Meet the Indiana Kelley MBA Class of 2018 by: Jeff Schmitt on October 27, 2016 | | 16,907 Views October 27, 2016 Copy Link Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email Share on LinkedIn Share on WhatsApp Share on Reddit Members of the MBA Class of 2018 at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business MBA applications are really about soul-searching. The process demands discovery, piecing together the past, uncovering motivations, and identifying a path forward. It is time-consuming and exhausting, at times painful, too. When the acceptance letter arrives, it validates that the journey was successful ā and the often uncomfortable self-reflection is over. That is, unless you pick the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University. Then, the cycle has just begun. COACHING CULTURE FOCUSES ON THE āWHYā BEFORE THE āHOWā Think of Kelley as the ultimate coaching culture. It starts on day one with Me, Inc. ā which can best be described as a personal branding bootcamp. Forget starting out with capital structures and competitive strategies. Over two weeks, first-years work in groups of 15-20 to formulate their personal narratives and peel away layers to get to the real value they bring to employers. Itās a process that requires trust ā¦ and, at times, a thick skin. In workshops, candid feedback comes fast and furious from all corners: classmates, second-years, and coaches. Of course, itās all done with trademark Midwestern caring and constructiveness. More importantly, it serves a specific purpose. The courseās underlying DNIP model (Discover, Network, Interview, Perform) is designed to flush out studentsā true interests and values, giving them a clear purpose before they enter the core, choose a concentration, and prep for recruiter interviews. āKelleyās focus on personal discovery during the Me, Inc. orientation program was a huge point of differentiation for me,” says Justin Keating, who joins the incoming class after stints in finance at Target, Bed Bath &Ā Beyond, and Wyndham Worldwide. āEvery other school focused solely on how they help students reach the post-MBA role they desire. This is obviously important, but Kelley was the only school that took the additional step of asking why.ā MOVE OVER KAFKA: FIRST-YEAR DREAMS OF TURNING INTO CLARK GRISWOLD Kelley School of Business at Indiana University Me, Inc. can also be a lighthearted affair, as first-years face their faults with knowing smiles and sympathetic nods from classmates. That was especially true with the Class of 2018, who bring both sass and class to Bloomington. Call them the LOL class, a seriously talented and diverse group of students who would be equally at home in a board room as an open micĀ night. Mark Goldstein, an Emory grad and Bloomberg alum, describes himself as ā50% the Energizer Bunny, 30% Brawny Man, and 20% Tony the Tiger.ā Matthew Miller, a former minor league pitcher and āsarcastic movie quoter,ā believes heāll one day turn into Clark Griswold, the protagonist of the National Lampoon’s Vacation movies. Theyāll be joined by Pat Corbett, a college mascot aficionado who channels his inner Sir Thomas More in calling himself āA man of conviction, not convenience.ā Letās not forget Seann Kim, a West Point grad and Green Beret who personifies Americaās standing as a melting pot. āIām a first-generation American of half-Korean, half-Finnish descent. My wife is a beautiful redhead from the South. Together, we brought amazing blond children into this world.ā The class also boasts its share of thrill seekers. Look no further than Jackie Doppen. How is this for branding: āIām an advanced certified scuba diver, Iāve ridden an ostrich, Iāve gone extreme caving, and Iāve flown in an aerobatic stunt plane.ā Whoa! Alexander Ivanov, a Deanās Fellow at Kelley, nearly became a news story while exploring caves in rural Russia. āI got so excited about a discovery of new passageways of the river that I missed a check-in time with friends who waited at the entrance to the cave and almost called for a rescue mission.ā Youāll also find this same zest for adventure inĀ Yazmin Nava, an undergrad philosophy major who took a four-month solo backpacking trip through Central and South America after serving in the Peace Corps. No doubt, the 2018 Class would make killer cocktail guests. Leah Koch admits to being terrified of rollercoasters for years ā¦ even though her family owns a theme park. Paul Scholtenās calling card is being a professional opera singer. ButĀ thatās not his go-to story. āI once appeared completely naked in a scene on stage,ā he says. Letās not forget Tucson native Shayna Kuper, who grew up idolizing WNBA guard Diana Taurasi. Now, theyāre part of each otherās lives ā sort of. āOur dogs are friends,ā KuperĀ quips. CLASS INCLUDES A STUDENT WHO HELPED PLAN THE WNBA ALL-STAR GAME Two things that can be said about this yearās class: They learn fast and they get results. Ivanov, for example, knew little about the oil and gas industry when he joined Schlumberger as a junior field engineer. Fast forward four years and he had risen to being a field service manager who managed a $50 million portfolio and collected the firmās coveted Award for Innovation, Teamwork and Impact along the way. Goldstein followed a similar path, somehow landing a job with Bloomberg without knowing what a hedge fund was. Four years later? āIām able to walk into the largest global hedge funds and have meaningful (and revenue-generating) conversations about their organizational structure and market data spend and usage,ā he says. Ray Luther For Kuper, the most rewarding accomplishment was bringing a global event to life. In 2014, she worked as the senior marketing manager for the Phoenix Mercury. With the WNBA All-Star game being held in Phoenix, she was responsible for marketing the event, which included the āmarketing plan, ticket sales tactics, community outreach, season ticket holder inclusion, in-arena giveaways, downtown signage, promotions, and more.ā During the process, she watched with pride as her efforts were successfully rolled out. āAfter the All-Star Game ended and the sold-out crowd cleared out of the arena,ā she says, āall I could do was smile. Over the years Iāve had a lot of great memories on the Mercury court, but in that moment I had never felt more accomplished or eager for my next challenge.ā The Kelley community is also eager to see what this class can do. āWeāre just getting to know the Class of 2018,ā writes Ray Luther, executive director of the Kelley MBA program, ābut weāre already impressed by what weāre seeing here as these students begin their MBA journey, both as individuals and as a unifying group. We always partner with our students to helpĀ them become the most polished and refined version of themselves; so when a class comes to us with such a wide and accomplished spectrum of experience as this year has, itās an exciting prospect to imagine the āultimate versionā that will doubtless take shape, as they experience the coaching, support, and challenges of the Kelley MBA program!” APPLICATIONS AND GMATS UP The impressive accolades and big personalities are just the start with the Class of 2018. The class profile is pointed up as well. Applications surged from 1,471 in 2014-2015 to 1,532 in 2015-2016, which yielded a 185-member class and a 31% acceptance rate (up from 29% the previous year). Meanwhile, average GMAT scores climbed from 668 to 670, with median GMAT scores holding steady at 680. Overall, 37% of the class completed GMATs with a score of 700 or more, and overall,Ā scores ranged from 550-760. Undergraduate GPAs came in at 3.34 on average, down a hair from 3.36 in the 2017, with 85% of the class boasting 3.0 or higher (including 37% with a 3.5 average or above). Among undergraduate majors, business came out on top at 38% of the class, followed by STEM (32%) and social sciences and humanities (27%). Demographically, 30% of the class is comprised of women, up from 29%. The percentage of international students held steady at 36%. U.S. minorities, however, only account for 14% of the class, down four points from last year. Despite Kelleyās reputation as a āMidwest school,ā just 27% of the class hails from the heartland, as sizable portions of the class feature students from the East (16%) and West (17%). Continue ReadingPage 1 of 15 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Questions about this article? Email us or leave a comment below. Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.