Melanie Waitzer

Melanie Waitzer was ready for a change. After working in the non-profit fundraising space for eight years, the Virginia-native was ready for a new opportunity. With the help of Goizueta’s Full-Time MBA program, Melanie quickly developed the skillset she needed to achieve her goals. “I feel like I have had incredible experiences in the MBA program,” Melanie says. “It has completely changed the way I think, and I look at everything through a business lens now. I just see the world completely differently.”

While Melanie enjoyed working in the fundraising space and building relationships with various community members, she wanted to pivot her career to finance or consulting. “Knowing that I was coming from a totally qualitative background with no quantitative training or experience, it was really important for me to take as many finance classes as possible,” she says. “I also got very close with the different finance professors who helped me way beyond the classroom, and I also really tried to leverage our Career Center. I am just so grateful for all of those opportunities.”

Beyond the classroom, Melanie has also found a supportive community willing to help her make the career transition. From her cohort to alumni, her most impactful experiences at Goizueta have been the lasting relationships she has built. “Goizueta is small but mighty,” she says. “We have an incredibly robust alumni base all over the world who have been incredibly successful, and they want to make sure that the next generation of Goizueta students are also successful as well. I think that is really what makes it so special.” 

Melanie’s determination and hard work paid off as she’ll be working full-time at Goldman Sachs post-graduation “I would have never been able to get a job in any finance company,” she says. “[The MBA] has been pivotal in making me be able to transition careers.”