Rasika Karve

Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business

“Ambitious, diligent, and easygoing by nature, I am always eager to try out new experiences.”

Hometown: Mumbai, India

Fun fact about yourself: Backpacked across 19 countries to-date and the coolest experience was a submarine ride in Mauritius!

Undergraduate School and Degree:

Undergraduate Degree: Mumbai University, Bachelor of Commerce

Graduate Degree: The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), Chartered Accountant (CPA Equivalent)

Where was the last place you worked before enrolling in business school? Marico Limited (CPG Multinational based in India) as Business Finance Manager

Where did you intern during the summer of 2023? Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Pittsburgh, PA

Where will you be working after graduation? Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Pittsburgh, PA – Consultant

Community Work and Leadership Roles in Business School:

President – Tepper Consulting Club (TCC)

VP, Alumni Relations – South Asian Business Association (SABA)

I was also awarded the Thomas M. Kerr Ethics in Business Scholarship

Forte Fellow

Communication Coach with the Accelerate Leadership Center

Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? Leading the Consulting Club (TCC) in my second year was one of the highlights of my MBA and the achievement I am most proud of. TCC is one of the biggest clubs at Tepper, and I am grateful for the trust my peers placed in me to lead the club. I gained a lot from it during my recruiting and wanted to give back by carrying forward the TCC legacy. Despite a tough recruiting year, with the support of a strong board of 13, we were able to make the most of it through rigorous programming, structured mentorship, and reintroducing in-person consulting trek post COVID. Overall, this experience pushed me outside my comfort zone and helped me grow as a leader.

What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? My BCG internship was a rewarding experience, and I am proud of the impact I was able to create for my client. I was tasked with identifying profit improvement opportunities by breaking down high-level savings into short-term, tangible milestones. I also built Tableau dashboards from the ground-up, to track these savings worth $100M+ over 3 years. The dashboard rollout was a success, and it was gratifying to see the tool be used in CXO discussions to inform future strategic decisions. I grew as a leader in my role by taking ownership of my workstream and delivering on specific, time-sensitive client needs. I am excited to join back full-time and get to work on such impactful projects!

Why did you choose this business school? As I was exploring my B-School options and speaking with current students, Tepper’s intimate class-size and the resulting tight-knit community really stood out for me. Moving to another country was a big change and alongside Tepper’s strong pipeline in consulting (which I was looking to pivot into), this business school also showed a strong promise for collaboration. And surely over the past year-and-a-half at Tepper, I got to experience that and met some incredible classmates, with inspiring backgrounds, along the way.

Who was your favorite MBA professor? Professor David Goyette – I took his ‘Acting for Business’ course last Fall and thoroughly enjoyed it! Professor Goyette has a natural, easy-going way of teaching. The classes were very engaging and fun. I was introduced to a whole new world of acting and its interesting applications in the world of business. Professor Goyette made sure to give each student personalized feedback, was always invested in our growth, and even took out time on non-class days to help practice our duet and monologues.

What was your favorite course as an MBA? I took Professor Robert Dammon’s Corporate Restructuring class in my year 2 and got rich learnings from the course. The class focuses on restructuring transactions, such as mergers and acquisitions, and divestitures. As someone who has always been keen on this space, I really enjoyed learning the intricacies of structuring deals at a financial and strategic level. Professor Dammon’s classes were very engaging, and I loved how he simplified core concepts for enhanced learning.

What was your favorite MBA event or tradition at your business school? My favorite event would be the Diwali Bash 2023 hosted by SABA. I was part of the organizing board and it was great sharing the Indian culture with our non-South Asian classmates as #TepperTogether. The event was a huge success with performances from classmates across various art forms including Bollywood dances, singing, and a fashion show. It was a night filled with energy, nostalgia, and positivity.

Looking back over your MBA experience, what is the one thing you’d do differently and why? Looking back, I would have liked to explore more classes outside of Tepper. I took a wood-working class last fall in CMU’s College of Engineering and enjoyed building things from scratch. I would have liked to explore other CMU courses in disciplines such as AI, language, and music.

What is the biggest myth about your school? ‘CMU Tepper has a heavy focus on quants’ – While Tepper has a number of courses which are quant-heavy, it also offers courses in other areas such as Organizational Behavior, Communications and Entrepreneurship. I felt there was a healthy balance between quants and soft skills. Some of my favorite classes at Tepper like Negotiations and Marketing for Entrepreneurship were from such varied disciplines.

What surprised you the most about business school? Coming in, I anticipated all classmates’ experience to be similar given that we would all go through the same programming. But I loved how flexible the experience of a business school can be, allowing each student to tailor their MBA experience. Some classmates aimed to transition into new career paths, while others wanted to focus on refining essential skills such as communication and leadership. Despite our busy schedules, we eventually found a way to balance classwork, recruiting, and social life. There is no one ‘right’ way, rather each of us were able to chart our unique path to success.

Which MBA classmate do you most admire? Peter Vannorsdall is a classmate I really admire, especially his work ethic and commitment to giving back to the Tepper community. Peter served as the VP of Professional Development on TCC, a role through which he led high impact recruiting initiatives. I love his engagement in class discussions, his meticulous academic approach, and how he is always up to help classmates in any way he can!

What are the top two items on your professional bucket list? Working on a project overseas and becoming an impactful leader are the top two items on my bucket list. I have enjoyed my pre-MBA experience working cross-culturally and want to keep expanding my horizons by experiencing a new culture e.g. in Europe. I also want to grow into a leader who leads with purpose, integrity, and courage while creating a lasting positive impact on society and community. I want to be a reliable mentor for the next generation of leaders and inspire change for the greater good!

What made Rasika such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2024?  

“After successful jobs in accounting and finance, Rasika came to Tepper to pivot into a consulting career. A tremendous student, Rasika has immersed herself in the curriculum and pursued a broad and rigorous approach to her learning.

In the ultra-competitive consulting field, Rasika interned at BCG and she will join BCG on a full-time basis after graduation.

She was president of the largest club in the program, the Tepper Consulting Club (TCC). She organized and led the TCC Board to assist classmates and first-year students interested in recruiting for Consulting/Strategy positions. Rasika devoted a significant amount of time each week to work with the Board as well as to work directly with first year students. She is always willing to listen to multiple points of view and she works collaboratively to identify and resolve issues.”

Lesley Kromer
Director of the Masters Career Center at Carnegie Mellon University’s Tepper School of Business 

DON’T MISS: MBAS TO WATCH: CLASS OF 2024