Emily Collier

Texas A&M University, Mays Business School

“Coffee enthusiast and lover of family, friends, summertime, and good food.”

Hometown: San Antonio, Texas

Fun Fact About Yourself: I make homemade ravioli and gnocchi every year.

Undergraduate School and Major: Texas A&M University, Chemical Engineering

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Valero Energy Corp, Process Optimization and Support Intern

Aside from your classmates and location, what was the key part of the Mays MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? Texas A&M is unparalleled in culture, especially in terms of putting core values into action. It was easy to want to learn in a fast-paced environment with strong values and traditions. The exciting environment of Aggie football games doesn’t hurt either.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at Texas A&M Mays? Currently, my favorite course is Business Analytics. It is exciting to see finance and accounting knowledge merge to make values meaningful and applicable to real decision-making.

Looking at your recruitment, what was the moment when you realized that Mays was the right graduate program for you? Why? When I attended my first informational for the Mays MBA Program, I remember having an internal checklist and when it was over all my boxes were checked. The informational predicted a challenging program that would push my limits, teach me to grow personally, and create opportunities for me.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: In refineries, increasing feed to the alkylation unit usually translates to an increase in profit. I am most proud of my efforts to optimize a refinery alkylation unit by attempting to increase the number of barrels per day that were processed. I was able to identify the source of the bottleneck within the alkylation unit to test sending more propane and propylene(feed) into the unit.

What is your unique quality that will enable you to make a big contribution to the Class of 2026? Why? My love for meeting new people, combined with my commitment to learn, helps make my contribution unique. I thrive when forming relationships with people and hearing their perspectives which is a large aspect of any MBA program. This social aspect paired with my analytical thinking, developed through my engineering degree, balances the technical and social dimensions I can bring to the group.

Looking ahead two years, what would make your MBA experience successful? If I can solve the everyday technical problems refineries have with a business perspective in mind, the MBA experience will be successful for me.

DON’T MISS: MEET THE TEXAS A&M MAYS MBA CLASS OF 2026