Trevor Fabian

Duke University, Fuqua School of Business

“Dedicated-husband, servant-leader, amateur-astrophysicist, finance-guru, fitness-enthusiast, furniture-builder and a survivalist-remote backpacker with a bias towards action.”

Hometown: Wales, Wisconsin

Fun Fact About Yourself: In survival training, I once had to eat four large grey banana slugs in one sitting.

Undergraduate School and Major: University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee

Most Recent Employer and Job Title:

Employer: United States Air Force Special Warfare

Job Title: Troop Commander (Special Tactics Officer)

The MBA program is renowned for its “Team Fuqua” culture, which is predicated on six paired principles: Authentic Engagement, Supportive Ambition, Collective Diversity, Impactful Stewardship, Loyal Community, and Uncompromising Integrity. Which of these resonates most with you – and what does that principle demand of you as a Fuqua MBA? Over the last 13 years, Supportive Ambition is one of the core tenets that has allowed the teams I’ve been fortunate enough to be a part of succeed. From remote wilderness survival to military operations to a faith-based nonprofit startup called LifeCampUSA, a team’s determined spirit – combined with the  members’ genuine care for one another – will win out against the competition almost every time. As I begin my MBA at Fuqua, I’ll carry this principle forward, focusing on how many of my teammates succeed and the collective cohesion and relationships we build along the way.

What has been your first impression of the Fuqua MBA students and alumni you’ve met so far. Tell us your best Fuqua story so far. My first impression was selflessness. That impression arrived immediately after talking on the phone with a 2021 Fuqua alumna in the winter of 2020. The moment we concluded our conversation, I knew that Fuqua was the MBA program for me. What transpired in the year following our call was a testament to Fuqua’s selfless and collaborative spirit. Over the course of the next ten months, that same alumna, and a few other amazing Fuqua alums, selflessly helped garner so much support for my candidacy. I like to jokingly say that Fuqua’s admissions team had to wheel in an entire filing cabinet with my name on it during the early action round in fall of 2021! While that is definitely a stretch and while I did work extremely hard for my admission, my acceptance was by no means a solo effort; I was grateful to have support at every step of the way.

My favorite Fuqua story is one that I’ll never forget. The morning following our first ever LifeCampUSA fundraiser where we raised more money than I had ever hoped for US Military and Law Enforcement Goldstar, and Survivor families, I received a call from Meghan in Admissions. She  told me I was admitted to Fuqua and named a Keller Scholar. Life is full of mountain top experiences as well as valleys; this was unquestionably a mountain top experience in my life.

Aside from your classmates and school culture, what was the key part of Duke Fuqua’s MBA curriculum programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? If I had to choose one concept that I’ve learned over the course my career so far, generally speaking, it’s that there are no bad teams, only bad leaders. This is true whether in special operations training, on the battlefield, in business or in life. I believe that leadership is the single greatest factor in any team’s performance. As I was considering different MBA programs, it was obvious that Fuqua’s focus on leadership is boldly woven into all facets of its curriculum, they even have the  Fuqua/ Coach K Center on Leadership & Ethics (COLE) Fellowship. The same level of focus cannot be said of all top MBA programs. I’d argue that all MBA graduates will hold a leadership position at some point in their careers, if this holds true and leadership matters to the extent that I believe it does, this is the most important part of Fuqua’s curriculum.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at Duke Fuqua? I’m excited to leverage my training and experience in USAF Special Warfare to cultivate peer leadership through Fuqua’s Building Outdoor Leaders Club (BOLD). This is an area I feel exceptionally called to from my extensive wilderness experience as a former survival instructor. I’d love to train and lead Fuqua teams on backpacking trips in remote places such as Gates of the Arctic National Park, Alaska, rotating leadership to help everyone learn navigational decision-making, contingency planning, and risk-mitigation measures – all of which translate exceptionally well to the classroom and business.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: In 2021, we had the official launch of the LifeCampUSA program, gaining the opportunity to mentor, serve and invest in the children of our nations fallen service members.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point and what do you hope to do after graduation? Upon acknowledging that I was being medically retired out of the US Air Force after 12 years of service, I immediately began looking to the future and what was next. I also knew that while I had gained many skills over the course of my military career, many of them would need to be adapted for max effectiveness outside the military. I began talking with some old teammates of mine and veterans at different MBA programs who had already walked the path I was considering. I learned that an MBA offered me a unique opportunity to accelerate the goals I wanted to achieve and the impacts I wanted to make in my future career.

I have always believed in serving a cause bigger than myself and I am looking to continue that philosophy after graduation. My post-MBA goal is to join an Investment Bank to pursue my passion of building a financial career. Concurrently, I’ll gain the skills, networks, and access to capital necessary to achieve my entrepreneurial long-term goal of expanding LifeCampUSA, a non-profit I cofounded in 2021. I plan to transform LifeCampUSA from a summer camp into a national organization supporting youth of Military and Law Enforcement Goldstar and Survivor families and other children afflicted by hardships such as trafficking.

What is one thing you have recently read, watched, or listened to that you would highly recommend to prospective MBAs? Why? A book called Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink. No matter where we exist in our “chain of command” at work, we all have the opportunity to lead and take ownership of our team’s success. This book helps to frame out the proper mindset for not only being a great leader, but also a great teammate. This is relevant not just in school and work, but in all of life.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into Duke Fuqua’s MBA program? My advice is reflective of my own MBA admissions journey, which was a long and bumpy road. Thankfully, I was fortunate enough to have the amazing Admissions Director, Meghan, as a resource for me the entire way. For anybody looking to apply to Duke Fuqua’s MBA program, I’d first spend some time reflecting on fit, what’s behind Fuqua’s Decency Quotient, and why the program is looking for the type of candidates it does. Second, I’d spend considerable time building relationships with a few Fuqua candidates who are willing to genuinely support you and your candidacy. Next, I’d give yourself as much time as possible in the application process, whether it be essay writing or exam preparations. If things don’t work out the first time, refine, iterate and re-apply because in the end it will all be worth it.

For fellow veterans, give yourself some latitude and know that you are not defined by your exam score nor your acceptance first time around. I encourage you to reach out to others who have walked the path you’re embarking on. Finally, provide yourself time to iterate and try again but don’t give up on your goal.

DON’T MISS: MEET DUKE FUQUA’S MBA CLASS OF 2024