told me ‘It is not enough to show up to class or to a meeting. You have to make your presence felt,’” Genoese said.

Genoese took that advice when Deloitte hosted an online information session during one of his classes.

“Rather than attend a meeting that went on for an hour and stayed on mute, I asked a lot of questions that I developed from my education,” Genoese said.

During the second information session, Genoese engaged in meaningful conversation and even added his own perspectives on corporate strategy.

Coming full circle

In May 2022, Genoese graduated with his finance degree and management consulting and business management foundations graduate certificates.

After graduation, he was hired as a consultant within the finance and enterprise performance practice at Deloitte Consulting where he advises chief financial officers of major entities.

While working full time, Genoese continues to work on his business analytics graduate certificate. He also has come back to Penn State as a recruiter for Deloitte during career fairs and has provided students with career guidance.

“It’s kind of like a full-circle experience,” Genoese said. “I’ve spoken to students who are well put together and students with raw talent but who need the focus and direction to succeed.”

Genoese has expressed the importance of the first job that students pursue after college.

“It really sets the trajectory for the rest of your career,” he said. “When you go for your second job, you really have to talk about how your first job prepared you for the second one.”

Additionally, he emphasized how the graduate program experience at Smeal “puts yourself on a whole other level.”

As Genoese continues his career with Deloitte, he credits Smeal’s graduate programs for guiding him to where he is today.

“I was somebody who was a talented undergraduate student who had a lot of raw talent and untapped potential, who had his sights set on something narrow,” Genoese said. “Once I got into the graduate program, it really opened my eyes to the capabilities that I had and the abilities and opportunities that I would have in the future.”

Last Updated May 18, 2023

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