Renee Muco ’01 M.S. ’01 Excels in Mastering Tech Challenges

Growing up in Barbados, Renee Muco ’01 M.S. ’01 was confident in her STEM abilities. “I was achieving at high levels in physics, mathematics, chemistry and other STEM disciplines,” she says. “I enjoyed studying these subjects.”

She was less sure of what a career in STEM might look like, however. Fortunately, her father introduced her to professionals in a few different engineering disciplines that broadened her thinking. Ultimately, she decided on computer engineering. “It was the 90s, and computers were considered the new frontier,” she says.

Although she had never traveled outside of the Caribbean, Muco applied to several colleges in the U.S. and Canada, as well as to The University of the West Indies. Stevens ended up on her list quite by accident. “One of my friends received two information packets from Stevens and shared one with me,” she says with a laugh. “Before that, I had never heard of Stevens!”

Muco’s first visit to Castle Point came after she had already chosen to attend Stevens. “It was summertime,” she recalls. “The campus and the New York City skyline were so beautiful. It was breathtaking.”

She began her Stevens education armed with 18 transferable credits from her A-level high school studies as well as a partial scholarship earned through the highly competitive Barbados Government Exhibition Program. Muco embraced campus life, diving into her studies and the university’s co-op program and getting involved in a variety of student activities including Eta Kapp Nu, Theta Kappa Epsilon, Tau Beta Pi, the National Society of Black Engineers and the Glee Club. “I loved singing,” she reminisces. “I remember when the Glee Club’s 40th anniversary concert had to be held in the gym because the audience was too large for the auditorium in Edwin A. Stevens Hall.”

It was in her first year at Stevens that Muco discovered a new way of thinking about computer engineering. “Every first-year student at Stevens has to take a few humanities courses,” she points out. “I decided to take a philosophy class. As I learned about the foundations of problem solving, I started to realize that philosophy has interesting implications for programming in that there has to be logic to every argument to ensure it will stand. I took another philosophy course, and then another. After a while it made sense to complete a philosophy minor.”

The Stevens curriculum coupled with the co-op program prepared Muco for success. “A Stevens degree teaches you to be resilient and to push forward to reach your goals,” she says. “The co-op program opened my eyes to what exists in my industry in terms of careers. It gave me opportunities to try out different jobs to see what they would be like in reality.”

When Muco graduated, earning both her bachelor’s degree in computer engineering (with a philosophy minor) and M.S. in management in 2001, financial services was not viewed as a leading destination for computer engineers. “People weren’t making the connection between the two at the time,” she says. “But technology was increasingly powering everything financial. These institutions needed engineers to build the software that enables people to invest the way we do today.”

Muco began as a software engineer with Lehman Brothers in 2001 and continued at Barclays Capital from 2008 to 2011, when she joined BlackRock as a technical program manager. “Over time I switched from programming to project and program management,” she says. “I found strength in problem solving, in helping businesses solve challenges through technology. I am able to translate between what a business needs and what technology can provide.”

For nearly 14 years, Muco and her BlackRock teams led complex, cross-functional programs to ensure that systems are resilient while also building new products and solutions for internal businesses. During that time, she earned a certificate in leading strategic growth from Columbia Business School and became a Registered Scrum Master. Muco is also a certified Project Management Professional (PMP).

In January 2025, Muco began a new role as head of technology and transformation for BlackRock’s Legal & Compliance Department. Her focus will be on increasing the department’s operational efficiency and scale and on reducing regulatory and reputational risk through technology. She is looking forward to learning more about this aspect of the business and, of course, having new problems to solve.

Muco, who attends Stevens events and Alumni Weekend whenever possible, believes that taking advantage of everything Stevens offers helped her build a rewarding career. “There are so many opportunities for involvement and for growing your own network,” she says. “You never know what you will discover in your industry, your discipline, or in yourself by exploring those things.”