Emily Torrealba

Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business

“The name Emily means “industrious”. I’ve tried to live up to its meaning my entire life.”

Hometown: Arlington TX

Fun Fact About Yourself: I am a certified Yoga instructor and teach classes on the CMU campus.

Undergraduate School and Major: Arkansas Tech University- Mechanical Engineering and CMU Tepper-Finance and Strategy

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: EBI Consulting, Project Manager

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of Carnegie Mellon’s MBA curriculum and programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? Tepper’s focus on the intersection of technology, business, and innovation drew me in initially. As an engineer, I wanted to be in a program that could build on my technical foundation.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at Carnegie Mellon: The Global Entrepreneurship Club, the Finance Club, and the Soccer Club!

The Tepper MBA is known for intensive one-on-one coaching and personal development. What area do you hope to strengthen during your two years in business school and why? I am excited to learn more about finance. While working as an engineer and project manager, I continually interacted with the financial aspect of projects and am interested in deepening my knowledge.

The Tepper MBA is also known for being highly data-driven Why does the program’s focus on quantitative analysis and decision-making appeal to you? How have been able to leverage this approach in your career so far? Tepper’s focus on quantitative analysis was a major selling point when I was considering the program initially. As an engineer and project manager, utilizing data to present solutions to clients I have worked with has been a key to setting my team up for success and provides validity to proposed solutions.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: It’s pretty straight forward, but it would be moving to New York City alone at 22 years old and advancing from an entry level design engineer to become a project manager within 4 years. I was a homeschooled kid and am both a first-generation American and first-generation college graduate. I am proud and grateful to have carved my own path.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into Carnegie Mellon’s MBA program? Taking on any professional management opportunities can be very beneficial. My experience managing a team of professionals was something that helped me become a better leader. It is also important to give yourself plenty of time in the application process. I started studying for standardized exams a few months before I needed to take them. This was helpful to reduce the workload when it was time to apply for grad school because I was able to focus on my essay and not split my attention between work, exams, and studying! Applying to grad school was a meaningful time of self-reflection for me. I am glad I did not rush it.