Title: Supervisor, Pooled Vehicle Administration, William Blair
Co-chair of Coalition of Minorities in Business
Why did you want to pursue an MBA?
I received my undergraduate degree from Loyola University Chicago, where I double majored in Finance and Economics with a minor in Black World Studies. Advancing my education was always important to me and I knew I wanted more after graduating from college. I also wanted to gain more professional experience to narrow down my interests before taking on a MBA or studying for a professional certificate. I thought about professional certifications such as CFA or CPA but ultimately decided to pursue an MBA to gain a more diverse skill set. I sought to be a ‘Jill of all trades’—even with a specialty in one area, I wanted to engage with individuals from various departments and have a solid foundation to have intelligent conversations. I chose to pursue a Part-Time MBA Program to continue to gain experience while enhancing my skill set and developing the tools to be a more effective leader.
Why did you choose Chicago Booth?
University of Chicago is highly ranked for Economics, which has always attracted me to the school. I knew I didn’t want to go anywhere else after meeting people from various areas of the school (the Admissions team, current students, alumni) and ultimately learning more about Booth’s philosophy on education. The Pay-it-Forward culture was prevalent, everyone was extremely friendly, but they were also very upfront about the rigor of the program and that drew me to Booth even more.
I also appreciated the flexibility of the program in the sense that you can set your own pace in terms of class-load. For me, it has been extremely helpful as I've just transitioned to a new job so I've been able to take a step back on school work.
Tell us about your favorite classes
I didn’t think the concepts I would learn in class would have an immediate impact on my life (both personal and professional). Starting from Day One, I was able to apply what I learned to my job the very next day. Despite being someone who is naturally analytical, I love all the qualitative classes that I’ve taken thus far. One of my favorites in this area is Diversity in Organizations with Professor Jane Risen. Just going through her course, hearing different perspectives, and applying them to my own life was extremely insightful and helpful. I am an African-American woman, but I also have some everyday privileges that I didn’t necessarily think about before taking the course.
Another class I really enjoyed was Leadership Practicum with Professor Chris Collins. I learned to take an introspective look at myself to evaluate my strengths and weaknesses as a leader and think about how I present myself to others. It helped me put myself in others' shoes when having difficult conversations and taught me a lot of coaching techniques, which I still utilize often when I'm interacting with my team, family, and friends.