Meet The UT-Austin’s McCombs Class of 2017

Isabel Shelton 

University of Texas at Austin, McCombs School of Business 

Hometown: Austin, Texas

Undergraduate School and Major: University of Arizona, International Studies

Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation: (past to present)

United States Department of Education- Presidential Appointee, Confidential Assistant to the Secretary’s Chief of Staff

Michael & Susan Dell Foundation- Project Director, Austin Quality Schools Collaborative

Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce- Director of Education & Talent Alignment

Recalling your own experience, what advice do you have for applicants who are preparing for either the GMAT or the GRE? I took the GRE directly after graduating from college. I didn’t have clarity on what advanced degree I wanted to pursue, but I had time to commit to the test and this really decreased the stress of the application once I was ready to apply (a short 4.5 years later).

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? Be authentic about the things that matter to you. You are deciding which program will best facilitate your development into the type of thinker and leader that you aspire to be. It’s easy to get distracted by shiny objects during the recruiting process, but this is a highly personal search so remain focused on finding the model, geography, culture, and coursework that are the best fit for you.

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? Have fun! This is first of many recruiting process that will be followed by internship recruiting, job recruiting, etc. The sooner you get comfortable with pitching yourself, the better prepared you will be to not only gain admission to a great business school, but build a great career as well.

What led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA? McCombs immediately blew me away by its ability to exceed my academic and cultural expectations. I am a self-driven learner, so the flexibility of the coursework really appealed to me. The ability to pull from the vast resources of a large university to design my own learning was the perfect complement to the strong general management curriculum. I also work best in challenging yet collaborative environments and all my interactions with McCombs students and staff confirmed that this community would not only teach me, but would provide the robust team environment I was seeking.

What would you ultimately like to achieve before you graduate? I am most excited to graduate with an incredible network of classmates and future friends and colleagues. The caliber and kindness of my classmates makes me incredibly optimistic for the two years ahead.