After starting her career at a small but fast growing technology company, Sam Yoder (Kelley, ‘22) decided to pursue an MBA to broaden her business knowledge and leadership toolkit. Sam chose Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business, with aspirations of pivoting to a career at a large technology company. During this interview, Sam spoke about her journey to applying to business school, what stood out to her about Kelley’s MBA program, and her advice to prospective MBA applicants for navigating the MBA admissions process.
MBASchooled: What did you do before business school, and why did you choose to apply?
Before business school, I was working at a small technology startup called Emplify, where we measured and consulted on employee engagement. It was an incredible experience – I wore tons of hats and learned so much in a short time. At about year three, my clients started bringing me problems I didn’t know how to solve. That, along with some leadership changes internally, was my trigger to look into business school and figure out how to fill in some of my knowledge gaps.
MBASchooled: When did you find out when you got admitted? How did you navigate your decision process if you were evaluating multiple schools?
I went through the whole process relatively quickly – started studying for the GMAT in September, took it in November, applied second round to all my schools, and heard back in March. It was a whirlwind. Within that, I only applied to schools I would legitimately go to. My husband and I had already decided we didn’t want to live out west, so I didn’t waste the time or money networking or applying to schools in Washington or California. I also only applied to schools with outstanding academics so that was also a non-issue.
Once I had all the decisions in hand, it came down to two big things. First, which student body had I most enjoyed meeting and spending time around? For me, that was Kelley. Second, which school could I go to with the least amount of debt? For me, that was also Kelley.
MBASchooled: What were the most important questions you asked in order to help make your admissions decision?
- Where is it located?
- Where geographically do their alumni end up?
- What are the dominant industries for internships? For full time roles?
- How much will this cost me?
- Who are the notable alumni? In what industry are they concentrated?
- Are there any alumni in my current network from this school? Do I respect the work they’re doing?
- How diverse is the student body and subsequent alumni base?
MBASchooled: What sources of information (ex: people, resources, websites, students) did you evaluate when making your admissions decision?
I set up calls with current students, read articles like this one to learn about the student experience, and looked at the US News and World Report as well as websites like Poets & Quants. I also had a really influential mentor who had been to business school years ago and helped me talk through all the options. He brought up schools I hadn’t considered and helped me think through positives and negatives once I had my offers in hand.
MBASchooled: After spending a semester at Kelley, what’s something that you now know about Kelley that you wish you knew when you applied ?
I really value my professors. My classmates are great resources, but I expected that. I didn’t expect how much I would learn from my professors’ industry and academic experience.
MBASchooled: Who did you talk to that was most helpful in learning information to help you make a decision? What questions did you ask?
First, current students. They are living your potential future life and they will give you the best perspective. Ask them everything you can think of:
- What’s your favorite class?
- What does experiential learning look like at your school?
- What’s something you’ve learned from a classmate?
- What clubs have been most influential in your experience?
- How has the school responded to external social events?
- What’s living in [insert town/city] like?
Second, people who know you. For me, this was my husband. I recognize not all MBAs are married, but if my husband was not on board with wherever I wanted to go, it was going to be a tougher experience for both of us. I took him with me to campus visits when possible. I discussed conversations I had with current students and articles I was finding. He knows me so well and was able to add insight into all of my decision making steps. He deferred to my intuition, but he was invaluable in helping me think through all the options.
MBASchooled: Oftentimes, the word “culture” gets thrown around when talking about MBA programs. Can you characterize the culture at Kelley? Can you share an example of an experience that you think personifies what this means?
I love questions like this! Here’s a great example.
I’m sitting in a joint Marketing/Strategy class, and we started talking about a case written by my professors discussing Bevel, the grooming products brand specifically targeted toward People of Color. A couple of things happened in the class that made it stand out. First, my Irish strategy professor and Portuguese marketing professor are such good buddies that they had decided months previously they wanted to write a case study together specifically focused on bringing more diversity into our materials. Love it.
As future leaders in the business world, continuing to keep diversity and inclusion front of mind is paramount to me. Second, my classmate who used to work in engineering for the soap industry and my classmate who used to work in sales for the government were some of the biggest contributors to the conversation. A huge benefit of an MBA program is interacting with highly intelligent professionals from all sorts of fields to broaden your own perspective. This happens for me on a daily basis.
When I think of the Kelley culture, I think of people from vastly different backgrounds who get to geek out together on how to become better business professionals and have fun at the same time.
MBASchooled: Now that you’ve been at Kelley for a semester, is there a specific moment or highlight where you felt confident that you made the right decision?
There are points in business school that are challenging for everyone. I’m reminded why I chose Kelley every time someone posts in our GroupMe that they need help, whether it’s help with accounting or help moving into their new apartment, and immediately five people are ready and willing. It’s very Midwestern that way. Alumni, students, faculty – everyone is willing to lend a hand when asked.
MBASchooled: What advice do you have for admitted students on how they can make the best decision?
Rankings only matter to a certain extent. Once you have your acceptances in hand, pick the school that fits your goals and houses the people you clicked with most. Prestige is nice, but it doesn’t really matter at 11:30pm on a Tuesday and you’re trying to finish your operations homework. At that point, you need a few friends to help you out.
MBASchooled: What advice do you have for admitted students on how they can prepare for their MBA experience?
Hold your preconceived notions loosely. Go into school willing to look into industries, roles, locations, or clubs you didn’t consider. This is an incredible time to explore and network. Use the “student card” to get meetings you may not have had access to previously. Start screenshotting job descriptions or internship descriptions that look interesting to you and determine why they look interesting. Start figuring out what you want to explore to set yourself up for success when you get to campus. Getting an MBA is a season of great self-discovery, if you allow it to be.