Meet Arizona State’s MBA Class of 2018

Saagar Anand

Arizona State University, W. P. Carey School of Business – Arizona State University

Describe yourself in 15 words or less: A competitive perfectionist, an extrovert engineer, a semi-professional soccer player, and a friend for everyone.

Hometown: Bangalore, India

Fun Fact About Yourself: I won a game of Texas Hold’em with a Royal Flush; the probability of getting a Royal Flush in poker is 0.000154%. Also, I speak six different languages.

Undergraduate School and Major: Amrita University, Bachelor of Technology in Mechanical Engineering

Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation:

Caterpillar Inc. – Assistant Facility Manager

Caterpillar Inc. – Section Manager

Caterpillar Inc. – Logistics Analyst

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: In my first-ever project that I led as a Six Sigma Green Belt at Caterpillar, I designed and implemented a warehouse storage solution for complex parts required for fabrication. I came up with a unique idea of using cantilever beams rather than traditional racks for storage. After a month of designing new processes and collaborating with different teams, I implemented this solution. Not only did this save space and money, but it also improved safety conditions and increased efficiency of operations.

Looking back on your experience, what advice would you give to future business school applicants? Your b-school learning starts the day you decide to apply to one. It involves a lot of planning and those who succeed in their journey would always tell you that they started early.

GMAT/GRE

The GMAT/GRE would be the first hurdle that you need to cross. Preparing for these exams is not an easy task – especially if you are working. One piece of advice that I would like to give regarding the GMAT is to take as many mock/practice exams as possible. The GMAT exam is long and it is a test of your endurance. So, make sure that you are mentally and physically prepared to sit through the exam.

MAKE A LIST

The next task would be to make a list of b-schools that you would want to target. Many factors should factor into this decision. Instead of just looking at rankings, go a little deeper. Ask a lot of relevant questions: What is this school known for? What can I leverage from this school to further my personal development? How strong is the alumni network, and what do they say about it? You need to do a lot of research before you make your list.

APPLICATIONS & INTERVIEWS

For the applications, essays and interviews, I have just one advice: Be yourself. Every individual is unique in his or her own way and you should bring out that uniqueness in you by just being yourself. Do not try to be someone you’re not. Market yourself in an honest, pragmatic, and interesting way. If you haven’t learned to do that yet, then start now. This is something that will help you immensely in networking and securing an internship or job during your program as well.

What led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA? The W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University is well-known and reputed across the world for its MBA program. Everyone at this school, right from the admissions team to the alumni network, exemplify the school’s motto “Where Business is Personal.”

During my initial application stages, I got in touch with someone from the admissions team and reached out to her regarding information about the full-Time MBA program. Not only did she set up a video call and walk me through the whole program, but she recognized me four months later when I met her at a career fair in India. She asked me about the status of my application and encouraged me to apply. That is how involved people are at W. P. Carey — they genuinely want you to succeed.

The Forward Focus MBA program (W. P. Carey’s unique full-time MBA program) is truly one-o- a-kind. It focuses on making you a better, more-prepared leader for the ever-changing business world. Joining this program has been one of the best decisions that I have ever made.

Tell us about your dream job or dream employer at this point in your life? My ambition is to design products and develop processes that push the boundaries of innovation and make the world a better, faster and a more sustainable place to live in. That being said, my dream employer at this point in my life would be Tesla. Mr. Musk, are you listening?

What would you like your business school peers to say about you after you graduate from this program? I want my peers to say that they learned something from their interactions with me throughout the program. Be it something about my culture or from my discussions in class. I also want them to say that if they need me for anything, they can be rest assured that I will be there for them. This is not just a b-school, this is home. They are not just peers, they are family.