Cory Levy

University of Miami, Herbert Business School

“A high-energy coffee enthusiast with an entrepreneurial mindset and a passion for fitness and finance.”

Fun fact about yourself: I personally brewed and delivered cold brew coffee to the Miami Marlins MLB baseball team for all their home games during the 2021 MLB season.

Hometown: Port Washington, NY

High School: Paul D. Schreiber High School

Major: Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in Finance and Legal Studies

Minor: Accounting

Favorite Business Course: FIN408: Mergers and Acquisitions

Extracurricular Activities, Community Work and Leadership Roles During College:

School Awards and Honors:

• Isaac Bashevis Singer Scholarship for Academic Achievement (Full-Tuition Merit Scholarship)
• Foote Fellow Honors Program
• Sophomore of the Year – Miami Herbert Business School
• President’s Honor Roll, Provost’s Honor Roll, and Dean’s List Recipient (2018-2022)
• 2020 Lead Miami Student Employee Newcomer Award for Academic Excellence & Job Dedication
• The CFA Program Student Scholarship
• Order of the Lapis – Sigma Delta Tau Academic Honor Society

Extracurricular Activities & Leadership Roles:

• Campus Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Brewbike Miami
• The CFA Institute Research Challenge: Equity Research & Valuation Global Competition (2021-2022)
• Undergraduate Dean’s Advisory Board – Miami Herbert Business School: Board Member
• Team Leader for Management 100 Program (TA for MGT100 – Managing for Success in the Global Environment)
• LEAD Miami Student Employment Program – Office of the Dean in School of Communication: Dean’s Front Desk Assistant
• Citigroup – Freshman Discovery Program
• Foote Fellow Honors Program Mentor
• Hillel – Jewish Learning Fellowship
• Panhellenic Exploratory Committee: Sigma Delta Tau Representative

Community Work:

• Alternative Spring Break (Community Service Trip) in Buenos Aires, Argentina (2019)
• Brewbike Miami Fundraiser for Breast Cancer Awareness and Suicide Prevention
• Note Taker for Office of Disability Services

Where have you interned during your college career?

• Aurora Capital Associates/The Cayre Group Real Estate Division, Property Management Intern – New York, NY (2019)
• Citigroup Sophomore Leadership Program Summer Analyst (Rotations: Sales & Trading, Investment Banking, Treasury & Trade Solutions, and Private Bank) – New York, NY (2020)
• Goldman Sachs Global Markets Summer Analyst (Rotations: Equities Sales-Trading and Leveraged Finance Sales) – New York, NY (2021)

Where will you be working after graduation? Goldman Sachs in New York City as a Global Markets Analyst (Cross Asset Sales, Equities Pod).

What advice would you give to a student looking to major in a business-related field? As cliché as this sounds, you truly miss 100% of the shots you do not take. In business school, you will be given a wide variety of opportunities such as attending guest speaker lectures, participating in research competitions, or running to be the president of an organization. It is up to you to make the most of these opportunities and say yes to things you are passionate about, even if they are beyond your comfort level. I was presented with the opportunity to take a coding class that was being offered in the business school but was reluctant to sign up for it because I had zero coding experience. I ultimately decided to enroll in it because I realized I would not have the opportunity to do so once I graduated. Despite the many bumps throughout the course, I am so glad I stuck with it because I learned a new skill that I otherwise would not have. I would tell all incoming business students to take advantage of the unique opportunities your business school offers because the most meaningful learning experiences will happen when you least expect it.

What has surprised you most about majoring in business? I came to the University of Miami with a very rigid belief that I had to follow a certain path to succeed. What came as a surprise to me is that there really is no standard path in business school and there is a lot more flexibility than I thought. The core business courses I was required to take as part of my curriculum influenced my career goals. However, I ended up changing my majors and minor four times until I found an optimal combination that best suited my evolving skillset and passions. My takeaway from this is that the business major is applicable to almost anything and you can use the knowledge you’ve learned in the classroom to enhance your extracurricular experiences. For example, my accounting courses have enabled me to become more strategic in my role as Campus CEO of Brewbike, as I have developed a thorough understanding of inventory management, cash flows, and profit margins. Additionally, a business valuation course I took has given me a better grasp of the mechanics of the stock market, which will be helpful when I start my full-time career at a bank.

Looking back over your experience, what is the one thing you’d do differently in business school and why? If I could restart my college career, I would have made more of an effort to balance other components of my college experience earlier on. There was a period during my sophomore year where I felt overextended – while being a full-time student, I was also managing a business, working 12 hours/week in a student employment program, involved in a business fraternity and a sorority, teaching a freshman business school discussion course, networking for internships, tutoring, speaking on panels, and holding positions in business school organizations. In hindsight, I barely had time to embrace the diversity of Miami and all that it offers both culturally and socially.

It would be untrue to say that I regret any of my involvements because I have met amazing people and have learned a lot about myself along the way. However, it became clear to me that I was living an unsustainable lifestyle when I started to experience burnout. Only my family understood the true extent of the pressure I had put on myself, and they helped me temper my unreasonably high expectations. Quality over quantity became my mantra. By prioritizing the commitments I was most passionate about, time became more valuable to me. I found time for hobbies that kept me energized, which translated into feeling more motivated than ever.

What has been your biggest achievement in business school? My experience as Campus CEO of Brewbike at the University of Miami has been a highlight for me and I am extremely proud of what the team has achieved. Brewbike is a start-up coffee business founded in 2015 by students at Northwestern University, and it now has a presence at 11 universities. I learned through my business fraternity that Brewbike was expanding to UM, and I immediately jumped at the chance to be a part of the launch because of my passion for coffee. Managing the business has been both challenging and rewarding from a personal growth standpoint. At UM, we operate off a gas-powered mobile bike compared to other campuses with café locations. As you can imagine, many things can go wrong with this type of business model (unexpected tropical thunderstorms, flat tires, and running out of product to name a few). When I am not in class, I am typically at the Bike interacting with customers, in meetings with other businesses/organizations, or brainstorming ways to solve operational strains.

We have partnered with many businesses, but our most memorable collaboration has been with Citigroup. I reached out to senior leaders at the firm in advance of their campus visit to pitch an idea I had. Over the course of two days, Citi generously sponsored 1,000 cups of cold brew coffee to students on-campus while Citi professionals marketed the networking events at the Bike. Seeing this partnership come to life was a surreal moment. The dedicated team of students I have had the pleasure of collaborating with and leading, as well as our loyal customers, make all the hard work worthwhile.

Which classmate do you most admire? Morgan Hirsch (Class of 2023). With her sunny disposition and vibrant energy, Morgan is somebody that makes the most of any situation by elevating those around her. I met Morgan through the business school and our relationship quickly evolved from being business school acquaintances to a mentorship and close friendship. Her ambition, humility, maturity, and business instincts are some of the qualities I most admire about her. Morgan is wise beyond her years and is the type of student that everyone wants to work with because she is a natural leader and team-player with an amazing work ethic. Her tenacity is going to take her far as a businesswoman and I am so excited to see all the success that comes her way!

Who would you most want to thank for your success? There are many people who have played an integral part of my growth that I attribute my success to including my parents, teachers, coaches, bosses, and friends. The person that has been by my side through it all though, is my sister: Sydney Levy. In addition to being a great older sibling, Syd has been my teammate, co-worker, and built-in best friend. I watched Syd go through the Wall Street interview process and successfully land a full-time job as a Sales & Trading analyst at Citi. When I started recruiting as a sophomore, Syd became a mentor to me, especially when it came to interview prep and networking advice. I can always rely on Syd to be completely transparent with me as she has my best interest at heart. What I value most about our relationship is that her successes are my successes, and vice versa. Everybody knows us as a dynamic duo because we truly are a package deal – whether we are going to Rumble boxing classes together, seeing concerts and Rangers games at Madison Square Garden, or talking about the latest WSJ headlines.

What are the top two items on your professional bucket list?

1. I would love to become an adjunct professor and lecture at a university one day. I have really enjoyed being a student and developing close relationships with my professors at UM. They have inspired me to want to pay it forward, and it would be awesome to share what I’ve learned from my career with the next generation of leaders in the future.
2. It is a dream of mine to become an executive at a top financial services institution. Many of my extracurriculars have revolved around finance, and ideally it is a goal of mine to cultivate a long-term career in the financial services industry and be in a position where I can impact the lives of many.

What are your hobbies? Fitness classes (specifically Rumble Boxing and Orange Theory), attending concerts and New York Rangers ice hockey games, investing, listening to podcasts/music on outdoor runs, exploring new restaurants, and watching Shark Tank – Kevin O’Leary is easily my favorite shark.

What made Cory such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2022?

“Cory is the perfect student: driven, mature, responsible and organized. But she is certainly not boring. What I find most impressive about her is that she treats every new thing as an opportunity to better herself and those around her. She led a team in a case competition, engaged with a speaker from a competing firm even though she already has a job and constantly sought feedback on ways to improve. I will miss her but look forward to watching her bloom at the next stage.”

Dr. Andrea Heuson
Professor of Finance

DON’T MISS: 100 BEST & BRIGHTEST BUSINESS MAJORS OF 2022