Baruch College Alumnus Roger Trimble Appointed Managing Director at Morgan Stanley
Master of Financial Engineering graduate leads Wealth Management Portfolio Risk GroupFebruary 10, 2022
Baruch College alumnus Roger Trimble (’09) will remember this moment for a lifetime: his name prominently displayed in the heart of Times Square in a congratulatory message from Morgan Stanley on his promotion to managing director.
“Morgan Stanley treats managing director promotions as a sacred rite, and as such, it is impossible not to be overcome by the significance of the event,” said Trimble, who received his Master of Financial Engineering (MFE) degree from the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences.
In his new capacity, Trimble will continue as head of Wealth Management Portfolio Risk. He also designs, develops, and maintains risk controls to supervise 15,000 financial advisors and Morgan Stanley clients, which has more than $3 trillion in assets under management.
A Distinguished Career Serving His Country
Trimble’s career journey begins not on Wall Street but at the United States Military Academy at West Point.
After graduating with a BS in Mechanical Engineering in 2001, he was commissioned as Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army, and commenced armor (tank) training at Fort Knox, KY.
“I was in the finishing stages of officer training at Ft. Knox when 9/11 occurred, and overnight we transitioned from a peace-time to a war-time military,” Trimble recalls. “My first duty station was Fort Lewis, WA, where I served as a reconnaissance platoon leader in the 2nd Squadron of the 14th Cavalry Regiment.
Trimble adds, “We deployed to Iraq in 2004, running counterinsurgency operations near Mosul in Northern Iraq. During that time, I had the honor of supporting the first democratic elections in the country in 2005.”
Baruch: Top Choice for MFE Degree
In 2006, he transitioned out of the Army as Captain and landed a job as project manager with a semiconductor manufacturer in Long Island. He soon recognized a growing interest in financial markets, and decided to make a career change and pursue a MFE degree.
After researching MFE programs at prestigious institutions such as Columbia, NYU, and Carnegie Mellon, Trimble decided on Baruch College as the best option and offering the best opportunities.
“One principle I took away from the Army was the importance of people to an organization. It is people who make all the difference,” he explains.
For Trimble, that person was Dan Stefanica, co-director of the MFE program at Baruch College, who interviewed him to assess his application.
“Dan’s dedication to his students, both current and former, is unmatched,” says Trimble. “He sets high expectations of the caliber of people accepted into the program, and then he dedicates himself to their development to help them succeed.”
Trimble admits that the career switch was challenging.
“I entered the program with a steep learning curve ahead of me,” Trimble states. “However, I had the drive to succeed and was willing to put in the work necessary to do so. My training at West Point also prepared me well to dig myself out of tough situations when I was in over my head.”
Trimble adds, “I am certain that if it were not for Dan and the MFE program, I would not be where I am today.”
“Opportunity to begin a new career on day one”
With an MFE degree in hand, the doors of opportunity opened.
First, Trimble became vice president, quantitative developer at a hedge fund company. Four years later, he was hired by Morgan Stanley.
“Baruch’s MFE program not only provided me with the background and tools necessary to succeed as a financial quantitative analyst, it provided the opportunity to begin a new career on day one,” Trimble said. “If I have been able to do it, anyone can.”
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