A passion for precision and artistry inspired student to prepare for career in finance

Baking cakes and picking stocks may not seem to have much in common, but Rutgers Business School senior Katie Lew sees the similarities and will bring skills from both passions to her markets analyst position at JPMorgan Chase after she graduates in May.

“I love that baking cakes and structuring investments combine technical precision with creativity. There’s a structured, quantitative side to them, but also an element of artistry that isn’t as rigid,” said Lew, a computer science and finance double major on the New Brunswick Campus. 

Lew became interested in business in high school when she launched Cakes by K, a custom baking enterprise. The process of building the business from scratch made her ponder how large companies made money. “I began to view Cakes by K as almost a smaller microcosm of how larger businesses functioned,” she said.

Arriving at Rutgers Business School, Lew discovered her passion for finance and investments when she joined the Rutgers Student Managed Fund during her first semester. Students research stocks and then pitch investment ideas to the group. “New member training provided a strong foundational understanding of finance concepts, and pitching taught me how to communicate my ideas clearly and confidently, so they resonate,” she said.

Lew added a major in computer science during the second semester of her freshman year. She excelled at computer science during high school and saw the subject as a strong addition to her finance major. Lew views computer science as more quantitative and technical as you analyze a problem that usually has one optimal solution and sees finance as more qualitative because there’s no correct answer for picking a particular stock.

“They almost complement each other in a way, because they're so different,” she said.

Baking also has quantitative aspects (the precision of the correct proportion of ingredients) and qualitative aspects (the art of designing a custom cake), which is part of the appeal to Lew. “It's the structure and the technical aspects of building a cake that will stand and has the right proportions, but also artistically, does it satisfy your client’s request, and does it look aesthetic?” she said.

The Rutgers Student Managed Fund sparked Lew’s interest in Rutgers Road to Wall Street, a selective program for students pursuing finance careers. About 60 are chosen from hundreds of applicants each year. The program takes students to leading Wall Street firms to meet Rutgers alumni and see the finance world firsthand.

Besides deepening her knowledge of finance, Road to Wall Street gave Lew an opportunity to network with alumni, to learn more about the industry, and develop relationships with graduates who recruit through the program. She became a leader in the program, presenting at workshops, mentoring students and recruiting new members.

Road to Wall Street helped Lew become an equity analyst intern at Systematic Financial, and then she did a co-op as a technology intern at Goldman Sachs.

Lew used her networking skills to land a markets analyst internship at JPMorgan Chase in summer 2025. The internship led to an offer for a full-time job after Lew graduates in May. Lew is thrilled, saying the work straddles both her majors. “It is also very fast paced and very social,” she said.

Joseph Shatz, assistant professor of professional practice of Finance and Economics, isn’t surprised that Lew will be working at a big investment firm based on her performance in class.

“Katie Lew is one of the top students in Rutgers Business School,” he said. “She performed extremely well in my Investment Analysis class and had the highest score in this class of 40 students. She participated actively in my class and demonstrated a strong grasp of the debt, equity, and derivatives securities and markets. Her analytical skills, quantitative aptitude, problem-solving ability, strong work ethic, and excellent interpersonal skills were on clear display.”

Cakes by K became mostly a hobby during Lew’s busy college years, but it taught her about making sales and communicating with clients, skills that will help her at JPMorgan Chase. Road to Wall Street also taught her those skills.

Lew said she benefitted not only from the many resources available at Rutgers, but even the process of navigating all the opportunities. “Heading to work at such a large firm can be daunting, but my experience navigating a large school like Rutgers has taught me to be resourceful,” she said. ”I feel confident that I can apply that skill to help me succeed.”

-Sharon Waters