100 Best & Brightest Business Majors Of 2021

Freshman year can be a real wake up. Everything is faster and heavier – and academics are just part of the transition. For many, the biggest issues involve managing time and money. Sometimes, freshmen just take on too much.

Sven Wollschlaeger probably heard the warnings. That didn’t stop the University of Michigan Business major from co-founding a company as a freshman. Inspired by campus tours he took in high school, he built VenueTourist – which he describes as “a 3D and virtual reality tech company specializing in higher-ed campus tour creation.” Over four years, Wollschlaeger has taken his startup far beyond Ann Arbor – and racked up achievements that’d be the envy of MBA students.

“I am proud that we built and scaled VenueTourist from my dorm room to being deployed at universities all across the U.S. – from campuses like GWU to the University of Miami. We raised <$1M from the co-founder of JetBlue, and pitched to Google Streetview, Bessemer Venture Partners, and A16Z. We were invited to operate out of Dan Gilbert’s Detroit Venture Partners office (2019), and I just recently participated in Y Combinator’s Virtual Startup School. I learned the value of good products, great execution, exceptional teams, and starting!”

100 STUDENT LEADERS FROM TOP 50 BUSINESS SCHOOLS

Wollschlaeger is among the 100 seniors honored in Poets&Quants’ Best & Brightest Business Majors of 2021. Entering its 6th year, the Best & Brightest features seniors who personify the best in business education. To compile this year’s list, P&Q invited each of the Top 50 undergraduate business schools to supply two representatives from their programs. The schools were given the flexibility to choose their students using their own selection criteria and process. However, P&Q encouraged the schools to consider students based on factors like “academic excellence, extracurricular leadership, personal character, innate potential, a striking personal narrative, and overall impact on the program.” Overall, the list includes 54 women and 46 men. In addition, 15 students hail from countries outside the United States, including Turkey, Ethiopia, Romania, Thailand, Haiti, and Ecuador.

Despite a sluggish economy, many Best & Brightest are already ticketed to the world’s top employers. 10 members have already accepted offers from Deloitte, with Bain & Company, Ernst & Young, KPMG, and PwC scooping up 3 students a piece. In addition, you’ll find future consultants, bankers, and client developers at firms like McKinsey, Goldman Sachs, Amazon, Microsoft, and SpaceX among the Best & Brightest. In addition, 9 graduates are returning to campus to earn Master’s and law degrees.

Upasana Barot

Such students include Leah Wren Hardgrove. A legally blind Marketing major from Washington University, Hardgrove will be joining Google in product management after graduation. At the University of North Carolina, Mary Laci Motley built EATS2SEATS, which enables non-profits to operate stadium concession stands to generate financing for their causes. Not only has Motley survived the pandemic, but has expanded her enterprises to seven venues. At Wharton, Cristina Pogorevici entered a war-torn country to study entrepreneurship. Some students even stepped into the role of leadership. Case in point: Upasana Barot. She developed a 6-module peer mentorship curriculum at the College of William & Mary – one that has been adopted campus-wide.

“It always makes my day when mentees reach out about their positive experience with the program,” she tells P&Q.

Who are some of the most promising Business majors from the Class of 2021? Where have they interned and where will they be working after graduation? Which faculty and classmates do they admire the most? And what were the biggest surprises they faced and lessons they gained on the way to graduation? Click on the links below to learn about the next generation of consultants, financiers, c-suite executives, and entrepreneurs.

2021 Best & Brightest Undergraduate Business Majors

Business Student	Business School	Hometown	Post-Graduation Employer
Giselle Enriquez Durazo	University of Arizona (Eller)	Tucson, AZ	GoDaddy
Brennen Feder	University of Arizona (Eller)	Tucson, AZ	Procter & Gamble
James Sorrentino	Binghamton University School of Management	Oyster Bay, NY	Citigroup
Rene Vorilas	Binghamton University School of Management	West Islip, NY	Protiviti
Veronica Escobar-Mesa	Boston University (Questrom)	Medellin, Colombia	The Barthwell Group
Frances Smyth	Boston University (Questrom)	Alexandria, VA	Microsoft
Spencer Russell Call	Brigham Young University (Marriott)	Omaha, NE	Home Depot
Ashtynne Wade	Brigham Young University (Marriott)	Lindon, UT	Boston Consulting Group
Nathan Feyrer	Bucknell University (Freeman)	Breinigsville, PA	Goldman Sachs
Amy Yowell	Bucknell University (Freeman)	Betterton, MD	Bank of America
Aditya Darshan Gandhi	Carnegie Mellon (Tepper)	Mumbai, India	Wolfe Research
Shiwani Pathak	Carnegie Mellon (Tepper)	Edison, NJ	Morgan Stanley
Sarah Brice	Cornell University (Dyson)	New York City, NY	SC Johnson
Carol Wang	Cornell University (School of Hotel Administration)	Vancouver, Canada	Sculptor Capital Management
Eva Chaffin	University of Denver (Daniels)	Littleton, CO	Ernst & Young
Milena Rogers	University of Denver (Daniels)	Portland, OR	Goldman Sachs
Meghan Murray	Elon University (Love)	Bel Air, MD	Ernst & Young
Alexandra Pirsos	Elon University (Love)	Upper Saddle River, NJ	N.C. State (Grad School)
Drew Bullock	Emory University (Goizueta)	Durham, NC	FTI Consulting
Lori Steffel	Emory University (Goizueta)	Glenview, IL	Truist Securities
Zackary Hajjar	Fordham University (Gabelli)	Brooklyn, NY	JPMorgan Chase
Sekai Kaminski	Fordham University (Gabelli)	Garnet Valley, PA	IBM
Michael DuTot	Georgetown University (McDonough)	Berwyn, PA	Anheuser-Busch
Alexandra Hornick	Georgetown University (McDonough)	New York City, NY	HiredScore
Amanda Arboleda	University of Georgia (Terry)	Dacula, GA	Ernst & Young
Zakiyya Ellington	University of Georgia (Terry)	Allen, TX	McKinsey
Jake DiBenedetto	Georgia Tech (Scheller)	Johns Creek, GA	Credit Suisse
Devika Dutt	Georgia Tech (Scheller)	Douglasville, GA	Deloitte
Salman Al-Luqman	University of Houston (Bauer)	Houston, TX	American Express
Micah Olsen	University of Houston (Bauer)	Swampscott, MA	Vivint Smart Home
Jessica Lozano Schmitt	Hult International Business School	Madrid, Spain	Electric Potential
Tumelo Seemule	Hult International Business School	Francistown, Botswana	Hult International Business School (Grad Student)
Bethany Antuna	University of Illinois (Gies)	Wheaton, IL	Google
Markos Christoforou	University of Illinois (Gies)	Elk Grove Village, IL	Deloitte
Brianna Jordan	University of Illinois (Gies)	Naperville, IL	Law School (Undecided)
Sydney Dixon	Indiana University (Kelley)	Houston, TX	Deloitte
Blake Nolan Bradley	Indiana University (Kelley)	Bourbonnais, IL	SpaceX
Andrew Fedun	Lehigh University	Yardley, PA	Citigroup
Jenny Lin	Lehigh University	Nesquehoning, PA	KPMG
Anton Berry	Marian University (Byrum)	Clarksville, TN	Undecided
Rachel Kassing	Marian University (Byrum)	Maryville, IL	Undecided
Alannah Scardino	University of Massachusetts-Amherst (Isenberg)	Rochester, NY	Undecided
Matthew Kassler	University of Massachusetts-Amherst (Isenberg)	Mansfield, MA	PwC
Maddie Krueger	Miami University (Farmer)	Dublin, OH	West Monroe Partners
Grant Stierwalt	Miami University (Farmer)	Bowling Green, OH	Bain & Company
Olivia Dubi	University of Miami (FL)	Dix Hills, NY	Morgan Stanley
Ryan Rebholz	University of Miami (FL)	Bloomington, IL	Boyne Capital
Priyanka Khetarpal	University of Michigan (Ross)	Saginaw, MI	BlackRock
Sven Wollschlaeger	University of Michigan (Ross)	Monroe, MI	Insight Venture Partners
Noah Henry Skrok	Michigan State University (Broad)	Sterling Heights, MI	Undecided

	Business School	Hometown	Post-Graduation Employer
Lydia Whipple	Michigan State University (Broad)	Mason, MI	Cisco Systems
Kayla Fixel	University of Minnesota (Carlson)	Germantown, WI	Deloitte
Nate Taye	University of Minnesota (Carlson)	St. Paul, MN	Deloitte
Dimitri Pun	New York University (Stern)	Port-au-Prince, Haiti	Twitter
Jessica Wang	New York University (Stern)	Collegeville, PA	PwC
Gino Esposito	University of North Carolina (Kenan-Flagler)	Milford, CT	University of North Carolina (Graduate School)
Mary Laci Motley	University of North Carolina (Kenan-Flagler)	Asheville, NC	EATS2SEATS
Karan Kishorepuria	Northeastern University (D’Amore McKim)	Kolkata, India	Undecided
Abigale Purvis	Northeastern University (D’Amore McKim)	Woodinville, WA	Undecided
Tyler Ancona	University of Notre Dame (Mendoza)	East Setauket, NY	KPMG
Megan Whelan	University of Notre Dame (Mendoza)	Munster, IN	University of Notre Dame
Abenezer Mechale	University of Pennsylvania (Wharton School)	Addis Ababa, Ethiopia	Bain & Company
Cristina Pogorevici	University of Pennsylvania (Wharton School)	Bucharest, Romania	Bain & Company
Rohil Chada	University of Pittsburgh	Hillsborough, NJ	Deloitte
Katie Gerber	University of Pittsburgh	Fairview, PA	Deloitte
Mateo Godoy	Providence College	North Providence, RI	PwC
Anna Russo	Providence College	Huntington Station, NY	New York University (Graduate School)
Chloe Jenkins	Purdue University (Krannert)	Zionsville, IN	Amazon
Ariana Loor	Purdue University (Krannert)	Quito, Ecuador	Graduate School (Undecided)
Rachel Perry	University of Richmond (Robins)	Chiang Mai, Thailand	Undecided
Lizzie Reedy	University of Richmond (Robins)	Marietta, GA	Perella Weinberg Partners
Ankita Kodali	Rutgers Business School (New Brunswick)	Union, NJ	Deloitte
Kurt Vogl	Rutgers Business School (New Brunswick)	Middlesex, NJ	Microsoft
Ross Meldrum	University of San Diego	Chelmsford, UK	Graduate School (Undecided)
Caroline Murray	University of San Diego	Dallas, TX	Undecided
Aysegul Ates	Southern Methodist University (Cox)	Izmir, Turkey	Jefferies
Cameron Police	Southern Methodist University (Cox)	Frisco, TX	PJT Partners
Scott Mueller	Syracuse University (Whitman)	Ogdensburg, NJ	Deloitte
Ruth Yehyun Bang	Syracuse University (Whitman)	Parkland, FL	Undecided
Samantha Bryant	University of Texas (McCombs)	Austin, TX	Undecided
RJ Finley	Texas Christian University (Neeley)	Tustin, CA	JPMorgan Chase
Ashley Servais	Texas Christian University (Neeley)	Medina, MN	Dell Technologies
Alanna Austin	Tulane University (Freeman)	New Orleans, LA	Law School (Undecided)
Matthew Shernicoff	Tulane University (Freeman)	Freehold, NJ	Sterling Associates
Rohan Parikh	Villanova University	Marlboro, NJ	Bank of America
Kelsea Wong	Villanova University	Malvern, PA	Blackstone Group
Jeannie Patrice Hirsch	University of Virginia (McIntire)	Rochester, NY	Warburg Pincus LLC
Samuel R. Lisner	University of Virginia (McIntire)	Virginia Beach, VA	Deloitte
Anabel Cordano	Wake Forest University	Ridgefield, CT	Wake Forest (Grad Student)
Jeremy Greer	Wake Forest University	Suffield, CT	Truist Financial
Sharae Ratliff	University of Washington (Foster)	Spanaway WA	Undecided
Noah Reyna	University of Washington (Foster)	Bellevue, WA	Andersen
Lucas Dionisopoulos	Washington University (Olin)	Lincoln, NE	Financial Technology Partners
Leah Wren Hardgrove	Washington University (Olin)	Orlando, FL	Google
Upasana Barot	College of William & Mary (Mason)	Suffolk, VA	KPMG
William Ryu	College of William & Mary (Mason)	Seoul, South Korea	Accenture
Jessica Anton	University of Wisconsin	Sussex, WI	Undecided
Jake Shenkenberg	University of Wisconsin	Bloomfield Hills, MI	Accenture
Berkan Delareyna	Worcester Polytechnic Institute (Foisie)	Istanbul, Turkey	Undecided
Matthew Iaconis	Worcester Polytechnic Institute (Foisie)	North Attleboro, MA	TJX Companies