Ben Pham Roodman, a math major who minored in economics and computer science and concentrated in scientific computing, is starting a career at the intersection of finance and social impact. He joins several Fords working for Public Finance Management (PFM), a public finance group offering consulting services to public entities like local governments, universities, hospitals, and transportation companies.
“I believe what inspired me to accept this job over something in the private sector was my Peace, Justice, and Equity Fellowship from the CPGC,” said Roodman. “ Through the fellowship, I worked at a nonprofit housing trust that was, among a plethora of activities, accumulating properties in Kensington, Philadelphia, [in order] to relinquish [them] to community control, as a way of combating gentrification. I learned about the ecosystem of municipalities, nonprofits, and the communities they all serve, and decided that public sector was where I preferred to be,” Roodman said.
Roodman developed a passion for finance through his involvement with the Economics Department’s Microfinance and Impact Investing Initiative, classes on impact investing, and exposure to the professional finance world through his studies with Assistant Professor of Economics Shannon Mudd. He then discovered PFM on Handshake, a career-search website provided by Haverford’s CCPA. The math major feels confident that PFM offers great training and skill-building opportunities, along with a sense of purpose and future career options to choose from.
“Where They’re Headed” is a blog series chronicling the post-collegiate plans of recent Haverford graduates.