Meet Emory Goizueta’s MBA Class Of 2023

STUDENT FEEDBACK: 10 REASONS TO CONSIDER EMORY GOIZUETA

1) IMPACT360: “In this rapidly transforming world, the demands of the industry are ever-changing. Even though schools are doing their best to simulate the real-world business environment in a classroom, the pedagogy still leaves some scope for academia-industry disconnect. IMPACT360 is a semester-long consulting project for the Goizueta MBA students to work with a company on a specific business problem. By engaging the students early on directly in real-world business problems of companies, Goizueta provides MBAs a hard kick of practical reality right during the program itself. The fact that this is an actual problem for an actual company with actual consequences and real impact – the stakes are high. So naturally, I felt this experience must be an indispensable part of my MBA journey.”
Siva Prasad Kalimuthu (’23)

2) Experiential Learning: “For me, the two attributes that differentiate Goizueta MBA from other top programs are its unique approach to leadership and its intentional small class size. GBS takes leadership education very seriously and assesses it in a holistic way, structured in three pillars: academic, experiential and reflective. What I like the most is the experiential avenue that includes activities such as Fort Benning and sailing a boat in the British Virgin Islands, as the closing activity for the Goizueta Advanced Leadership Academy (GALA) program. You can also get the certificate of Advanced Leadership by taking an additional capstone course that combines academic and the co-curricular leadership experiences. The combination of the different activities and programs focused on leadership give a unique experience for the students in this area.”
Carlos Martinez (’23)

3) Small Class Size: “On the other hand, Goizueta MBA small class size (by design) gives a specially personalized experience where everybody (staff and students) will call you by your name. You will get to know your classmates well and build deep relationships with several of them that result in a highly collaborative culture. Additionally, you will have access to all the MBA services (career management, professors, etc.) in remarkably individualized way due to the staff-to-student ratio.”
Carlos Martinez (’23)

4) Leaders Reaction Course: “I am very excited about the Leader’s Reaction Course at Fort Benning. This is a one-day experiential learning module for the MBA students at Fort Benning. The course leverages the programs and facilities meant for US army officer candidates. We often hear people say, “This is a matter of life and death”. In the army, it’s an actual matter of life and actual death. Leadership and decision-making in such high-risk environments requires conviction, accountability, and fortitude. I feel this a unique approach to leadership development, and this experience is not what a typical MBA candidate expects in their program.”
Siva Prasad Kalimuthu (’23)

5) Global Experience Module: “I am excited at the return of the Global Experiential Module (GEM) of Goizueta this year for the first time since COVID-19. The GEM offers students international exposure at a selection of geographies around the world, with the goal of exploring contemporary topics within the context of an international setting by engaging in company visits, meeting with business and government leaders, and cultural activities in the host country that provide a vantage point unattainable from the classroom. After over a year of Covid lockdown, this is a wonderful opportunity to satiate my wanderlust, refine my cultural awareness, and develop global leadership skills.”
Saif Nazrul (’23)

6) Atlanta: “Atlanta is a great place to earn an MBA because of its access to vibrant organizations, culture, and community. You have access to Fortune 500 organizations, top tier consulting firms, a growing tech community, and a vibrant finance industry right in your backyard. There’s always something to do with a plethora of bars, concerts, and outdoor activities. Sure, some other cities have these same perks, but the cost of living isn’t as affordable and the winters aren’t as mild. The aspect I am most excited about during my MBA is investing in the growing Black tech community here in Atlanta.”
Stephon Harris (’23)

7) KEGS: Events: “The best tradition at Goizueta is Keeping Everyone at Goizueta Social, or KEGS. Every Thursday afternoon the whole program takes a few hours to relax and socialize (with the aforementioned kegs). It’s a great opportunity to get to know your peers outside of the classroom and there’s usually a good number of partners, children, and dogs as well. I think our small class size and events like this really helped our class stay together as a single community instead of breaking off into smaller cliques.”
Thomas Egge (’21)

8) Entrepreneurship: “One of the biggest draws for me to Goizueta’s MBA program was its close integration with the school’s various institutes. Having worked in the startup ecosystem of Bangladesh for over half of my full-time career, I had a particular interest in The Roberto C. Goizueta Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (CEI). As a CEI fellow and program manager for the CEI’s annual Siggie awards ceremony for investors, I have already had unparalleled access to Atlanta’s brightest start-ups, largest investors and financiers, and Emory’s incredible entrepreneurship infrastructure — and this is just the beginning. To me, such experiences are important and strongly complement the classroom learning in an MBA program.”
Saif Nazrul (’23)

9) John R. Lewis Case Competition: “I am incredibly excited about the second annual John R. Lewis Case Competition. As the only case competition of its kind founded by Goizueta students last year, the competition gets MBAs and participating companies to think strategically about their approach to diversity and inclusion, which is a topic that means a lot to me.”
Sophie Maus (’23)

10) Semi-Formal: “This was held at the end of core semester in 2019 and the last big hoorah for our class before COVID-10 hit. For the first year students especially, this event is a chance to dress up and celebrate the end of an intense core semester with your best friends.”
Taraneh Thomas (’21)

STUDENT ADVICE ON GETTING INTO GOIZUETA

“The most important thing is to have a set of clear goals. At the same time, I would advise you not to be too rigid about them. The key is to understand the core values of Goizueta and see if you can resonate with them. For me, the most helpful part of the application and the interview process was the guidance I received from many of the seniors. So, it is advisable to reach out to the alumni and seniors and try to get an insight into the MBA life at Goizueta. There are no typical Goizueta MBA profiles, so don’t try to force your essays or interview answers to reflect things that you really aren’t comfortable with. I feel it is important to be yourself.”
Siva Prasad Kalimuthu (’23)

“In my short time on campus, I have already met people from almost every conceivable background — from athletes, to international human right activists, from schoolteachers to inventors. Goizueta values diversity and there is a place for you here. A valuable piece of advice that I cherish from my application process is that there is something in all of us that sets us apart from the rest. We all have our stories, so you should take pride in your story; share it and celebrate it, and stay true to yourself and your vision.”
Saif Nazrul (’23)

“I would give this advice to any program an applicant is interested in. Figure out what impact you want to make in the world. Once you do that, you can assess how the business schools you are interested in applying to can offer support to you. That helped me change my perspective from anxiously wanting schools to think I was a good enough candidate, to being confident in asking how each school would enhance my career. It also makes it much easier to write application essays when you can envision how a school can support your trajectory.”
Stephon Harris (’23)

MBA Student	Hometown	Undergraduate Alma Mater	Last Employer
Stephanie Andrews	Rochester, NY	Middlebury College	Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Ivan Guerrero	Matanzas, Cuba	University of South Florida	Hilti, Inc.
Stephon Harris	Houston, TX	Texas Tech University	Enterprise Knowledge
Myles T. Henry	Sayreville, NJ	Howard University	Cox Communications, Inc.
Timothy Lam	Sydney, Australia	Emory University	Promontory Financial Group, an IBM Company
Carlos Martinez	Bogota, Colombia	Los Andes University	Coca-Cola FEMSA
Sophie Maus	Earlysville, VA	University of Virginia	eVestment (Nasdaq)
Saif Nazrul	Dhaka, Bangladesh	University of Hull, UK	LightCastle Partners Limited
Siva Prasad Kalimuthu	Dindigul, India	Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore	Water Sanitation and Hygiene Institute (WASH) Institute
Cade Ricker	Fairfax, VA	U.S. Military Academy	U.S. Army
Jake Sullivan	Syracuse, NY	College of William & Mary	Red’s Beer Garden
Osereme “Ose” Ujadughele	Long Beach, CA	University of California, Davis	E&J Gallo Winery