Full Time MBA

Until this semester, my role at industry events was simple. I showed up, listened, and found a good moment to ask the speakers a question. This time, I was on the other side of the podium, and I learned that the part the audience never sees is most of the work. The event had three players. Ohio State’s Center of Operational Excellence, or COE, hosted it. Four speakers from Cardinal Health came to talk about different topics. And the Supply Chain Association Club, which I lead as president, helped COE with logistics and with bringing students into the room.

A fall break trip to the Great Smoky Mountains became more than just a hiking adventure. It was a chance to strengthen friendships with international MBA classmates, explore new places, and appreciate how the Fisher MBA experience brings together people from different backgrounds who share similar goals and ambitions.

I love travelling, and having visited 16 states in the U.S., I was tempted to use fall break to explore somewhere new, especially as some of my classmates were planning a hiking trip to the Great Smoky Mountains. But after a demanding first block of my second MBA year, I realized I needed something else: time to slow down and reset.

One of the key traits of successful business schools is how they encourage and support students in attending networking events. Fisher’s Office of Career Management and the MBA Student Council encouraged us to take part in these opportunities. My experience took me from the Ohio Union to Los Angeles for the National Black MBA Conference, then back to Columbus for a Columbus Chamber event at the Power Point. Here are my key takeaways from these three events:

Coming into my second year, I thought I knew exactly what kind of classes I belonged in. My background is in operations, I have spent a long time thinking in terms of processes, efficiency, and systems. So when I saw a course called New Product Management (Taught by Prof. Scott Griffin) on the list of electives, my first instinct was to scroll right past it. It sounded like marketing. It sounded like conceptualizing and envisioning and commercializing, words that felt completely foreign to how I was used to thinking. I was fairly convinced I would be utterly out of my depth.

Last year, I attended the National Black MBA Association (NBMBAA) Conference in Houston as an MBA student focused largely on recruiting. I was thinking about which companies to meet, how to perfect my elevator pitch, and how to turn conversations with recruiters into opportunities. It was a mentally and physically draining experience, largely because I was not prepared for the sheer number of companies and students who would be at the conference. This year, I returned to NBMBAA in Los Angeles with a different perspective.

Before starting my MBA, I had already had some exposure to consulting-style work through pro bono projects. I enjoyed working with organizations, understanding their problems, and developing recommendations. But this summer, during my internship at stradajī, I experienced something different: I was able to work almost like a consultant inside a real business.

This summer, I had the opportunity to intern with a global consulting firm, based out of their Boston office. The internship started toward the end of May and ran through July 31st, and looking back now, those ten weeks feel like they packed in a year's worth of learning and living.