Meet the MBA Class of 2026: Ava Metzger, Cornell University (Johnson)

Ava Metzger

Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management, Cornell SC Johnson College of Business

“I am an excitable, stubborn, passionate woman from the North, always seeking new experiences.”

Hometown: Anchorage, Alaska

Fun Fact About Yourself:  I have been skiing since I was 2 years old. My parents came from completely different sides of the nation (Queens, New York, and Kent, Washington), met skiing in Alaska, and never looked back.

Undergraduate School and Major: University of Alaska-Anchorage, Economics; Minors in Business Administration and Sociology

Most Recent Employer and Job Title:  Naniq Global Logistics, Director of Marketing And Client Engagement

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of Cornell’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? I was drawn to graduates’ descriptions of the close-knit campus culture and knew I wanted to be in a region where I could easily engage in my favorite outdoor activities. My partner and our pups thrive in quiet, natural spaces, and Ithaca provides just that.

What excites you the most about living in Ithaca and the Finger Lakes region? Being outdoors feeds my soul; I love to hike, fish, camp, walk, bike and do anything I can in nature with my two pups, Wedge and Pepper. I’m very excited to get out on the trails with them and explore the region.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at Cornell? I’m most excited for the Roy H. Park Fellowship programming, which begins in the first week of August with outdoor activities and a welcome dinner. I’m looking forward to meeting the other fellows to start to get to know my cohort and make some friends in my new home, and the activities are right up my alley: being outside and eating!

Looking at your recruitment, what was the moment when you realized Johnson was the right program for you? Why? When I was offered my Park and Forte fellowships, I knew Johnson was right for me. Cost was a major component in my decision, and the opportunity to earn my MBA completely debt-free made that decision easy.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: I believe I have made the most positive impact during my tenure at my current company, Naniq. I started in a client relations position working on saving a single failing contract. By relating to the client stakeholders, gaining their trust by following through with my improvement plans, and investing months into retraining the operational team, I helped my company retain a contract worth more than $30 million and helped my new co-workers avoid a layoff. By hiring further support for that team and continuing to monitor the client relationship, I assisted the team in attaining high client satisfaction, which led to a five-year contract renewal — the longest term we have ever won with this client.

Understanding the granular issues that contributed to our initial failure to meet the client’s need and working hard to build relationships with our operations team and the more than 20 client stakeholders brought me an incredible sense of fulfillment.

Looking ahead two years, what would make your MBA experience successful? In two years, I hope to have been recruited by a company that I respect in a role that suits my skill set and brings me new learning opportunities. I also hope to have a close group of MBA friends to continue lasting relationships with.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into Cornell’s MBA program? Be thorough in the preparation of your application materials and highlight what makes you stand out; everyone has something unique about them. Learn how to talk about it and exemplify it in your storytelling throughout your essays and interviews. Best of luck!

DON’T MISS: MEET CORNELL JOHNSON’S MBA CLASS OF 2026