Full-Time MBA Student Profile John DeChellis, ’16
Senior Associate, Strategy&, New York
Hometown: Vero Beach, FL
Education: Columbia University, Bachelor of Arts in Area Studies - East Asian Studies
Before Booth: Senior Consultant, Strategy&, New York
2015 Internship: Private Equity Intern, Kinsale Capital Partners, Chicago; CMO, TripWeave (my NVC team’s startup), Chicago
Jon DeChellis: 00:03
What I respect is the opportunity to learn how to think strategically, to really dig into what's going on at the ground level, and to be able to ask the right questions. Before coming to Booth, I spent the last eight years in New York City for undergrad and then working in the city as a general management consultant.
Jon DeChellis: 00:19
The Chicago Approach reflects the level of critical inquiry that happens in a classroom. One of the most inspiring aspects of this school is the professors' ability to encourage discovery and consideration of different viewpoints to kind of bring out the new insights. I want to be an informed leader, to be an executive and maintain that long-term vision, but also have the ability to get down in the weeds.
Jon DeChellis: 00:40
Getting down to the data and the real assumptions behind particular ideas really helps prepare you for the world that we'll face after graduation. The art collection here at Booth, I think, is one of the secret treasures of the campus here, and actually has a reputation that's quite renowned around the world.
Jon DeChellis: 00:59
It represents the multidimensional nature of this school. You come in expecting one thing, and you're pleasantly surprised to find, like, oh wow, this organization actually has 12 other sides. I hope to leave Booth with the ability to ask the right questions through that process of critical inquiry to bring out new insights.
Favorite Professor
Professor Bob Topel teaches Microeconomics as I like to imagine I would teach a subject. He is adamant about making sure we fundamentally understand the principles he is teaching.
Favorite Thing to Do in Chicago
Going to Stanley’s in Lincoln Park on Sundays for live band karaoke. I am pretty certain it's the closest thing I will ever come to being in a band.