Meet UCLA Anderson’s MBA Class of 2019

Kartik Jain 

UCLA, Anderson School of Management

Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Curious, creative, always testing new ideas to make life easier using technology and design.

Hometown: Houston, Texas

Fun Fact About Yourself: I ran with the bulls in Pamplona.

Undergraduate School and Major: The University of Texas at Austin – Bachelor of Science: Mechanical Engineering, Minor: Spanish

Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation:

•  Dow Chemical – Mechanical Engineer
•  TAS Energy – Manufacturing Engineer, Product Manager,
•  VJI Software – Operations Manager
•  Nomly– Founder and CEO

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: My biggest career accomplishment was transitioning from an engineering career to tech entrepreneurship. The experience forced me take on a lot of new roles and taught me how to transform interesting ideas into useful products, which gave me new energy and excitement for my career.

Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants?  The best advice I received as an applicant was to plan to spend 40-50 hours writing and revising my essays. As someone who doesn’t have a lot of experience writing, this helped me frame it as an iterative process that requires many drafts and refinements.

What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? Location. Location. Location. Of all the business schools, UCLA is the only one located in a big city with a thriving tech and entrepreneurship scene, a global population, incredibly diverse culture, sunny, beautiful weather, and year-round beach volleyball.