Meet The Chicago Booth MBA Class of 2017

Ameerah C. Phillips

University of Chicago, Booth School of Business 

Hometown: Chicago, IL

Undergraduate School and Major: Amherst College, B.A. in Political Science and (jointly with Booth) Harris School of Public Policy, Masters of Public Policy

Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation: 1-Assistant Director of Admissions, School Year Abroad; 2-Political Team Member, Obama for America; 3-Assistant to the Executive Director, Organizing for Action

Recalling your own experience, what advice do you have for applicants who are preparing for either the GMAT or the GRE? If you know ahead of time that you’re interested in grad school, take the GRE and/or GMAT while you’re still in school. The scores are good for five years and it’s helpful to study for and take those tests while you’re still in the habit of studying regularly. If that’s not an option, do take them seriously and develop a study plan to prepare for them. Give your all to those exams, but know that your scores are not your only identity as an applicant. They are but one component, so do not neglect other parts of your application in search of perfect test scores.

Based on your own selection process, what advice do you have for applicants who are trying to draw up a list of target schools to which to apply? Booth is the only school to which I applied, but I made sure it embodied the characteristics and had the assets that were most important to me. My advice to students would be to make a list of preferred characteristics/qualities you’d like to have in a school, then decide which things from that list are (a) absolutely necessary, (b) desirable but not necessary, and (c) irrelevant to you. Let that first category be your primary guide for selecting schools and DO NOT underestimate the importance of being happy and enjoying life for the years you’re in school.

What advice do you have for applicants in actually applying to a school, writing essays, doing admission interviews, and getting recommenders to write letters on your behalf? 1-Be authentic! Admissions officers literally read hundreds, if not thousands, of applications each season. You have a much better chance of standing out if you present who you really are rather than who you think they want you to be. Highlight your strengths and assets as an applicant and potential student—even those that are different from what you think they should be for a “traditional” business student. Admissions officers are trying to create well-rounded classes and know that you have something to add to that. 2-Don’t be modest! You application, your interview, and your conversations with those writing letters of recommendation on your behalf are not the time to be modest or to downplay your accomplishments and achievements. Don’t fabricate anything in your application, but do share your whole self. If you have an interesting hobby that’s important to you or if you have worked on a fascinating project of some sort, share that! You are more than the classes you’ve taken and the grades you earned in them. Share your whole self in your application and let people know about the contributions you’ve made to the communities that you’re a part of.

What led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA? The school’s reputation, the academic rigor, and the “pay-it-forward” culture led me to choose Booth. The first two speak for themselves, but as for the “pay it forward” culture—that is real and I felt it before I was even admitted. As a prospective student I probably spoke with dozens, literally dozens, of Booth students and staff who were all happy to give me 20 minutes, 30 minutes, an hour, and even more of their time to tell me about their admissions process and Booth experience. I wasn’t even “in the family” yet and they were so incredibly welcoming and helpful toward me at every step along the process. Community culture was high on my list of priorities and Booth exceeded my expectations.

What would you ultimately like to achieve before you graduate? Is it too cliché to say that I literally want to take advantage of EVERYTHING Booth has to offer? I want to wring my two years completely dry by the end. But I do! Tangible goals: I want to have challenged myself in academic and co-curricular activities outside of my traditional comfort zone—that includes mastering certain quantitative skills. Though I do have a plan, it would be a shame to not take advantage of the opportunity afforded to me to learn or try something  new while in business school. It’s also equally as important to me to have positively impacted the Booth community and made valuable contributions to my colleagues, faculty, and staff before I leave the school.