Meet Vanderbilt Owen’s MBA Class Of 2027

MEETING MARK CUBAN

Anna Cooper completed the immersion in the fall. The rotation exposed her to how healthcare is experienced by all stakeholders, be it patients, caregivers, or clinicians. The immersion also resulted in an unforgettable moment for ’26 alum Mengyang He.

“I observed an orthopedic surgery in the operating room. The surgeon asked me, “What’s the most expensive thing in this room?” I pointed to the machines. He said, “It’s time.” That moment stuck with me. It reframed how I think about efficiency and decision-making; it is not just about optimizing resources, but about respecting time as the scarcest asset.”

That experiential element made all the difference to Anupama Patil. “As a physician, I spent years focused on what happens at the patient level, but I kept seeing how decisions made far from the patient (around financing, staffing, delivery models), shaped the care that could be provided. I came to Owen specifically to understand that side of healthcare. The fact that Nashville is a healthcare hub means I’m not just learning from textbooks – I’m surrounded by the industry. For someone making the jump from clinical medicine into the business of healthcare, that combination was a perfect fit.”

Being in the heart of healthcare carries other advantages for Owen MBAs, adds Tuan Van Hoang Tran, who most recently worked in digital marketing. He cites his Healthcare Strategy and Leadership course as an example.

“[It] feels like a front-row seat to how healthcare is moving in the US. Taught by a healthcare analytics CEO, we analyze all the sub-sectors within the industry. Every class features a guest speaker leading a major healthcare organization, spanning providers, payers, biopharma, entrepreneurs, and reformers like Mark Cuban (I even got to hear him speak and meet him in real life!).”

LEARNING TO LEAD

The Leadership Development Program (LDP) is another signature experience in the Owen MBA. Think of it as the MBA equivalent to an in-house executive development program. A two-year program completed by most students, the LDP is designed to equip students with greater self-awareness and deeper interpersonal skills through professional testing, one-on-one coaching, and small group exercises and discussions. The program is also customized to individual students, who can use their time to plot out career goals, prepare for internships or improve on weaknesses.

Thus far, Ranjani Mosale Vijayakumar has found the professional coaching to be extremely valuable. “[LDP] provides every student with a comprehensive evaluation through the Hogan Assessment and pairs us with an executive coach to guide our growth throughout the MBA. Having several years of professional experience, I wanted to make the most of my time back in school. The opportunity to receive structured coaching, reflection, and feedback while navigating the challenges of business school and recruiting has been incredibly valuable.”

Soonpyo Jeon echoes Vijayakumar’s sentiments. “I value opportunities to reflect on and develop my leadership. Through regular conversations with my LDP mentor, I have been able to reflect on my past experiences and think more deeply about my leadership style. The Executive Coaching sessions have also been particularly valuable, as they encourage us to think through real situations and dilemmas that leaders may face in organizations and consider practical ways to respond.”

“BIG-CITY AND SMALL-CITY VIBES”

Of course, Owen MBAs enjoy the 1-2 punch of Vanderbilt University and Nashville. The former is known as the “Harvard of the South” due to its academic prestige and selective admissions. It wasn’t just Vanderbilt’s prestige that drew Tuan Van Hoang Tran to Midtown.

“The Vanderbilt campus. I have attended many university events outside of the business school, from classical and jazz concerts to basketball and football games. There are world-class performances at Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music almost every week, and I go there frequently. The campus is also a beautiful arboretum.”

The campus itself sits just a mile outside the downtown, making it convenient to access events across the city. Ameesha Munjal frames it as “big-city and small-city vibes” – one that’s “relatively affordable.” And Munjal clicks off another benefit to Vandy’s location.

“Many of my classmates live close to campus, so it is easy to spend time together outside class. That combination of city energy and community has made it a very exciting place to start my MBA.”

And let’s not forget the music scene, adds Paul Kirkpatrick. “It reminds me a lot of my hometown, Austin, where live music is part of the culture. One of the best things about Nashville is that a simple night out with classmates can quickly turn into a live concert shared with friends.”

AN INTERVIEW WITH ASSOCIATE DEAN THOM GOLDEN

Earlier this spring, P&Q reached out to Thom Golden, Associate Dean for Strategic Enrollment Management, to discuss the program’s latest developments, along with how Owen supports international and first-year students. Here are his thoughts on what current and prospective students can expect from the program.

P&Q: What have been the two most important developments in your MBA program over the past year? What type of impact will they have on current and future MBAs?

Golden: “Vanderbilt has a strong history of entrepreneurship and continues to be a place where bold ideas are actively cultivated into ventures that drive economic growth and real-world impact. Recently, a transformational $20 million gift was given to elevate Vanderbilt University’s Center for Entrepreneurship into a best-in-class hub for entrepreneurial excellence. The investment builds on the university’s strengths in entrepreneurship and the center’s goal of supporting undergraduate and graduate students as they become founders, build teams to scale, raise capital, and generate revenue. It will also enhance opportunities to attract world-class faculty and develop curriculum and programmatic infrastructure, creating an interconnected framework for entrepreneurial success.

Located within the Owen Graduate School of Management, the Center for Entrepreneurship serves as the university’s primary hub for business creation, fostering collaboration among internal and external partners, engaging alumni, venture capitalists, and investors to generate, support and commercialize new ventures—all essential elements of Vanderbilt’s vision for business education.

To further illustrate the significance of entrepreneurship at Vanderbilt, this past year, we welcomed over 750 attendees to campus for the inaugural Convoy Conference, a new initiative designed to strengthen the university’s business-generation ecosystem for long-term success. The event brought together alumni, students, and other entrepreneurs, founders, investors, venture capitalists, and C-suite leaders.

The conference featured panel discussions, keynote speaker sessions, pitch competitions, startup showcases, industry breakout sessions, and an awards gala with networking opportunities throughout. Esteemed Vanderbilt community members spoke at the conference, including keynote speakers Mark Cuban, a renowned entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and businessman; Jeff Rothschild (BA’77, MS’79), Founding Engineer and former VP Infrastructure at Facebook, and current angel investor in Frontier Technologies; and Doug French, former CEO of Ascension and current Managing Partner at Santé Ventures, a health and med tech venture capital fund with $1B in assets under management.

The Convoy Conference was a catalyst; more than 150 founders and 80 investors connected, launched ideas, and formed partnerships. Several attendees even secured investors and job offers on the spot. Attendees were also able to interact with several unicorn founders who have come out of Vanderbilt (for context, a unicorn is a privately held startup valued at $1 billion or more, a rare achievement; currently, there are 10 unicorn founders who are alumni of Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management).”

P&Q: What do you see as the main differentiator that distinguishes your MBA program from other schools? How does it enhance the student experience and make them more attractive to employers?

Golden: “The resources available to MBA students are the most critical factor in their success. One of the defining strengths of Vanderbilt’s intentionally small program is the accessibility of these resources to our students. Every student who walks through the door is supported by a Career Coach, Academic Advisor, Leadership Coach, and Executive Coach, all of whom are highly engaged and readily available. To further enhance the student experience, nearly all these resources are available on the first floor of our building, making it easy for students to get the right support at the right time as they work to achieve their goals.

Because of our location, these resources extend beyond our building. Nashville is more than just a great place to live since it offers an exceptional quality of life alongside a thriving business community and rapid economic growth. Nashville routinely receives national accolades such as being named “America’s friendliest city” by Travel + Leisure magazine, one of the 15 best U.S. cities for work and family by Fortune magazine, and one of the 25 cities most likely to have the country’s highest job growth over the coming five years. Our students appreciate the many experiential learning opportunities available throughout the city, extending well beyond traditional internships and full-time roles.”

P&Q: What types of services do you provide to first-year MBAs to ease their transition into business school?

Golden: “Each fall, our team thoughtfully curates the onboarding experience to ensure every student transitions into business school with clarity, confidence, and a strong sense of community from day one.

Even before arriving on campus, incoming students receive comprehensive career support throughout the summer. Beginning just after Welcome Weekend in April, the Career Center works closely with students through personalized coaching and in-depth workshops, equipping them early for a fast-paced and highly competitive recruiting cycle.

To support academic readiness, we offer Math Camp, a pre-program refresher designed to help incoming MBAs prepare for our highly quantitative and analytical curriculum and to ease the transition back into the classroom.

In addition, our Leadership Development Program (LDP) offers students a distinctive opportunity to strengthen their leadership skills. Through personal assessments, individualized coaching, and skill-building workshops, students deepen their self-awareness, broaden their perspectives, and enhance their leadership agility.

We also offer an optional Summer English for Business Purposes program for international students looking to strengthen their language skills. Hosted by Vanderbilt’s English Language Center, this two-week program is offered as part of Orientation and is designed to help students build confidence in an English-speaking academic and professional environment. Participants develop communication skills essential for the classroom and for navigating the MBA recruiting process. This program is especially valuable for students coming from countries where English is not the official language.”

P&Q: What types of support do you provide to international students before and during business school to enable them to better acclimate to your country?

Golden: “Vanderbilt’s deep commitment to international students is evident in the comprehensive, end-to-end support we provide, beginning well before arrival and continuing throughout the MBA experience.

In addition to the optional Summer English for Business Purposes program for incoming international students, we created a new initiative this year offering international admits visa webinar sessions and visa support led by a third-party partner, ZF Visa and Immigration. The comprehensive online F-1 visa interview preparation course, created by former U.S. Consular Officers and experienced immigration attorneys, will serve as a valuable resource to our incoming students navigating the Visa process.

Once students arrive, Vanderbilt offers a structured onboarding experience that includes International Student Welcome Day and orientation programming, designed to help students acclimate academically, socially, and culturally.

Ongoing support is anchored by the International Student & Scholar Services (ISSS) office, which provides continuous advising on immigration, employment, and cultural adjustment, and hosts programs and events that foster community and connection. Additionally, initiatives such as peer mentorship and buddy programs help international students navigate daily life in the U.S., from housing to cultural norms.

Overall, Vanderbilt combines structured guidance, personalized advising, and community-building initiatives to ensure international students can transition smoothly and fully engage in the academic and social environment.”

P&Q: How does your program integrate other disciplines, such as the liberal arts and STEM, across your curriculum to provide students with a more interdisciplinary experience in business school?

Golden: “Vanderbilt’s MBA integrates disciplines across the university to create a genuinely interdisciplinary business education. The program’s flexible curriculum allows students to take approved coursework outside the business school, enabling them to engage with fields such as engineering, medicine, law, and the liberal arts. This structure encourages students to broaden their perspective and apply insights from multiple domains to business challenges.

The program also emphasizes STEM integration, with a STEM-designated MBA and concentrations in areas like analytics and finance. This ensures students develop quantitative and data-driven skills alongside core management training, preparing them for technology-driven industries.

Finally, interdisciplinary learning is reinforced through experiential opportunities including global immersions, consulting projects, and independent studies—where students apply business frameworks in diverse contexts.”

P&Q: What are two ways that your program is incorporating Artificial Intelligence into your programming? How do they better prepare students for the future world of work?

Golden: “At Vanderbilt, AI is not just a topic; it’s a strategic priority embedded throughout the MBA experience. We are committed to continuously evolving our curriculum to reflect the latest advancements, ensuring students graduate with the most relevant skills and the confidence to lead in an increasingly AI-driven business landscape.

Vanderbilt Owen has introduced a number of courses to its MBA program in recent years that incorporate AI, including Artificial Intelligence in Business, AI in Finance, Predictive Analytics and AI, AI-Accelerated Entrepreneurship, and AI in Healthcare. Additionally, many other courses across the curriculum integrate artificial intelligence into their content and assignments.

Rather than treating AI as a standalone topic, Vanderbilt is ensuring students build the data literacy, modeling, and analytical thinking needed to use AI tools effectively in business contexts.”

Next Page: Profiles of 13 Members of the MBA Class of 2027

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