Catching Up With ... Tyler Chen (CMS Men's Soccer Class of 2020)
As a follow-up to our Championship Memories Saturday feature, where current CMS student-athletes look back on the championships they have won during their collegiate athletic careers, we will be occasionally be conducting a question and answer session with recent alumni from those title teams, as they too discuss their memories, as well as how their experiences as student-athletes have helped prepare them for life after college.
Our first CMS Alumni q+a is with Tyler Chen, one of the members of the CMS men's soccer team which won the SCIAC title and reached the Round of 16 of the NCAA Tournament last year (Saturday's feature story). Chen had a key role as an outside defender and outside midfielder for the Stags, contributing to a defense that ranked No. 1 in the nation his junior year with only four goals allowed. He earned both a bachelor's degree in economics and a master's degree in finance in four years from Claremont McKenna as part of the Robert Day School, and recently began his new career as an investment banking analyst for Deutsch Bank in San Francisco.
Read below to catch up with Tyler Chen, his memories of his CMS soccer experience, and his plans for life after college.
CMS: How much did going out by winning the SCIAC Championship your senior year mean to you personally?
TC: I think it really encapsulated the entire college soccer experience for me. Over the course of the four years, we struggled at times (sophomore year and at the end of junior year) and this was the season we finally put all the pieces together and really performed to the level that we knew we were capable of. It was a great feeling to finally win SCIAC and advance far into the NCAA tournament.
CMS: What is your favorite memory from the postseason run that you think you will always keep with you?
TC: I think my favorite part about this postseason was the camaraderie we displayed as a team on road trips and during our team bonding sessions. I loved traveling with the guys and doing fun activities outside of soccer and I definitely believe that it contributed to our chemistry on the field. The trips to San Antonio and Ohio were particularly memorable.
CMS: Now that a little time has passed, how proud are you of what you and the team were able to accomplish, especially after overcoming some adversity with the loss the year before?
TC: I'm extremely proud of our team this past year. To be the first Stags team in the last 35 years to advance to the sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament is a huge accomplishment. I am excited to see how the Stags perform over the next couple of years.
CMS: What are you doing now?
TC: Currently, I am working as an investment banking analyst for Deutsche Bank in San Francisco. I am staffed in the Financial Sponsors Group, meaning I help conduct transactions for various private equity firms' portfolio companies. I am hoping that in two years I will enter the private equity world and someday be a CFO of a small-medium size startup company.
CMS: How was Claremont McKenna able to prepare you for life after college?
TC: CMC was a great gateway for me into the world of finance. I was able to secure great internships through a strong network of connections and learn so much from our outstanding professors in my finance/econ classes. CMC has more than prepared me to succeed in the real world and I could not be more grateful for the opportunity.
CMS: What lessons did you learn from playing soccer (and/or the championship run last year) that you hope to keep with you during your professional career?
TC: One of the most important lessons that I have learned from playing soccer is that hard work is imperative to success. I will be the first one to admit that I am not the most talented player on the field, but I work extremely hard and always compete and give my all. I'll do whatever I can to ensure that I am giving my team the best chance to win. My desire to win and work hard will carry with me into my professional career as I hope to win deals and work as hard as I can for my firm.