Expanded Resources for Veterans in Booth’s MBA

The University of Chicago celebrated our military-affiliated students on Friday with an annual recognition event and keynote speech from alumnus Eric Gleacher, MBA ’67, who was formerly in the Marine Corps and has established a permanent scholarship fund for veterans seeking an MBA from Chicago Booth. The formation of a new university-wide Office for Military-Affiliated Communities was also announced this week, serving to amplify the range of programs, support services, and partnerships already in place.

Chicago Booth has a history of commitment to diversity and inclusion that values applicants from all walks of life and industry backgrounds, including those coming from military services around the globe. Booth recently doubled its contributions under the Yellow Ribbon Program, part of the Post-9/11 GI Bill. Qualifying veterans now receive up to $30,000 in benefits from the school. This is a significant expansion of Booth’s participation in the program, which has been in place at the school since 2008.

Our Armed Forces Group (AFG) is very active in supporting veterans throughout every stage of their MBA journey, even during the admissions process. AFG provides active MBA application mentorship and various resources to veterans who are interested in applying to Chicago Booth. Consisting of Booth students who have served or are currently serving in the armed forces of their respective countries, AFG strives to build a strong professional network of Booth alumni and current students with previous military experience. The group welcomes new members and their families to the Chicago area through a variety of social activities. They also help students through the recruiting process with career coaching, resume workshops, and interview preparation.

Last year, the University partnered with the Army Research Laboratory (ARL) to establish ARL Central, a regional headquarters for research and technology development based at the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. The joint venture allowed ARL researchers to interact in new ways with leading scientists and researchers at the University of Chicago and other collaborating universities in the areas of materials and data sciences. Some faculty have focused their studies on improving healthcare for veterans. For instance, professor Robert L. Grossman is collaborating with the Boston VA to develop a system that will allow better analysis of one of the nation’s largest datasets for cancer genomics and clinical data.

The undergraduate college at the University has also increased its efforts in recruitment, enrollment, and support of veterans and their dependents through partnerships with the Posse Foundation. The foundation has a program that prepares veterans to begin their undergraduate education and provides mentoring throughout their experience.

Learn about all of the university-wide resources available to veterans at Chicago Booth and hear from our current Booth students in the Armed Forces Group. The application fee is waived for all military-affiliated candidates, so start your application today »