Success Story: William Koganov ’18 accepts Goldman Sachs analyst role

Success Stories | Apr 19, 2018 | admin

By Maja Tarateta

Two years, 500 conversations, 2,000 emails, and one global business degree.

This is how William Koganov, BS ’18, says he landed a full-time position as an analyst in asset management at Goldman Sachs, where he will be “part of a team managing pension funds and endowments to make sure they are stable and that parents like mine have a financial safety net,” he said.

Koganov’s parents immigrated to America from Baku, Azerbaijan, in 1993 “and instilled a work ethic that translates to this job,” he said. “As a first-generation American, you see your parents sacrifice for you.”

Attending the Gabelli School of Business wasn’t planned, Koganov said. Raised in Brooklyn, he had applied to study at Fordham College at Lincoln Center so he could live at home during college. While touring the campus on an open-house day for admitted students, he stopped by a table that Vincent DeCola, SJ, assistant dean for the BS in global business, had set up.

Koganov applied on the spot for the global business program and transferred over.

He said he liked the international aspect, the study-abroad requirement, and the “outward-facing curriculum. We are focused on the world in the next 20 years rather than tomorrow,” he said.

“Plus, to be able to finish you classes and go to work 15 minutes later in the city is priceless. It’s invaluable.”

While studying and working, Koganov started reaching out to Fordham alumni, which helped him land a junior internship. After that, he contacted a Fordham alumnus at Goldman Sachs, who helped him get an interview in his group. A few rounds later, he was called to interview for a different group, and it was this role that Koganov ultimately accepted.

“It all began with a Fordham alumnus who was willing to vouch for me and push me,” he said. “From that one Fordham connection, I ended up speaking to about 20 people, including one of my interviewers,” before getting the job.

Two years and 2,000 emails later, he has the job of his dreams lined up. “I used networking as a tool to learn about the industry and harnessed the full power of alumni to understand what I want for my future, rather than just a job,” he said.

And he feels good about the work he will do.

“To get to positively make an impact behind the scenes, and to have an impact that is subtle,” he said, “is a great achievement.”