Meet Georgia Tech Scheller’s MBA Class Of 2023

A CLASS PROFILE

By the numbers, the Class of 2023 features 79 MBA students, with Scheller accepting just 27% of applicants during the 2020-2021 applications cycle. On average, the class brought a 682 GMAT, as scores ranged from 620-740. 19% of the class hails from overseas and includes students from 18 countries. Women make up 39% of the class and underrepresented minorities account for a 28% share.

As undergraduates, 29% of the class earned degrees in Engineering-related fields, a number nearly matched by Business and Management majors at 28%. Humanities and Social Sciences make up 10% of the class, followed by Economics (9%), Sciences (8%), and Mathematics (3%). Professionally, the class averages 5.5 years of post-college work experience. The largest percentage of the class – 18% — held positions in Manufacturing and Engineering. Financial Services and Government experience represent a 17% and 14% share of the class. In addition, you’ll find students with backgrounds in Technology, Consulting, Education, Non-Profits, Healthcare, Real Estate, Consumer Products, Media and Entertainment, Logistics, and Energy.

Beyond the numbers, how would you describe the Class of 2023? The answer comes courtesy of Paroma Chakravarty: “Georgia Tech is known for innovation and challenging the status quo. The programming through the MBA student groups and case discussions in our classes have reinforced that our cohort is not satisfied with “It is what it is.” We are ready to lead change and make things better.”

THE CREATIVE DESTRUCTION LAB AND TI:GER

In a 2022 P&Q column, Leo Haigh also discussed two unique opportunities in the Scheller MBA. The first is the Creative Destruction Lab. (CDL) A non-profit incubator, CDL caters to early-stage local ventures in the science and technology space.

“It’s pretty rare to study at a university with a CDL site. There are just 10 universities across the world that participate in CDL,” Haigh explains. “CDL-Atlanta supports start-ups focused on innovation that will accelerate commerce. The program is held over the course of nine months, in which founders learn from mentors, scientists, venture capitalists, MBA students, and angel investors. A prerequisite for start-ups to take part is that they must have the potential to be massively scalable and do billions of dollars in revenue. They must also be deeply based in or derived from leading-edge technology or science.”

Haigh also lauds a long-standing tradition at Georgia Tech: The Technology Innovation: Generating Results program, popularly known as TI:GER. Operated through the CDL, MBAs can collaborate with PhD and JD students from Emory University on ventures. Running three semesters, TI:GER enables MBAs to engage in various startup roles ranging from devising strategy to raising fund. In fact, the average TI:GER startup generates over $4 million dollars in capital during its time in the program. For some MBAs, the experience prepares them to launch their own venture. For others, the exposure to the tech sector enables them to land jobs at firms like Google or Microsoft – or industries like consulting and banking.

“The program attracts people who are interested in technology innovation, but that takes many forms,” said Giuliano. “Whether that’s in product development with a technology firm – for example, we have students who have gone into successful product management careers at Amazon, Google, and Microsoft – or in consulting, or starting their own ventures, the TI:GER program offers a great training ground to give participants the skills they need for a successful career in technology innovation.”

“Given my interest in driving go-to-market strategies for new innovations, TI:GER offers a true differentiator for my resume, giving me real-life examples to reference with potential employers,” Haigh adds. “The course requires you to take an innovation idea all the way from conception to business model, so by graduation you have all the tools to successfully commercialize innovation in your future career.”

ATLANTA IS THE PLACE TO BE

And Scheller’s Midtown Atlanta digs offer MBAs an additional advantage. Notably, the main building sits in the city’s famed Tech Square – a mix of entrepreneurial energy and corporate clout. Covering eight acres, Tech Square is packed with startups, incubators, tech firms, corporate offices, and investor offices. More than that, you’ll find innovation centers for Atlanta’s premier firms: Coca-Cola, Chick-Fil-A, AT&T, Delta Air Lines, Home Depot, UPS, Boeing, Siemens, and Black & Decker. This creates remarkable opportunities for MBAs to gain experience and build connections with some of the most innovative minds in business.

“Scheller is the focal point of Midtown Atlanta and students have access to popular restaurants, museums, parks, and walking trails,” notes Thomas Landzert. “There’s so much to see and experience in this cultural and economic epicenter. Atlanta is a vibrant city with many Fortune 500 companies and is quickly becoming a robust technology hub. Whether working with a large corporation on an agile transformation or collaborating with a start-up on a go-to-market strategy, there’s a wealth of opportunities for MBA students to apply what they learned in the classroom to real-world business settings. I appreciate the opportunities Atlanta provides to Scheller MBA students to learn, grow, and have fun.”

Atlanta’s quality of life has been equally popular with the Class of 2023. “Atlanta has such a unique culture – the food, the arts, the outdoors – and Georgia Tech’s location in Midtown is central to all of it,” adds Savannah Thomas. “It’s totally realistic to have a weekend where you eat dinner at a great new restaurant, catch a Broadway Musical or gallery opening, tailgate for a football game (or World Series baseball game), go hiking/rock-climbing, participate in a service project, and still manage to get in a round of golf. And because there is something for everyone, there are also people for everyone. Atlanta has managed to become an amazing metropolitan city while still retaining small-town hospitality, making it easy to meet others and form connections, no matter your interests.”

AN INTERVIEW WITH KATIE LLOYD

In May, Scheller also gained STEM designation across all of its concentrations in its full-time and evening MBA programs. That’s just one of the recent developments at the Scheller MBA. To learn more about what’s coming and what’s working, P&Q reached out to Katie Lloyd, the school’s associate dean for full-time and evening MBA programs. Here are her thoughts on what MBAs can expect from their experience at Scheller.

P&Q: What are the two most exciting developments at your program and how will they enrich the MBA experience for current and future MBAs?

KL:

“Making test-optional a permanent policy

In 2020, the Full-time MBA program at the Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business initiated a pilot test-optional admission process. Beginning with the 2021 to 2022 application cycle, the option has formally moved from pilot status to a permanent policy. MBA candidates may apply and matriculate into the program without a standardized test score.

We have many tools and data points at our disposal in the application review process. We can predict a candidate’s potential for success in and beyond the MBA program without reliance on the GMAT or GRE. Basing admissions decisions on previous academic experiences, work history, and interview evaluations has proved to be an effective process for our Evening MBA program, which began accepting candidates without a test score in 2018.

According to Dean Maryam Alavi, “By requiring the GMAT or GRE, we were limiting access for potential candidates. In addition to the economic barriers driven by the cost of test preparation and the cost of the exams themselves, research has shown standardized tests are biased, especially against women and people of color.” This change reinforces the College’s strategic goal to foster a diverse, inclusive, vibrant, and innovative community of students.

Diversity at Scheller has been increasing across programs the past few years. Most recently, the Full-time MBA program enrolled a class that was 39% women and 28% under-represented minorities. We believe this change in policy will continue to attract our most qualified, diverse, and successful MBA cohorts yet.

CHARGE leadership development program

In Fall 2019, Scheller launched CHARGE, the College’s first comprehensive leadership development program for MBA students. CHARGE is the result of collaborative efforts between staff, students, alumni, employers, faculty, and Advisory Board members. Through academic coursework, co-curricular programming, and experiential leadership development activities, CHARGE provides Scheller MBA students with strategies and techniques to develop into principled leaders.

In CHARGE’S second year, the MBA program office initiated the CHARGE Fellows Program. CHARGE Fellows are select second-year MBA students who excelled in the leadership program in their first year. Fellows serve as coaches to new students and gain opportunities to be mentored by alumni and community leaders as they improve self-awareness and prepare to return to the workforce.

With student feedback, the program has continued to evolve. Now in its third year, CHARGE has expanded offerings to include outside facilitators from Thinqshift, a leadership consultancy, as well as Forté and other C-level speakers, including Nell Fortner, Georgia Tech’s women basketball coach; David Jones, an authority on diversity, equity, and inclusion; Jennifer Hartz, alumna, CSR guru, and founder/president of Corporate Hartz; and Greg Owens, chairman and CEO of NRTC/iGAM and CEO of HGR.

As we prepare for next year’s program, we are reviewing feedback from student surveys and listening sessions. This feedback will directly shape CHARGE 4.0 and benefit the next generation of Scheller MBA students.”

P&Q: What are two biggest differentiating features of your MBA program? How do each of these enrich the learning of your MBA students?

KL:

“Focus on Technology

As you would expect, Scheller’s MBA program offers many tech-focused learning opportunities, including hands-on courses known as practicums. One of the most popular practicums is TI:GER, which stands for Technology Innovation: Generating Economic Results. TI:GER is a unique, transdisciplinary program that combines classroom instruction, innovation projects, and real-world experience throughout three terms of the MBA program. For students whose objective is to become technology innovators – in early-stage high-growth ventures, consultancies, or corporate positions in finance, marketing, operations, or strategy – the TI:GER experience provides essential skills, tacit knowledge, and networks for success.

Each year, about 25 to 30 MBA students are selected for TI:GER. Students learn from faculty, a vast network of industry mentors (including more than 700 TI:GER alumni) and other experts while working on technology innovation projects. Alumni engagement is a hallmark of the program.

TI:GER serves as the educational foundation before students begin work with the Creative Destruction Lab (CDL-Atlanta), a global milestone-based mentoring program for massively-scalable science-based startups. CDL-Atlanta is directed and operated by the strategy & innovation academic area at Scheller. The program currently offers a Commerce Stream, which brings venture founders together with mentors and advisors who are experienced entrepreneurs, leading scientists, and active investors. They help founders scale ventures whose technologies support the transformation of retail industries, including consumer packaged goods and commercial exchange markets.

To learn more, listen to Scheller’s recently launched podcast episode featuring Jonathan Giuliano, director of TI:GER and academic lead of CDL-Atlanta, and Kyle Winkler, second-year MBA student.”

Location in Midtown/Tech Square

The Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business finds its home in Technology Square, one of the most robust, exciting innovation ecosystems in the world. Scheller students have the unique advantage of being next door to more than 100 startups, over 50 incubators and accelerators, and more than 20 innovation centers. Students also benefit from being a part of wider Atlanta, which is home to 17 of the world’s Fortune 500 headquarters.

The corporate innovation centers in and around Tech Square tap into the area’s culture of collaboration, with its vibrant network of students, faculty, researchers, and startup entrepreneurs. Anthem, AT&T, Boeing, Delta, Southern Company, and UCB are among the companies with innovation centers in the neighborhood.

The centers complement and expand on the research and development units typically found at a company’s corporate headquarters. The innovation centers also engage with the area’s startups, providing them with access to markets and fostering relationships through mentorships. They become investors for the startups by becoming customers and partners and providing platforms to help them to succeed. Scheller MBA students have access to these corporate innovation centers – for practicums, internships, and more.

Next Page: Profiles of 12 Scheller MBA Students