Meet Dartmouth Tuck’s MBA Class of 2017

Khushboo Jhala

Khushboo Jhala

Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College

Hometown: Birmingham, Alabama

Undergraduate School and Major:

  • Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, MD-MBA ‘17
  • University of Alabama at Birmingham ‘12
    • Major: International Studies
    • Minor: Chemistry

Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation:

  • The Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare – Schwartz Fellow
  • Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center – Radiology Triage Navigator
  • Dartmouth- Hitchcock Medical Center Department of Pathology – Research Assistant, project on traumatic brain injury

Recalling your own experience, what advice do you have for applicants who are preparing for either the GMAT or the GRE?  I thought that practicing questions and carefully reviewing solutions was the most useful strategy. Practice tests helped me narrow which subjects I would focus on throughout my study block.

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?  Really focus on fit. Business schools each have their own personality and culture. Speaking with alumni, students, and those around you on interview day will give you a great idea of the community and work environment, and visiting campus will give you a sense of the physical environment, equally important.

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?  Take your time. The application process really is a comprehensive picture of each applicant. The admissions committee will spend a significant amount of time getting to know you during this process. Don’t be afraid to be personal, bold, or unconventional. Most schools appreciate out-of-the-box perspectives and welcome applicants who have something unique to contribute to the business school culture. This applies to both traditional and non-traditional applicants!

What led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA? It was a perfect fit. I fell in love with the Hanover and Tuck Community, and had great exposure to the school through my studies at Geisel. Due to the close-knit university campus (socially and structurally), there is a significant amount of collaboration between the business, medical, engineering, and public health schools, allowing for some phenomenal healthcare problem solving. I am thrilled to be spending another year in Hanover, and to form relationships with such an incredible group of diverse classmates.

What would you ultimately like to achieve before you graduate? The Tuck community is so close and enduring that it does not matter where you are in the world or when – you will have family everywhere. During my time here, I hope to be part of and invest in this long-lasting network of professional friends. Additionally, I’d like to take advantage of being embedded in the fantastic healthcare think tank that is Dartmouth, and contribute meaningfully to the turn-of-the-century healthcare reform process in the US and globally.