Biography
Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? I’m most proud of the work we did on Welcome Weekend 2017. Chairing such a huge event is a big undertaking, and the entire weekend went incredibly well. Welcome Weekend is a great opportunity to bring new students into the Goizueta family while convincing undecided students that this is the place for them. I’m proud of this in particular because it involved almost every single person from my 180-person class in a volunteer or leadership capacity.
What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? When I was brought onboard the Annual Fund team at Rice, young alumni and student giving rates weren’t ideal. Along with two other staff members, I spent my two years there focusing on these alumni and future alumni populations to increase the rate at which they supported their alma mater financially. By the time I left, both numbers were at all-time highs. This was a total team effort, and I’m really proud of what we were able to accomplish as a team of staff and alumni and student volunteers.
What was your favorite MBA Course? Last semester, I took a class called Business and Society. It focuses on the ways in which business as we know it can be used to solve social problems. In simplest terms, it’s a bit about corporate social responsibility. As someone who came from a nonprofit background before business school, I really loved this class. It was refreshing to hear discussions from a room full of students who had ideas about how the corporate world could be leveraged to better the world as a whole, and it made me hopeful for the future.
Why did you choose this business school? There were a lot of reasons, but the people at the school really sold me. In my opinion, you can tell everything you need to know about a place or a group of people within your first couple of interactions – and every single one I had with Goizueta was positive. Even after I was admitted and still deciding, everybody was so helpful with my last-minute questions and concerns. Basically, I viewed it like this: a top business school is a top business school, and you’re going to get a good job when you finish a top MBA program – so this decision is really about the people you want to spend two years with and then be associated with for the rest of your life. I definitely made the right decision.
What is your best piece advice to an applicant hoping to get into your school’s MBA program? Be yourself, and remember that this is a two-way street. When you’re interviewing at Goizueta (or anywhere else), it’s as much about the school getting to know you as it is about you getting to know the school. Don’t be afraid to ask tough questions to really get a good feel for the place. It ain’t cheap, so you want somewhere that you’re able to be your authentic self.
What is the biggest myth about your school? The biggest myth is that everybody knows everybody – and it is 100% true. My class is 180 people, and I know everyone’s name and at least one thing about everyone. Goizueta brags about our small community (trust me, if you’ve looked at our school, you’ve heard about it), but it really isn’t just all talk. Having such a close-knit community is amazing, and I couldn’t imagine being at a business school where I didn’t know everyone in my graduating class.
Which MBA classmate do you most admire? Hannah Wilson. Hannah is an MBA/MPH student, and I truly don’t understand how she has time in the day to do everything that she does while STILL being social and fun. She is so incredibly passionate about the things that matter most in this world, and I can’t wait to tell everyone she is my friend when she becomes famous for saving the world.
Who most influenced your decision to pursue business in college? I started undergrad on the pre-med track. Once I finally decided that I hated literally all of my science classes, I decided to pursue a career in higher education. Though I loved the work and the environment, I felt like I wanted something more challenging. Part of my job in higher education fundraising involved meeting with alumni, and I was always intrigued by the alums I met with in consulting. It felt like a great fit for me, especially since I get bored at work easily. I knew I needed a business degree to get hired by a big consulting firm, though, so I came back to business school.
“If I hadn’t gone to business school, I would be…working in higher education still, possibly contemplating enrolling in a part-time higher ed PhD program.”
If you were a dean for a day, what one thing would you change about the MBA experience? The accessibility of the degree. There are a lot of really smart people out there who would be excellent MBA candidates but don’t have the ability to easily secure such huge amounts of student loans. An MBA from a top school is really expensive, and though the return on investment is almost always great, many people are limited by that upfront cost regardless.
What are the top two items on your bucket list? Be a contestant on Wheel of Fortune and live abroad for a year.
In one sentence, how would you like your peers to remember you? I want people to remember me as the funny guy who reminded them not to take everything so seriously.
What would your theme song be? “Diva” by Beyoncé.
Favorite vacation spot: London
Hobbies? Watching the entire 30 Rock series on loop.