On any given day, you might find Rohan Patel talking about stocks or mentoring younger students. A senior finance major with a minor in Japanese, he came to Wake Forest from Lumberton, N. J., just outside Philadelphia, with a willingness to pave his own path.
In high school, he was torn between two disparate career paths.
“I was kind of split in high school between business and engineering,” Patel said. “I didn’t really know exactly what I wanted to do.”
So he hedged his bets, applying to a swath of schools with renowned engineering programs or business schools, deciding he would follow whichever door opened. But there was an influence pulling him toward finance.
“When I was a freshman in high school, actually, my dad was starting to teach me about the stock market,” Patel explained. “I remember he sat me down one day and was showing me how he would pick what he wanted to invest in.”
The idea that numbers could tell a story and shape outcomes stuck with him. By the time he committed to Wake Forest, he had also begun seriously considering post-graduate options, which made finance appealing.
“I ended up choosing business over engineering because I wanted a career where I could pivot and be versatile,” he explained.
Patel said that he sees finance as a lens for understanding the world.
“It really teaches you how influential money is,” he said. “Money can be a force for good… economic good and social good aren’t always incongruous.”
Patel enjoys talking with his classmates about current events and financial trends.
“Being able to talk to people about what’s going on in the stock market today, what’s happening around the world, that’s something that is worth talking about,” he said. “I think a lot of the business school kids are people who are willing to work hard when they have to, but are also regular people outside their major and from that perspective, I feel at home.”
Some of his most meaningful experiences at Wake Forest, though, came from outside the School of Business. Through his Japanese minor, for example, he formed a close relationship with Professor Yasuko Takata Rallings.
“She was definitely there, not only as a professor, but also a genuine person to support me,” Patel said. Over three years, he said, her mentorship was a steady presence.
At the School of Business, other professors helped guide his pre-professional path. He thanked Professors Bryan Starrett and Martin Malloy for challenging and supporting him.
Patel has also taken on mentorship roles of his own. As president of the Wake Forest Investment Fund, he spends much of his time with underclassmen students who are exactly where he once was.
“There’s so many kids who are aspiring to do what I did, it’s great to be able to be a resource and a mentor,” Patel said. “It’s super fulfilling and rewarding to see when you teach someone and then the light bulb goes off.”
After graduation, Patel will step into a fast-paced role as an investment banking analyst in New York City with Jefferies. He acknowledged that his work weeks will be intense, but he sees the role as a chance to build skills, open doors and figure out what comes next.
“What excites me most about the future is… I get to earn my own keep and be my own person,” Patel said. “At the same time, the freedom that comes with that independence brings uncertainty. “Once you graduate, you’re left to your own devices to forge your own path and that’s definitely the scariest thing.”
