The Chicago Business Fellows Program (CBF) is part of Chicago Booth’s Evening MBA and Weekend MBA Programs, designed for candidates with three years or less of full-time business experience. Learn how Julie takes advantage of Chicago Booth's flexible curriculum.

Why Chicago Booth? 

I chose Booth because of its prestige, and the collective analytical mindset of the students and faculty. Our backgrounds are diverse, but we’re also all similar when it comes to being welcoming and inclusive and having the desire to solve challenging problems. Additionally, the Part-Time MBA Program really interested me because continuing to work while receiving an education was important.

Why Chicago Business Fellows? Why was getting an MBA earlier in your career important to you?

I liked the idea of having a cohort comprised of students at similar places in their careers as me. The Chicago Business Fellows programming was tailored to where I was in my career. I was preparing to become a manager and felt that getting my MBA and being a part of the Business Fellows program would help me with the transition into my new role through developing more technical knowledge and leadership skills. I appreciate that Booth invests in early career candidates by having a well-established program specifically for us!

How have you used the flexible curriculum to maximize your time at Booth and get what you needed out of your MBA? What’s a specific example?

I appreciate that I can take classes that seem interesting in a variety of areas. I’m currently pursuing Finance and Economics concentrations because of their relevance to my career interests. However, I’ve been able to supplement those classes with courses like New Venture Strategy, Strategies and Processes of Negotiation, and Leadership at the Movies. Also, I’ve been able to take courses outside of the Evening MBA Program, such as Women as CEOs, Investors, Directors & Executives, which was only offered during the day at Booth’s Full-Time MBA campus in Hyde Park.

How have the additional professional development opportunities and social programming for Chicago Business Fellows helped you?

The professional development opportunities have helped me polish my professional and executive presence. Through Business Fellows opportunities, I’ve crafted my elevator pitch, perfected my LinkedIn, and learned how to be a career advocate. The social programming has been icing on the cake! I’ve been able to greatly expand my professional network but also make a lot of friends along the way.

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