Brad Warren"I enjoyed programming and math and figured I could be an application developer," Warren said. "I was drawn to Stevens' location near New York City and also thought the Cooperative Education program at Stevens was an interesting opportunity."
At Stevens, Warren developed an interest in the field of quantitative finance, taking extra math and financial engineering courses to prepare him for a career in the field. He learned more through self-study and, for his master's degree, did independent study research related to options and volatility modeling.
He also acquired substantial work experience in the field through Co-op, holding analyst positions at two of the nation's top financial companies – Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley – where he was exposed to derivatives operations technology, trading desk strategy and residential mortgages.
"At Morgan Stanley, I got to work with the modelers and traders, building tools for the desk," Warren said.
After graduation, Warren will begin his career in options automated market making at Morgan Stanley, where he will research and develop models and strategies for trading risk management.
"I was really happy I was able to get this position in quantitative finance," Warren said. "It's a good combination of math and programming and really fits my interests."
While Warren is proud of his academic accomplishments and excited to launch his career, many of his best times at Stevens came outside of the classroom.
Recruited for both baseball and wrestling, Warren spent four years on the Stevens varsity wrestling team and consistently made the President's List, which recognizes academically-outstanding college athletes. Off season, he is a fitness nut who has competed in three Tough Mudder adventure races and is training in CrossFit.
"Sports have always been a big part of my life," Warren said. "Wrestling especially taught me discipline and mental toughness that transfers over to everything in life."
He is also an avid poker and blackjack player who used his math prowess to learn to count cards, but he said he never takes money from his friends.
"I've probably won more than I've lost over the years, but at least in blackjack I'm usually just beating the dealer," he said.
One of Warren's favorite memories is being named Castle Point King as the representative of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, where he was a brother for four years. Castle Point King is a popular male-only pageant hosted by a Stevens sorority. For the talent portion, Warren showed off his dance moves and even choreographed a dance performance using his computer science skills.
"We made suits with electroluminescent wire and a chip to turn the lights on and off," Warren said. "I programmed it so we could dance in the dark. It was a lot of fun; one of my favorite times at Stevens."
Warren's message to his peers on graduation day will be find their passion.
"You'll be more successful if you really like what you're doing, in both work and other interests," he said.
For more information on Stevens' 141st Commencement, visit http://www.stevens.edu/sit/commencement.
About Stevens Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology, The Innovation University®, is a premier, private research university situated in Hoboken, N.J. overlooking the Manhattan skyline. Founded in 1870, technological innovation has been the hallmark and legacy of Stevens' education and research programs for more than 140 years. Within the university's three schools and one college, more than 6,100 undergraduate and graduate students collaborate with more than 350 faculty members in an interdisciplinary, student-centric, entrepreneurial environment to advance the frontiers of science and leverage technology to confront global challenges. Stevens is home to three national research centers of excellence, as well as joint research programs focused on critical industries such as healthcare, energy, finance, defense and STEM education. The university is the fastest-rising college in the U.S. News & World Report ranking of the best national universities, and it is consistently ranked among the nation's elite for return on investment for students, career services programs, and mid-career salaries of alumni. Stevens is in the midst of a 10-year strategic plan, The Future. Ours to Create., designed to further extend the Stevens legacy to create a forward-looking and far-reaching institution with global impact.
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