Kelly O’Brien is pursuing an MBA at the University of Rochester (Simon) with aspirations of finding a career to drive change at the intersection of tech and equity. During her MBA application process, Kelly was accepted to four schools before ultimately deciding on Simon. During this interview, Kelly spoke about why she chose Simon, and her advice to prospective MBA applicants.
Name: Kelly O’Brien
Year: 2022
Hometown: Niagara Falls, NY
Career Interests: Consulting/Internal Strategy
MBASchooled: What did you do before business school, and why did you choose to apply?
Before the MBA, I spent 6 years working in arts administration at the University of Chicago. In 2018, I left full-time work to get my master’s in Urban Studies, during which time I became fascinated by the relationship between technology and social equity. I decided to pursue my MBA to better understand the drivers of capitalism and to acquire the practical skills necessary to effect change at this intersection of tech and equity. I describe my first graduate degree as my “content degree” and the MBA as my “practical degree.”
MBASchooled: When did you find out when you got admitted? How did you navigate your decision process if you were evaluating multiple schools?
I had taken the GRE for my first master’s program, and so decided to apply Round 1 to business schools to maximize my chances of getting in, as opposed to sitting for the GMAT and applying later. All of my applications were submitted by mid-October 2019 and I started receiving acceptances a few weeks later.
I got into four out of the five programs I applied to and received compelling offers from each. The real game changer was Simon’s Scholarship Weekend. Scholarship Weekend is an invitation-only event that takes place at the end of February where admitted students compete for additional scholarship funding. The top prize is the Fielding Leadership Fellowship, a full tuition scholarship that comes with a small living stipend. I had already been leaning toward Simon because of the school’s commitment to diversity and the rigor of the STEM-designated degree, and winning the Fielding sealed the deal.
MBASchooled: What were the most important questions you asked in order to help make your admissions decision?
The first questions I asked were about diversity: what proportion of students are domestic/international, white/POC, have a business/non-business background. Because so much of business school is problem-solving in teams, I wanted classmates who had all sorts of life experiences to make our solutions that much stronger. [Sidenote: Simon was just ranked the NUMBER ONE most diverse Full-Time MBA Program by U.S. News and World Report.]
The next questions I asked were about structure and flexibility within the course offerings and recruiting tracks. Coming from a non-business background, I knew that I needed a strong core curriculum to make sure I graduated with a well-rounded education. I also knew that I didn’t want a one-size-fits-all MBA and wanted to be able to dig deep on subjects that interest me, like strategy and pricing. Finally, I didn’t want to be locked into one recruiting track if I found that my passions changed over the course of the two-year program. I’m thrilled to report that I got it all—diversity, structure, and flexibility—with Simon.
MBASchooled: Who did you talk to that was most helpful in learning information to help you make a decision? What questions did you ask?
Talking to current students made all the difference. This is the aspect of the application process that I think COVID has made significantly less feasible—being able to form strong enough relationships with current students to get a real sense of the pros and cons of the program. In terms of the actual questions I asked, I really wanted to know A) what kind of support students got from their career office while they were recruiting for internships or full-time positions, and B) what their friends were like. You can tell a lot about the culture of a school by looking at the support networks that are currently in place.
MBASchooled: What’s something you’ve learned about Simon this semester, that you didn’t know when you made your admissions decision last year?
This is probably true for most full-time MBA programs, but I didn’t realize until I got here what a pivotal role the first years play in shaping the culture at Simon. When you’re looking at business schools, the culture and personality of the student body seems relatively fixed—like, “Oh, this is the school where no one’s taking the same classes at once,” or “This is the school that loves to tailgate on game days.” While those things are true, I was surprised to see how quickly leaders emerged within our class to both change and replicate the culture that already existed at Simon.
MBASchooled: Now that you’ve been at Simon for a semester, what’s been your favorite experience, and why?
Orientation Week. The Simon staff worked tirelessly all spring and summer to make sure we could have a safe hybrid learning experience come fall. After the loneliness we all experienced throughout the first six months of the pandemic, setting foot on campus on a gorgeous August day and meeting some of my classmates in person was a truly bright spot in an otherwise difficult year. Within the first thirty minutes, I met the person who would become my closest friend in the program – I’m grateful that we were able to connect so deeply, so quickly.
MBASchooled: Oftentimes, the word “culture” gets thrown around when talking about MBA programs. Can you characterize the culture at Simon?, and share an example of an experience that you think personifies this?
Simonites are committed to diversity and to each other. I recently had the privilege of presenting in the semifinals of the John R. Lewis Racial Justice Case Competition on a team with five brilliant classmates. The top team in each semifinal round would move on to the livestreamed finals. We sadly didn’t make it to the finals, but were floored when Simon staff rescheduled a schoolwide town hall in case we had made it to the finals, so students could come out and support us via livestream. The number of positive messages we each received that day made me so proud to be a member of the Simon community.
MBASchooled: Obviously, it’s a little more challenging to find out what a school or program is like as a result of COVID-19. What advice do you have, or what specific actions would you recommend admitted students take, to really get to know a school before selecting a school?
Talk to people. The online presence of a school can be a decent reflection of the brand, but very little of that appearance comes directly from students. So as much as you can, talk to current students and alumni about their experiences. The best question I’ve learned to ask when networking is, at the end of the conversation, “Is there anyone else you think I should connect with?”
MBASchooled: As an MBA Ambassador, what are some of the most common questions that you get from prospective students? What are some questions you wish more prospective students would ask?
Most students want to know more about how recruiting works and what clubs do. Those are good questions, and they’re great questions when they’re tailored to the person you’re speaking with — as in, “What have you, Kelly, gotten out of serving as First Year Rep for Consulting Club?” versus “What clubs are there?”
I wish more students asked about the dynamics of the student body. We internalize so much pressure to be an individual throughout the application process, it can be hard to keep sight of the fact that you’ll be a member of a team come fall.
MBASchooled: What advice do you have for admitted students on how they can make the best decision?
I’m going to be practical here: choose the school that offers the best return on investment. You likely already know how to investigate the quantitative aspects of the decision: read the annual employment report, talk to a financial aid counselor at the school, identify alumni who work at your target companies.
The qualitative aspects of the decision are equally important, however: think about the clubs you will join, the courses you know you want to take, the location of the school and its proximity to the rest of your life. Speaking from one COVID cohort to another, you and only you will know if this is the right time, or the right program. But don’t ignore your gut when you consider the facts. And as much as possible, enjoy the process of thinking long and hard about what you want and what you plan to accomplish.