Tianie Scott (She/Her)

UC Berkeley, Haas School of Business

“I am strong, gregarious, inquisitive, and a natural-born leader.”

Hometown: Minneapolis, MN

Fun Fact About Yourself: Before I started my undergrad, I weighed almost 300 pounds. Throughout college I was able to change my eating habits and lifestyle and ended up losing over 100 pounds.

Undergraduate School and Major: University of California Santa Cruz: Business Management and Economics major

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: U.S. Army: Signals Intelligence Voice Interceptor

Berkeley Haas is founded on four Defining Leadership Principles: Question the Status Quo, Confidence Without Attitude, Students Always, and Beyond Yourself. Which principle resonates most with you and why? The Defining Leadership Principle that resonates the most with me is Question the Status Quo. I wanted to be in business school surrounded by people who weren’t afraid to challenge the norm to make a positive change in the world. Thinking outside the book brings forth diversity of thought within the classroom and beyond. This diversity of thought is a great way to learn and grow as a person, which is extremely important to me.

What excites you about earning your MBA in the Bay Area? The endless opportunities that are available. The Bay Area is beautiful, and there is great access to not only companies here but innovation. The Bay Area is the epicenter of new ideas, and I’m excited to be part of it.

What was the key part of Berkeley Haas’ MBA curriculum or programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? I was drawn to Haas for a number of different reasons. I think the main one being Berkeley’s focus on inclusion and focus on developing leaders who come from all different walks of life. As a lesbian woman of color, being in a space that allowed me to truly be myself without being judged was very important to me. The Haas students embrace you as you are and really want to see and help you succeed!

What course, club, or activity excites you the most at Berkeley Haas? The opportunity to travel with my classmates excites me the most—whether it be on an international trek, a weekend of fun in Vegas, a camping trip to Yosemite, or a visit to corporate headquarters. It’s not often that you get the opportunity to travel with hundreds of your new friends!

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far:  My biggest accomplishment in my career so far is being awarded the Joint Service Commendation Medal for leading a team of 14 joint service members and civilians in the translation, transcribing, and reporting of high-level foreign military intelligence information.

At this point, what do you hope to do after graduation? Post-graduation, I would like to go into real estate private equity. I’ve always really been very interested in real estate. I’m excited to make this career pivot and learn how to raise capital to acquire, develop, operate, improve, and sell real estate to generate a profit.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into Berkeley Haas’ MBA program? The application process requires a lot of introspection to pinpoint exactly what you want to get out of your MBA experience, so I would recommend giving yourself enough time to explore that. I think it’s important to connect with as many Haas students as possible to really understand the culture and community here. Through your essays and interviews, the admissions team can recognize how well you understand the culture, and how well you can convey why Haas is the right fit for you, and why you are a right fit for Haas.

DON’T MISS: MEET THE BERKELEY HAAS MBA CLASS OF 2026