Alumnus Came to St. John’s for a Fresh Start and Found Great Success

“We came as political refugees, pretty much with nothing in our hands/pockets, except for our education and desire to succeed and contribute,” he recalled.

In 2023, Mr. Dubrovsky retired from his long-held position as Managing Director, Chief Risk Officer, of Lazard Ltd. and Head of Global Risk Management at Lazard Asset Management, LLC. He and his global teams were responsible for all aspects of risk management at the bank and at its wholly owned asset management subsidiary. 

Despite six years of higher education at Kiev Polytechnic University, Mr. Dubrovsky had to start from scratch when he reached the US. Having an engineering and mathematics background, he initially audited one class at Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute, but realized he was not meant for that field. He decided to pursue finance and St. John’s accepted all his prior credits, enabling him to enroll in the Master of Business Administration program in Finance.

“Before I pursued finance, I started working in technology as a software engineer since I knew how to program. I spent five years working for a small technology company, as well as AT&T, before embarking on the career in finance. I elected to pursue finance while working for AT&T as a software engineer, since I couldn't afford to go full time.”

He added, “St. John’s displayed a willingness to think outside the box and take a chance on me,” noting that he lacked the physical proof for the prior credits he earned. “I had translated proof of my grades, but no physical proof of my diploma.” 

Mr. Dubrovsky attended classes at the University’s former Staten Island, NY, campus, where he found a community of like-minded international students and supportive faculty. 

After graduation, he embarked on a long and successful career in investment and financial services; he worked at JPMorgan Chase & Co., Deutsche Bank, and Credit Suisse First Boston, often serving in various senior risk management and quantitative roles across major asset classes, fixed income, equity, and derivatives. He noted that his engineering background appealed to those in upper management, who usually trusted his ability to make thoughtful decisions based on incomplete or imperfect information.

“I learned from my father, who was quite a senior engineer, that you have to treat people fairly and earn their respect, even if they work for you,” Mr. Dubrovsky explained. 

He said that Lazard approached him with an opportunity to build something from scratch. “You don’t really get too many opportunities where you are given a blank sheet of paper,” he said. “So, that was challenging. I didn’t know what I was going into, but we did it and did it well.”

Having the proper skill set is crucial for success, he observed. “You need analytical as well as soft skills. You must be persuasive and possess the ability to get things done. All of it is important. I can go into a boardroom and talk with a high-level executive, but I can also sit down with a two-year analyst and make them feel comfortable.”