Meet Chicago Booth’s MBA Class Of 2023

University of Chicago

SERVICE, SCHOOL, AND PARENTING

Contrast that with Katie Pelkey. In the U.S. Coast Guard, she served as a helicopter instructor pilot and administration officer. A sponsored student, she will return to the service to work in budgeting after graduation. While earning an MBA can be daunting, she was already a pretty heavy load before business school.

One of the most continually challenging aspects of my life is trying to balance all the obligations and requirements of serving, especially with an active-duty spouse, while also managing a family. Through it all, balance is almost unachievable but is always sought after. I have also developed a strong resiliency over time.”

Resilient is one trait that you can ascribe to Rishav Dhar, who once worked as a “waiter, entrepreneur, writer, and event manager — all within a week’s time as a full time student.” An analyst with the Clinton Health Access Initiative, his resiliency was tested during the COVID-19 outbreak.

RUNNING FOR OFFICE…AT 21

“Helping the Government of India scale up COVID-19 testing from a few hundred tests per day to a few million tests per day, during the initial few months of the pandemic was the most fulfilling project of my life,” he writes. “Working with the bureaucrats, epidemiologists, engineers, and logistics experts from across a country as large and diverse as India, to impact something this important was one of the most challenging yet humbling experiences to date.”

Outside of career and classroom, Ashley Fields is a screenwriter who wrapped up her first script last year. At 21, Jaron Hite ran to be a state representative in Illinois. Edward Kent, a serial entrepreneur from London, is working towards a Master of Spirits qualification. At the same time, Andrew Triggs has visited all 50 states, while Emma Lawler has worked remotely in nine different cities ranging from Barcelona to Buenos Aires. Thus far, Lawler has deeply motivated by her peers.

“I’m consistently amazed by how much each student or alumnus has accomplished and the passion they bring to their work. In the beginning, I was greatly influenced by each conversation, discovering new opportunities with each person I talked to — internships, recruiting, networking, clubs, travel, and more. Each person has a truly inspiring path and they want to bring you along with them. I’m excited to surround myself with such an ambitious group of people, and I’m taking every opportunity to learn from each of their unique backgrounds.”

Chicago Booth classroom. Chicago Booth photo

GMAT SCORES SKYROCKET

As a whole, Chicago Booth received 5,037 applications for a spot in the Class of 2023. That was up 2.6% over the previous year. Ultimately, the program enrolled 620 students, consistent with previous years. One big difference, however, was average GMAT. This year’s class posted a 732 mean, up eight points over the previous year. Even more, it was just a point below the Wharton School and five points better than in-city rival Northwestern Kellogg. This year’s scores ranged from 590-790, as 82% of the class submitting GMAT scores. By the same token, 18% chose the GRE, producing 163 scores for Quantitative and 162 for Verbal.

Women account for 42% of the Class of 2023, the highest percentage in three years. International students also make up 39% of the class, a number that expands to 49% when you factor in students who were born outside the United States. Overall, the class hails from 56 countries. That includes 15.9% and 13.1% from Asia and Latin America respectively. Europeans amount to 4.3% of the class, followed by students from Canada (2.6%), Middle East (1.5%), and Africa (1.3%). U.S. minorities encompass another 42% of the class, with first generation students (9%), military veterans (6%), and LGBTQ+ students (5%) also heavily represented in the program.

Academically, the Class of 2023 comes from 262 undergraduate institutions worldwide. On average, they hit a 3.60 GPA on a 4.0 scale. 16% of the class already holds a graduate degree, not counting the 14 students who are pursuing a dual JD-MBA. As undergraduates, the class is nearly equally split across three disciplines: Business (27.4%), Engineering (23.8%), and Economics (23.5%). Liberal Arts and Physical Sciences constitute 11.6% and 8.6% of the class respectively.

When it comes to professional experience, the largest segment of the class last worked in consulting. Their 23% share edged out Financial Services (20%), with Technology (12%) and Non-Profits and Government (11%) also cracking double-digits for representation. The class also includes sizable shares with experience in Private Equity and Venture Capital (7%), Healthcare (5%), Consumer Products (4%), Energy (3%), and Manufacturing (2%).

The Charles M. Harper Center, which houses the Chicago Booth School of Business pictured on Friday, May 5, 2017, in Chicago. (Photo by Joel Wintermantle)

AN INTERVIEW WITH THE DEPUTY DEAN

Consulting remains a popular exit point at Booth too. In 2021, 34.4% of the graduating chose consulting, with 27% landing jobs in Financial Services. Another 22.9% entered the Tech sector. Overall, the class pulled down $178,450 in total compensation up from $170,010 the previous year. This number also represents a $34,000 bump over the past five years. And the coming years are looking promising as well. In December, P&Q reached out to Starr Marcello, deputy dean for MBA programs at the Booth School of Business to learn what current and future students can expect. From new centers and DEI initiatives to a deeper dive into the Chicago Approach, here are the latest developments at Booth (with additional information supplied by Jessica Jaggers, dean of students and associate dean, student life and MBA programs).

P&Q: What are two biggest differentiating features of your MBA program? How do each of these enrich the learning of your MBA students? 

Marcello: “Among the biggest differentiators of the Booth MBA are its flexible curriculum and its community. The Booth MBA empowers students to select courses that fit their experience, interests, and career goals. The flexible curriculum, rooted in the fundamentals of business—accounting, economics, psychology, sociology, and statistics—is delivered by the world’s best faculty members, pillars of the Chicago Booth community. The Booth community possesses a combination of collaboration and competition, fostering critical thinking while creating a fun and inspiring environment in which students learn. With the support of the Booth community, students can take risks and aim high on their path to becoming stellar global leaders. This community continues well past graduation, with a dynamic and supportive Booth alumni network of 55,000 leaders in every corner of the world.”

P&Q: What are the two most exciting developments at your program and how will they enrich the MBA experience for current and future MBAs?

Marcello: “Our multidisciplinary curriculum provides students analytical frameworks needed to succeed. It evolves and grows to meet the rapidly changing business climate with agility, yet maintains the core values that distinguish it from any other MBA program. Whether in Chicago, Hong Kong, or London, our accomplished faculty creates knowledge among current and future leaders. Here are some examples of Booth’s influencers and work:

Starr Marcello. Chicago Booth photo

* Booth’s Center for Applied Artificial Intelligence launched an initiative to help identify bias against women and people of color in care-management programs.

* A Booth faculty member discovered that many healthcare scenarios could benefit from those with business acumen and by connecting entrepreneurs to medical expertise. Dr. Olufunmilaya Olopade is the Walter L. Palmer Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine and Human Genetics, associate dean for global health, and director of the Center for Clinical Cancer Genetics and of the Center for Global Health at the University of Chicago. Dr. Olopade created a course for Booth students entitled “Global Health and Social Policy.”  The course covers topics such as reproductive health, data, data science, and climate change.

* In 2020, we launched an initiative to integrate diversity and inclusion across courses to help students feel a greater sense of belonging, and to build a more diverse and equitable learning and teaching environment. This includes strengthening our relationships with neighborhood partners to encourage a deeper and more consistent dialogue with diverse communities toward creating true social impact and change.

* Mindworks is the world’s first lab and interactive space dedicated to behavioral science. This space, located in the heart of the Magnificent Mile in downtown, Chicago, was launched by Booth professors Richard Thaler, 2017 recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences and the Charles R. Walgreen Distinguished Service Professor of Behavioral Science and Economics, and Nicholas Epley, the John Templeton Keller Professor of Behavioral Science and faculty director of the Center for Decision Research.”

P&Q: What have you learned during the pandemic and the shift to hybrid or remote learning and how will they impact the MBA experience going forward?

Marcello: Booth nimbly shifted to hybrid learning to offer students continuity in education while protecting the health of our community. We implemented some of the strongest health and safety protocols to conduct in-person learning in a healthy academic environment. Through this process, we learned that our students are resilient and eager to learn, despite the many challenges posed to them by the pandemic, and that we are capable of shifting gears quickly to meet the critical needs of our students. Booth’s distinctive curriculum and accomplished faculty, and our continued efforts to ensure that all students feel welcome throughout their time here and well-prepared when they leave will remain Booth’s impact. The MBA experience includes access to lifelong learning resources. Our gained agility with hybrid and remote learning will provide expanded opportunities to our alumni as they invest in their expanded knowledge as leaders of industry and society.”

Next Page: Profiles of 12 members of the Class of 2023

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