Erik Peterson

New York University, Stern School of Business

“Army Veteran from the PNW who is passionate about skiing, coffee, and trying new food.”

Hometown: Spokane, WA

Fun Fact About Yourself: I have a plate and screws in my thumb, which I broke skiing in my backyard during the summer. My brothers and I built a homemade terrain park manufactured out of AstroTurf, PVC pipe, and dish soap.

Undergraduate School and Major: United States Military Academy at West Point – Economics

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: US Army – Fire Support Officer in 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment

What excites you the most about living in New York City and how do you see it enhancing your learning experience? It’s the best financial hub in the world and offers premier faculty, incomparable opportunities, and the perfect place to cultivate your business network.

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of NYU Stern’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? Diversity – between the two-year Full-Time, Langone Part-time, Andre Koo Tech, and Fashion & Luxury MBA Programs, Stern is full of students coming from different walks of life. Stern’s Fertitta Veterans MBA Program caters specifically to Veterans and active-duty students. It acknowledges our unique experiences and supports our transition to business school, including a summer session with early access to coursework to assist us in refreshing or building some of the quantitative fundamentals. No other schools I was interested in matched this opportunity.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at NYU Stern? Tough to pick, but I’m excited to take “Digital Currencies, Blockchains, and the Financial Services Industry.” Stern offers so many highly-regarded courses on topics that I am excited to learn more about. Business school is the perfect opportunity to broaden our business acumen before starting a new career.

What does EQ (Emotional Intelligence) mean to you and when have you seen its value in your career? Emotional intelligence is the ability to know yourself and know others. Throughout my time in the military, I led over fifty individuals. I found that discovering and inferring their motivation, fears, and values allows one to better befriend, influence, and lead them.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Marrying my wife (and convincing her to move to New York). Specific to the military, I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to deploy with the US Army’s Ranger Regiment and hope to utilize all of the skillsets I learned there in the future. I will certainly miss the excellent cohort of people I was surrounded by there.

What do you hope to do after graduation (at this point)? Investment Banking

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into NYU Stern’s MBA program? Your quantifiable achievements will speak for themselves; explain why you and NYU Stern are soulmates!

DON’T MISS: MEET NYU STERN’S MBA CLASS OF 2025