From Undecided to Goldman Sachs: How Powerful Combinations Helped Chelsea King Thrive at RWU and Beyond

October 24, 2025By Angie Garippa '26

Senior Chelsea King applies real-world finance skills as part of the Center for Advanced Financial Education (CAFE) in the Mario J. Gabelli School of Business.

BRISTOL, R.I. -When Chelsea King arrived at Roger Williams University from Albany, N.Y., in the fall of 2022, she was excited to explore the countless opportunities ahead of her. Though initially undecided on a major, one class - Principles of Investments, taught by Yeaton Professor of Finance Michael "Doc" Melton - sparked her interest and motivation to pursue a career in finance.

"I decided that it was really interesting applying math and statistics to investments overall and I wanted to pursue that."

Entering her junior year, King declared a Financemajor and a Mathematicsminor and quickly immersed herself in opportunities to apply what she was learning in the classroom. Guided by Melton, who is also the Director of RWU's Center for Advanced Financial Education(CAFE), she accepted a spot in the student-run investment program and worked her way from analyst to managing director this past summer.

"This has definitely been an amazing experience because of how industry specific everything we do in here is," King said. "We're managing real money - it's not like a simulation or anything that you see in other courses."

Through CAFE, King gained hands-on finance training with real investment portfolios and opportunities to travel and network with industry professionals all over the world, visiting the New York Stock Exchange and firms like GAMCO and HRC Financial. When meeting with these financial leaders on Wall Street and global financial markets, she said, students got to "hear their feedback, not only on our funds, but also our presentation skills and our people skills."

Field Hockey captain Chelsea King in action, leading her team with the same drive and determination that fuel her success in the classroom.

King's leadership extends well beyond the classroom and into her extracurriculars. On the field, she is captain of the Field Hockey team and one of the most decorated athletes in program history, recently becoming the first player to reach 150 career points.

Balancing both high-level academics and athletics, King credits Melton and Field Hockey Coach Jill Reeve with helping her succeed in both arenas.

"Both Doc and my coach are very supportive of my passions. I can go to both people with anything I need," said King. "There have been times that I would go to my coach for advice on managing people in CAFE or I would go to Doc asking field hockey questions."

This past summer, King interned as a summer analyst with Goldman Sachs's Investment Management team, where her classes and CAFE experience helped her succeed in the role. "Teamwork is essential. Working in that industry, you're never alone. You always have to be double checking numbers, having the person across from you come over to look at your screen and things like that. I think teamwork is really emphasized here at Roger where we have a lot of group projects and need to ask for other people's input."

The internship confirmed her career path, and King has already accepted a full-time analyst position with Goldman Sachs after graduation in May 2026 - nearly a year in advance of earning her degree from RWU.

To future Hawks, her advice is simple. "Work hard and always do more than what is expected of you. Expectations are set to be broken. If you want to make a large impact - whether in your classroom, on the field, or in any club or program - going the extra mile will take you far."