Ashley Allen

University of Virginia, Darden School of Business

“Leader with a passion for storytelling and a drive to enable positive change in others.”

Hometown: Orono, MN

Fun Fact About Yourself: I was on the Danish national lacrosse team!

Undergraduate School and Major: Macalester College, B.A. in Economics and International Studies

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Writer at Marvel Comics and DC Comics; Marketing Strategist at Solventum

What makes the case method so attractive as a means to learn and become a better manager? When first deciding to pursue my MBA, people told me to spend time in my first year “pressure testing” everything I was curious about pursuing after graduation. I see the case method as an opportunity to do just that. With cases, you can freely apply ideas that you are learning in the classroom to real world scenarios. Freely being able to fully debate the merits of an idea with peers without feeling pressure to come to the “right” answer is such a gift. This exchange of ideas allows us to challenge our preconceived ways of thinking and truly find new modes of operating. This will serve us as managers, not only being able to enable our teams to exchange ideas but also guide conversation and ask the right questions that will help us transform our communities.

Aside from cases and classmates, what was the key part of Virginia Darden’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? I attribute my love of learning to my professors throughout the years. The world is so vast that I constantly am in awe of the people I meet and the things I learn about. Maybe that’s why I decided to become a writer so I have an excuse to keep learning about new subjects.

Passionate teachers have the ability to truly transform their students’ lives. Darden consistently ranks as a school with the best faculty in the world. They are passionate about what they teach, but more so they are passionate about being mentors, coaches, and advocates for their students. They are central to creating the tight-knit community Darden is known for. Moving to a new city for two years and uprooting my life, I wanted to make sure I felt energized coming to class every day and knew that Darden’s faculty would do just that.

What course, club, or activity excites you the most at Virginia Darden? I’m excited to get involved in the Media, Entertainment and Sports Club! I was surprised to find out that Charlottesville has a huge MES scene – whether that be UVA sports, the music scene in downtown, or the Virginia Film Festival! I’m excited to get connected to other students passionate about the world of MES and help forge connections with the city of Charlottesville’s already robust MES scene! Also, coming from a D3 school, I’m excited to get to experience a D1 football team and the school spirit that comes with it!

What are your early impressions of Charlottesville? I love it! Charlottesville has the tight-knit community of a small town with all the amenities of a larger city. My favorite thing so far is how integrated into nature Charlottesville is. There are hiking trails and walking paths scattered throughout the city and some even behind Darden’s campus! Additionally, there are so many hidden gems in Charlottesville and around the surrounding cities that I can’t wait to explore with classmates on day trips!

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: This past January, I launched a comic book series with Marvel Comics titled MAGIK. It’s my first on-going series and I spent a year of pre-production before the series ever hit the market. It’s the character’s first ongoing series, so we weren’t sure how it would initially be received – especially since she hasn’t had an official Marvel Cinematic Universe tie-in. However, to our surprise, we launched as the fifth best-selling comic in January and have been in the top 10 best-selling comics weekly (for context, about 100+ comics are released weekly). Being on the list with books written by some of my favorite authors I grew up reading (Scott Snyder, Jeff Lemire, Gail Simone) has been surreal and I don’t think I will ever get used to it.

It has been so fun to see fans resonate with the stories we are telling and I can’t wait for Year 2!

What is your unique quality that will enable you to make a big contribution to the Class of 2027? Why? I love connecting different groups of people together. As a writer, I’ve always been immensely curious about the world around me, including the people that I meet. Finding out what people are passionate about gives me energy and I love when I can help connect those people to others that I’ve met in my life who share similar interests. I’ve been lucky enough to have a great series of mentors and advocates in my life who have helped me to become my own self-advocate, so I love when I can be the same to others. I want to enable them to chase their dreams and goals and hopefully help them act in the same fashion for others. I’m excited to help build intentional community in the Class of 2027 that continues even after our time at Darden!

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into Virginia Darden’s MBA program? Be clear about your why and specifically how it relates to both you as an individual and your impact in the communities you find yourself in. One of the key things that drew me to Darden’s program is their emphasis on making an impact on the world and paying it forward. When crafting your application, make sure to dive into your reasoning behind your decisions both from a personal and professional sense. Self-reflection is key and will help you determine what business school is right for you. Remember – you are evaluating the school as much as they are evaluating you!

DON’T MISS: MEET THE MBA CLASS OF 2027: STUDENTS TODAY, LEADERS TOMORROW, INNOVATORS ALWAYS

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