Students Dive Into the World of Finance

5/6/2026

A visit to the Mastercard Tech Hub in Manhattan was anything but a typical school day for upper school students in Hank Kim’s Business Dynamics class.

It was an opportunity to immerse themselves in the worlds of finance, AI and cybersecurity.

In the classroom, Kim teaches his students to “be financially literate” by sharing topical, real-world examples. “We cover a wide variety of topics, from the economy and personal finance to investments, and we also discuss the Federal Reserve and dive into politics and foreign policy and how it affects the economy,” he explained.

Senior Jake Raab plans to study business in college and is already thinking about his future in the field. “I hope this ends up being what I do for a living,” he said. “This class has only continued my interest and helped me find what niche within business I want to pursue, specifically within analytics and finance.”

At Mastercard’s state-of-the-art facilities, the group toured the Hub offices, met with experts, and learned about career mentorships and advanced digital payment technology.

“The guides gave us a good idea of what skills they're looking for in their employees and what kind of skill set they need to succeed in that business environment,” Kim said. “It was eye-opening for a lot of students to see ‘Oh, this is what the professional world is like,’ and when they hear it from real professionals in that field, it really resonates with them.”

Raab said he “enjoyed learning about consumer experience design. They walked us through the six steps that take them from idea to product, but what really stood out to me was how the ideation process stems from what the consumer wants. Namely, surveying potential customers and identifying problems to be remedied.”

Students will no doubt apply what they learned to the “Shark Tank”-like final projects they are working on now. For the assignment, students have been tasked with developing business models by pitching ideas and bringing them to fruition.

Kim said, “They have to try to get the idea approved and then get a budget for it to buy products and materials so they can sell it to our school community.”