Noah Hannula doesn’t exactly do half-measures. 

There’s his 4.0 GPA. His four years as a starter on the Metropolitan State University of Denver soccer team. His two Student Athlete of the Year awards. And now, the Provost’s Award. 

“I was always pushed to pursue excellence no matter what I do,” Hannula said. “There’s no point in doing something halfway.” 

So the Finance major with a double minor in Economics and Banking has sought out ways to excel inside the classroom and on the soccer field. 

An early passion for finance brought Hannula to his major. A self-proclaimed “numbers guy,” Hannula was drawn to finance and banking as early as grade school, when a stock-market simulation captured his imagination. 

An interest in analysis and critical thinking led him to MSU Denver’s College of Business. But his above-and-beyond approach didn’t stop there. Hannula has maintained an outstanding GPA and a spot on MSU Denver’s honor roll while volunteering, working, completing a summer internship and enjoying Colorado’s outdoors with his roommates.

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And throughout his studies, Hannula has also been a committed member of the men’s soccer team, juggling his coursework with practice and games in his position as starter and, eventually, team captain.  

 “I always want to be the best in whatever it is that I do,” he said. “I find small ways to drive myself and create competition internally to get myself to do the best I can.” 

As a student tutor in the College of Business, Hannula says, he has also learned to relish giving back. “There’s a lot of satisfaction in helping somebody else and seeing them excel,” he said. 

Has all that success gone to Hannula’s head? 

“I haven’t always been the most talented player or naturally gifted,” said Hannula, who finds parallels to his classroom career on the soccer field. Over time, he has built up a series of cumulative successes — and a future as a financial analyst. He’s accepted a full-time position with Sierra Nevada Corporation, where he completed his internship as a financial analyst last summer. 

As for his new title as Provost’s Award winner, Hannula has taken the prize in stride. “It’s obviously a huge honor,” he said. “It came as a bit of a surprise. I wasn’t expecting to win, so that always feels nice.” 

Hannula credits his professors and his teammates for keeping him grounded and helping him as he takes on new challenges as an MSU Denver graduate. 

“The reason I am where I am today is due to putting my head down and working hard,” he said. “Grinding things out. Doing the small things. Those small things eventually kind of add up.”