Carlos Balderrama worked in the Oil & Gas Industry as an Engineer before deciding he wanted to build his business and financial acumen through an MBA degree. During this interview, Balderrama spoke about his decision to pursue an MBA, how and why he chose UT-McCombs, and advice for prospective MBA students on how to successfully get into business school
MBASchooled: What did you do before business school, and why did you choose to apply to business school?
Prior to business school, I worked in the Oil & Gas industry. I have a B.S in Petroleum Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin and have dedicated my career to O&G. Upon graduation, I went to work for Kinder Morgan where I held engineering positions in Production Operations and Drilling & Workover Operations. The last half of my career I spent in Private Equity-backed Exploration & Production start-ups.
Most recently, I transitioned into a Business Development role leading the Acquisition & Divestiture efforts for the company. As part of the Management Team, I was involved with boardroom discussions and the decision-making process which in turn exposed me to the finances of the company. However, I realized that even though I was familiar with the financial reports, I did not understand the mechanics behind it and could not contribute to the discussion as I would have liked.
As a result, I decided to pursue an MBA with a concentration in Finance. Upon completion of my MBA, I will be able to merge my engineering and financial knowledge and contribute to strategic decision making as a well-rounded professional.
MBASchooled: What were the most important criteria to you when selecting MBA Programs to apply for?
First, I created a value system where I assigned points to categories like cost, faculty/staff, alumni network, recruiting statistics, class size, location, student organizations and career programs/fellowships. It was important to me to narrow down the list and carefully analyze all the options. Second, I evaluated my interactions with the admissions office and current students during my coffee chats and recruiting events. I think this two-step process was really helpful as it guided me to conduct a lot of research and to have sufficient touch-points to get to know the programs very well.
MBASchooled: Why did you ultimately choose UT-McCombs?
I chose the Texas McCombs MBA because it provided me with the best value by far. The university network is one of the largest in the world, the faculty and staff are genuinely vested in the students, the MBA community is extremely collaborative and finally, Texas McCombs is a target school for Investment Banks located in Houston which is my intended industry upon graduation.
MBASchooled: Talk about the experience so far. What are some of your favorite parts of the MBA experience so far?
My favorite part has been getting to know my classmates either virtually or in socially-distanced events. It has been an enriching experience to meet so many people from different backgrounds and who have important aspirations for their post-mba careers. Another aspect of the experience I’ve enjoyed so far is the close knit community feel of the program. With a class size of about 260 students it is the perfect size to foster collaboration and strong, long-lasting relationships among the students.
MBASchooled: COVID-19 has impacted everything, especially higher education. What has the MBA experience been like so far with respect to COVID-19?
I have to recognize the amazing efforts by the faculty and staff at Texas McCombs for making our MBA experience the best it could be under the circumstances. McCombs runs a Hybrid program that allows students to attend in-person classes while keeping the classroom below 40% capacity. The classrooms are equipped with cutting-edge technology making the zoom sessions almost seamless with respect to the in-person class. One aspect that I like about the virtual environment is that it is easier to attend to office hours and schedule meetings since you do not need to move and can easily join a new meeting in a matter of seconds. So far, I am happy with the Hybrid experience and the time saving and convenience benefits it brings to the MBA life.
MBASchooled: What has it been like to build relationships with your classmates?
Although we have limited in-person contact we’ve been lucky to have many opportunities to chat via zoom and get to know each other. Our class is connected through Microsoft Teams and we have channels for academics, student organizations, target industry and hobbies. Additionally, for the first semester we are divided into cohorts of about 60 students each and we are assigned a study group of 6 students within the cohort. This helps build relationships a lot faster since you are constantly interacting with the same people. During the in-person classes we also get a chance to have socially-distanced conversations during our breaks.
MBASchooled: It’s a bit more challenging for prospective MBA students to get to know MBA programs this year as a result of COVID-19. When MBA applicants are engaging with schools, what should they be looking to learn?
Prospective students should be looking to learn about the school’s policies with regards to in-person classes and the impact this policy has on student organizations and the MBA life in general. Equally as important is understanding the effect of Covid policies on recruiting processes and networking with potential employers. MBA programs generally have a myriad of resources available to students and depending on your preferences some could be affected by Covid policies, therefore prospective students need to make sure they will have access to what they consider important in their MBA journey.
MBASchooled: What advice do you have, for students who are considering applying or applying to MBA programs right now?
My advice for prospective students is to carefully consider the value proposition of the MBA and try to have a clear path of how they plan to spend the next 2 years in order to reach their post-MBA goals. It is fine to use the MBA to explore if you are unsure about what you want to do in the future, but at least make sure you understand the different paths that would be available to you.
Finally, do not let COVID-19 policies or the fact that part of your MBA might be virtual get in the way of what you planned for your life, you still get the same MBA level education taught by the same professors and you still get access to the same recruiting resources to help you connect with potential employers. At the end of the day, your top priority is to prepare yourself for your next role and advance your career, an MBA will help you get there regardless of whether it is in-person or in a virtual-setting.
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