Amanda Faucher

University of Chicago, Booth School of Business

“An insatiably curious TV creative executive, passionate about building community through storytelling.”

Hometown: Los Angeles, California

Fun Fact About Yourself: I do the New York Times crossword every morning and can complete a Sunday puzzle in about 25 minutes.

Undergraduate School and Major: University of California Los Angeles, BA in Psychology with a minor in Film/TV/Digital Media

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Head of Content Development at Nina Wass Productions

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? As someone coming from a somewhat untraditional professional background for the MBA, I was intrigued by Booth’s flexibility in the curriculum which would allow me to carve an academic path uniquely tailored to my interests. Since I only have two years here, I want to be able to take the exact courses I want that propel me towards my goals.

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 you been able to leverage this approach in your career so far?
When selecting a school, I wanted to complement the skills I’d developed during my career with new methods of thinking. Working in television development allowed me to sharpen my storytelling and interpersonal skills, but I recognized that business leaders must rely on data analysis to stay ahead in rapidly -changing creative industries. I am fascinated by this intersection of data and creative interpretation. So far in my career, I’ve been able to apply statistical analysis to examine Nielsen ratings and get a glimpse of audience behavior, or interpret test audience reactions to shows I’ve worked on as a production associate.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at Chicago Booth? I’m looking forward to getting involved with Chicago Women in Business and attending their annual conference! CWiB’s events and mission are uplifting and inspiring. I hope to take part in fostering a welcoming environment for women on campus.

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. Every Boothie I met throughout my application process had one standout trait: generosity. Current students and alumni were generous with their time, spending an hour or more with me to meet over Zoom and share their experiences and advice. I reached out to one second-year student with a similar background to me. When she heard that I had been offered the opportunity to interview with the school, she suggested she and I do a practice interview together. This act of kindness really demonstrated to me that Boothies pay it forward.

What makes Chicago such a great place to earn an MBA? A wide variety of industries are located here, so almost any employer in any industry is at your fingertips! And you can’t beat the food, the nightlife, the endless entertainment and activities. As a born-and-bred Californian, we’ll see if I’m this keen on Chicago in January…but overall I think it’s a pretty unbeatable area!

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Watching a television script I helped source be purchased by a network, developed, and ultimately produced! I had the rare opportunity to be a part of a season of television from its very inception to the final rolling credits. When so many shows are passed on in the development process, it’s special and humbling to see the labor of hundreds of collaborators result in a show that is warmly welcomed into people’s homes each week.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into Chicago Booth’s MBA program? Don’t count yourself out because you think you’re not what a school is looking for in applicants. My background is not particularly quant-heavy but I found ways to supplement my application and demonstrate a readiness to learn more. I also suggest visiting as many schools as you can and get a feel for what personality feels like a match for you. Don’t just rely on what you read online. Talk to current students. Trust your gut.

DON’T MISS: MEET CHICAGO BOOTH’S MBA CLASS OF 2027

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