Sedric Nesbitt

UCLA, Anderson School of Management

“Ex-consultant, hip-hop dancer, swimmer, concert enthusiast, world traveler, professional kickballer, reality tv stan.”

Hometown: Houston, Texas

Fun Fact About Yourself: I have been skydiving twice – in Honolulu, HI and Baltimore, MD.

Undergraduate School and Major: Georgetown University, B.A. English

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Accenture, Strategy and Consulting Manager

UCLA Anderson is founded on the Three Pillars: Share Success, Think Fearlessly, and Drive Change. Which pillar resonates most with you and why? The UCLA Anderson pillar that resonates most with me is Share Success. From the initial chats I had with current students and alumni during the application process, to the first three weeks of school interacting with my class, I have overwhelmingly felt this sense of community, generosity, and collaboration. Everyone at UCLA Anderson truly cares about uplifting the entire Anderson community, and it is a great feeling to be amongst the greatest minds in the world that share this ideal.

Aside from your classmates and location, what was the key part of UCLA Anderson’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? The key part of UCLA Anderson’s programming that led me to matriculate was the specialization in Entertainment Management. UCLA Anderson is the only top tier program to provide this specialization. Since I have no direct experience in the entertainment industry, this specialization will provide me with unrivaled access to leading media and entertainment companies. The specialized curriculum will allow me to choose courses to develop my technical skills and industry knowledge through real-world business cases and applied research projects.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at UCLA Anderson? I am most excited to join Out@Anderson at UCLA. At my previous company, I co-led the local LGBTQ+ employee resource group for 4+ years and it was one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life. Being a part of the employee resource group allowed me to feel a sense of community at work, and I loved being able to create and champion safe spaces for employees to be their most authentic selves. I’m looking forward to continuing my diversity and inclusion efforts at UCLA Anderson by leaning on my employee resource group experiences to contribute to pushing Out@Anderson forward. I plan to gain a leadership position so that I can effectively develop programming that not only makes Out@Anderson thrive, but also continues to teach the broader UCLA Anderson community true allyship.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: My biggest accomplishment in my career was leading a team to develop and execute a change management strategy to adopt the integration of hardware and software upgrade processes of a major federal client. Through the consistent delivery of 100+ executive briefings, stakeholder communications, and process trainings, the project was successful with an on-time launch of integrated release activities and increased stakeholder adoption.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point and what do you hope to do after graduation? I chose to pursue an MBA at this point in my life because I wanted to pursue a career that was more aligned with my passion and interests. While consulting has provided me with an abundance of transferable skills, I’m looking to leverage my experiences and pivot to work in a strategy role within the entertainment industry.

What is one thing you have recently read, watched, or listened to that you enjoyed and would highly recommend to prospective MBAs? Prospective MBAs should definitely know about the opportunities that are provided by The Consortium for Graduate Study in Management. The mission of The Consortium is to recruit MBA prospects who have demonstrated commitment to increasing the ranks of African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Native Americans in business education and corporate leadership. With the ability to apply to the 22 member schools through a streamlined application and the ability to receive a full tuition fellowship, it is an amazing opportunity that should not be overlooked!

What other MBA programs did you apply to? I applied to 7 other MBA programs: Columbia, Harvard, New York University, University of Southern California, University of California – Berkeley, University of Michigan, and University of Pennsylvania.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into UCLA Anderson’s MBA program? My advice to potential UCLA Anderson applicants is to do the homework and research what UCLA Anderson is all about. The more you know about UCLA Anderson – either through the website, recruiting events, informational interviews, chats with current students/alumni/admissions, etc. – the more you will be able to clearly articulate your interest in UCLA Anderson and why UCLA Anderson is the right MBA program for you. Having this perspective defined in the application will put you above the rest, and will hopefully lead to your admission into the best MBA program!

DON’T MISS: MEET THE MBA CLASS OF 2024: INFLUENCERS & INNOVATORS