Marie Cour 

University of Chicago, Booth School of Business

Hometown: Highland Park, Illinois

Fun Fact About Yourself: I learned how to scuba dive last summer so I could go to the beach and do something without getting sunburned.

Undergraduate School and Major: University of Michigan; Double Major History and Political Science

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: US Army, Battalion Intelligence Officer

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Over the course of my Army career, I fixed two dysfunctional organizations.

What quality best describes the MBA classmates you’ve met so far and why? The students I have met all seem to be interesting and engaging people with a range of past professional experiences.

What makes Chicago such a great place to earn an MBA degree?

City: Chicago is an amazing city with a range of food, culture, and history. Chicago has been home, and I am happy to return to the city to get my MBA.

School: I don’t yet know all the great reasons, but the school has a vast range of opportunities. I am excited at the idea that I will find something new while in school.

Aside from your classmates, 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? I spent a lot of my army career developing managerial skills, and I wanted to use my time as an MBA student to develop analytical skills more thoroughly. Chicago is second to none in quantitative analysis, and I want to learn from the best people who are willing to teach me.

What club or activity are you looking most forward to in business school? I’m still narrowing down my options.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point in your career? I decided to get out of the Army last year, and I knew that I needed to develop additional skills.  An MBA seemed like the perfect way to build new professional skills and learn from people with different experiences and interests before becoming part of corporate America

What other MBA programs did you apply to? Ross at the University of Michigan; Tuck at Dartmouth

How did you determine your fit at various schools? I researched which major firms hired from which schools to get a sense of where I might end up after school. I read CVs for professors to see what they were researching and I looked at entertainment options in the surrounding area for those rare times when I am not studying. Culture is far more complicated, so I went on gut instinct based on what I saw during campus visits and interviews.

What was your defining moment and how did it shape who you are? Joining the army has been the most significant moment. It forced me to work with people from vastly different backgrounds and appreciate the skills I do not have.

Where do you see yourself in ten years? My career so far has not been predictable, and I don’t expect that to change. I do want an 8-year old MBA hanging on my office wall, though!