After gaining industry experience at J.P. Morgan, Umang Khetan approached his PhD research like a founder—using curiosity, independence, and an entrepreneurial mindset to turn complex financial questions into impactful work.
Thinking like a founder—in a PhD program
When experience turns into questions
Before he ever wrote a research paper, Umang Khetan was working inside the system he now studies. After earning degrees in finance and economics from the University of Mumbai and the Indian Institute of Management, he joined J.P. Morgan, where he spent nearly five years navigating the realities of global finance. But the deeper he got, the more questions surfaced.
“I felt like I had gained quite a bit of practical experience on how the financial industry works,” he says. “And it was a good time for me to start taking a more academic approach… and build on that industry insight.” That turning point led him to the finance PhD program at the Tippie College of Business.
Finding a program that sees potential, not just pedigree
Not every PhD program values nontraditional paths. Tippie did. What stood out wasn’t just the research—it was the willingness to invest in someone with a different background and perspective.
“Tippie placed its trust in me,” he says. “I will forever be grateful for that.”
That trust came with something equally important: freedom—the ability to explore ideas, test directions, and define his own research path.
Studying the system most people never see
Most people interact with the financial system without thinking twice about it—until something goes wrong. Umang’s research focuses on that space: the hidden mechanics behind financial markets and institutions. From mortgages to foreign exchange to derivatives, he studies how banks and financial intermediaries allocate capital and manage risk—and what happens when that system is strained.
“My main interest has been to try and understand these risks better, and document how to institutions manage them,” he explains. “What happens when people withdraw deposits from banks? How do banks continue to make loans—and who steps in when they can’t?”
Those questions sit at the center of his work.
Where finance, business, and policy collide
While the research is technical, the implications are anything but. Businesses depend on financial systems for access to capital. When those systems falter, the effects ripple quickly—and widely. “Being able to deal with financing disruptions lies at the core of sound corporate financial management,” he says.
His work connects three critical layers of the economy—financial institutions, businesses, and policymakers—helping each better understand the risks and decisions shaping the others.
The advantage of space to think
Coming from Mumbai, Iowa City offered a completely different pace—and a valuable one.
“I felt quite at home very quickly,” he says. With fewer distractions and more time to focus, the environment became an asset. “Our most important resource is time,” he explains. “And the more time we are able to devote to our research, the better it is.”
That combination—time, support, and access to resources—allowed him to go deeper, ask better questions, and build more meaningful work.
Building a research agenda from the ground up
A PhD doesn’t come with a finished roadmap. Over time, Umang’s ideas evolved—from broad curiosity to a focused research agenda centered on financial institutions and risk. “A big part of a PhD is just developing capabilities and skills and then using them over time,” he says. It’s a process of iteration—testing ideas, refining them, and building something that holds up.
Why a PhD works like a startup
Ask him what defines the PhD experience, and the answer is clear: ownership. “I do think that a PhD is largely an entrepreneurial venture,” he says. There are no constant checkpoints. No one is telling you exactly what to do next. There’s just the expectation that you’ll create something new. “You have a lot of time given to you, but you're not monitored in the same sense…and that's why a big part of our output is self-driven.”
Success comes down to how you use that freedom—how you take initiative, push ideas forward, and stay committed over time. “Tippie will give you everything you need,” he says. “But ultimately, we have to do great work.”
What comes next
After completing his PhD, Umang joins the University of Chicago Booth School of Business as an assistant professor of finance. There, he plans to continue building on the research foundation he developed at Tippie—focusing on financial institutions and explaining complex systems in more intuitive ways.
It’s the next step in a journey defined not by a fixed path, but by the willingness to build one.