Each year, hundreds of Buffalo State student-athletes progress from the campus buildings of the University and into the professional world, ready to build incredible careers and impact positive change in their communities. Here are their stories.
 
Mac Wood '19 was a four year member of the Buffalo State men's ice hockey team and now is pursuing his career as the Assistant Vice President of Global Product Research at Citi Global Market Inc.

"It's a new venture for me which is pretty exciting", Wood said. "It has been a nice transition from the smaller company I was at before Citi. It was a bit of a transition at first, but it's been good for me."
 
 
Wood was an economics major at Buffalo State with a focus on finance. His post-graduate route was very typical for someone in his field.

"I took the prototypical route actually. My senior year I went to one of the Career Fairs at Buff State and met with a couple different companies and ended up with an internship opportunity", Wood stated.
 

"I started interning about two months after the fair at Emerge Capital Management. It was a small firm, so I started in their marketing and operations side and then once I graduated, they ended up bringing me on full-time… What was nice about working in a smaller company was you got to wear a lot of different hats. I was lucky in the way that you would come in and everyday would be different and I could get a ton of different experiences", Wood added.
 
After three years of working his way up to managerial role, Wood was ready to take the next step in his career and found his way to Citi.

"It was a natural progression from graduation to where I am now."
 
Wood's typical day-to-day is very structured compared to most career paths.

"What we do in my role on the global product team is consolidating the research reports our analysts are putting out and providing them to our clients. Our clients are hedge funds, large RRAs, and other institutions… we are also looking to develop other products for our clients", Wood stated.
 
 
In a career that can sometimes be complex, Wood has loved the opportunity he has been given and has taken full advantage of learning every chance he can.

"Little steps and promotions are rewarding. Climbing up the ladder is always rewarding and moving into new positions with more responsibilities", Wood exclaimed.

"One of the cooler things was hiring a couple of interns. That was new for me and bringing them on and putting them through a summer role and seeing them progress and learn through their projects was pretty rewarding and is certainly something I would like to get going on."
 
Along with his accomplishments off the ice, Wood was a huge asset for the Bengals on the ice. Over his four year career, Wood tallied 40 goals and 37 assists to earn his spot at 13^th on the all-time Buffalo State scoring list with 77 points. Following his senior campaign, he earned third team All-SUNYAC honors and was named Buffalo State's Male Senior Scholar-Athlete Award at the annual Benji Awards. He was also a nominee for Male Athlete of the Year and the Hube Coyer Award for Outstanding Career. Wood also earned recognition for his academics being named as an American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA) Scholar All-American.
 
 
"I wouldn't have traded my time at Buffalo State for anything. I had an awesome time, made a ton of friends, and a ton of relationships off the ice I still have today."
 
Being a student-athlete was one of the primary reasons that Wood came to Buffalo State. Striving to be the best on and off the ice is something he took very seriously and coming to Buffalo gave him the best opportunity to showcase that.

"There was a precedent set that studies that do matter and you're not here just to play hockey. I always took my studies very seriously."

"There was a ton of great core memories. I think the best part was the relationships that I gained through coming to Buff State. The studies are good and move you to where you want to go. But they only carry you so far, same with hockey. Those were awesome but it's the relationships and memories that certainly carry a lot more", Wood added.
 
 
Wood gave one final message to the student-athlete population at Buffalo State:

"Reach out to people that have gone through the program and are possibly in the same field. Get in an industry you want to be in. If you can build those relationships outside of everything that is one thing I wish I did a little more. Also, enjoy your time. Life comes at you quick, and those four years go fast. Appreciate it. Enjoy these times with teammates and friends at college."

Wood also referenced the final scene from the TV show The Office from Andy Bernard: "I wish there was a way to know you're in "the good old days", before you've actually left them."
 
GO BENGALS!


If you know of any Buffalo State Athletics alumni that are accomplishing great things in their professional lives that would be worthy of a feature story, please contact Director of Athletic Communications Mitchell Binda at bindamw@buffalostate.edu!