Marianna Shakhnazaryan

University of Chicago, Booth School of Business

“Public servant and proud Chicagoan, connecting people and ideas to drive lasting social change.”

Hometown: Hawthorn Woods, IL

Fun Fact About Yourself: Over the summer, my fiancé and I let our lease in D.C. expire in June and left our jobs to travel around the world before moving to Chicago for the fall semester — a trip that involved 26 flights and took us to 18 countries from Japan to Montenegro to Portugal — before ending in Morocco with our pre-orientation group trip.

Undergraduate School and Major: University of Southern California, International Relations

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Senior Advisor to the Deputy Director, National Gallery of Art

Aside from your classmates and location, what was the key part of Chicago Booth’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? Hearing from students and professors, it was clear that Booth stands out with its focus on empowering and building leaders. These are leaders who are not just focused on professional growth and organizational success, but see leadership more holistically – as an opportunity for collaboration, mentorship, and personal growth. Booth’s network is unparalleled. In my conversations, it became clear that there is a strong thread of connection and pride between Booth’s current students and alumni, and I was excited about the opportunity to be a part of that community.

The Booth MBA is also known for being highly data-driven. Why does the program’s focus on quantitative analysis and decision-making appeal to you? How have been able to leverage this approach in your career so far? Coming from a non-quantitative background, this was the element of the Booth MBA that most compelled me. Although much of my work in the public sector has been qualitative, there is a greater focus now than ever on empirical data and decision-making. In my work at the National Gallery, for example, I helped support the growth of the visitor evaluation department, which looked at our visitor data and sampling to better meet demographics where they are at, design programs with a people-first approach, and build a truly inclusive national institution.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at Chicago Booth? I’m most interested in joining the Social Impact Club as it will be a core focus of my recruiting pursuits and professional life after business school. As someone who loves community and activity, the others I am most drawn to include Wine Club, BOLD, and Running Club.

What has been your first impression of the Booth MBA students and alumni you’ve met so far? Tell us your best Booth story so far. On our travels this summer, it seems everyone I meet had some connection to Booth. We were at the fjords in Norway when a fellow American visitor introduced himself, and we made the connection that he graduated from Booth 40 years ago – and still counts it as one of his greatest experiences. Here I was, in the cold plunge, 4,000 miles away, and we were talking about Booth professors and the strength of the international network. Not an alumni story specifically, but when I was on campus for Welcome Weekend in the spring, our car battery died and we were trying to wave down traffic for nearly a half hour in search of spark plugs. When I walked into the Booth building, an admissions officer didn’t even hesitate, and ran to find her own car and drive against traffic to jumpstart ours. It was such a testament to the neighborliness of this community, and makes me proud and excited to return to the Midwest.

What makes Chicago such a great place to earn an MBA? I’m biased as someone raised in the suburbs, but I truly think Chicago is the greatest city in the world. It gives me so much pride when friends visit and fall in love with it, though it never comes as a surprise. It’s truly multicultural, and has been on the forefront of urban development and industry for two centuries. The history, architecture, and lakeshore all add to its charm.

Booth and the University of Chicago have become integrated and synonymous with the city. I believe all learning should have meaningful and practical impact. Rather than being removed or isolated, Booth provides the opportunity to learn from and support and be part of the city.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: I’m proud to have spent the last five years of my professional life at the National Gallery of Art, a rich and storied institution that has seen so much from its perch on the National Mall in Washington D.C. Our biggest challenge has been to continue to help it evolve. This evolution means it is not just as a jewel box of some of the world’s most important works, but as a living and breathing space. It would be a space that continues to be relevant in this century with a new generation of visitors and a new generation of artists, when cultural spaces are more precious than ever. This means enhancing the visitor experience and helping people understand the art and the space. Our work over the last five years has resulted in record visitation (the most visited art museum in the U.S. and fifth in the world), a rebranding that modernized the 80-year-old gallery, and initiatives like National Gallery Nights which engage a younger generation of visitors through immersive experiences after-hours.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into Chicago Booth’s MBA program? While I don’t have much of a window into my admissions decision, mine led with my personal story. It is one centered around my mother’s bravery in fleeing her home country as an Armenian refugee in Azerbaijan. With that comes the responsibility I felt to make good on her sacrifice with a sense of ambition and hard work. It is that sense of purpose that inspired me to pursue a business degree in the first place, and quite candidly, a level of honesty around my uncertainty and my desire to explore what may be next.

You may know what you want to do after business school when you apply. Unless you are open to changing your mind based on what you learn and how you grow, you are closing yourself off to so many rich pathways and career opportunities. First and foremost, I see business school as an opportunity to challenge my priors, grow my toolbox, and emerge as a more nimble leader open to a more winding path. When you’re surrounded by so many brilliant and motivated and hardworking people, leave yourself some room to get inspired, to find business partners, take risks, and expose yourselves to new things. Be unabashedly yourself, and the right doors will open.

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