Meet the Rice Jones MBA Class of 2018

Sonny Nguyen 

Rice University, Jones Graduate School of Business

Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Entrepreneur, teacher, and foodie, I am interested in business solutions to solve health care problems.

Hometown: Houston, TX

Fun Fact About Yourself: I love burgers so much that I created a spreadsheet of my favorite burger places in Houston.

Undergraduate School and Major: Undergraduate: B.A. Rice University, Biochemistry and Cell Biology

Graduate: M.D. Baylor College of Medicine (in progress)

Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation:

Co-founder and Managing Member, Ivy Planners

Medical Student, Baylor College of Medicine

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Starting with $800 in a college dorm room, my business partner and I have grown Ivy Planners to help hundreds of students throughout the country and abroad with their SAT/ACT exams and navigate through the complex U.S. college admissions process. An overwhelming majority of our students earn acceptance into their dream schools – many competitive undergraduate schools and combined BS/MD medical programs. We built our team of over twenty counselors who not only serve as mentors to our students, but often times they serve as an older brother, sister or friend.

Looking back on your experience, what advice would you give to future business school applicants?

Do the Nitty Gritty of the Application Process (the essays, resume and interviews): Be sure that each component is an actual reflection of you. Every part of your application should have your voice and also be personalized to the specific program you are applying to. My tip: show your application to family and friends who know you well and ask them this question: “Does this sound like me?” Another good question: “Can I replace my name with someone else’s name and would it make perfect sense?” If so, it’s not personalized enough.

Prepping for GMAT: As with SAT and ACT test preparation, diligent practice with official GMAT material is the best way to improve your score. Because the GMAT is a carefully-designed test in the way that the test questions are worded and asked and the way the answer choices are structured (both the correct answer choices and the distractors), it is very important to first focus practice efforts on official material (from either the practice exams or The Official Guide for GMAT Review) as these questions are the most representative of the questions you will see on test day.

Develop a Strategy: While this may seem obvious, it is vital to have the discipline to focus on your weak areas. Often times, I meet students who practice in areas where they are strong  because it is the most “comfortable” or it can be a “confidence boost.” At the end of the day, if you are not struggling a little bit with the GMAT questions, then either you are (1) scoring perfectly or (2) not growing.

Taking the Exam: While taking the actual exam, don’t freak out based on the difficulty of your questions! Because the GMAT is a computer adaptive test, try not to let the exam play mind games with you when you encounter easier or harder questions. This is easier said than done, but practice and familiarity with the test help. Also remember that each question is not worth the same amount of points on the GMAT; you are penalized more for answering incorrectly on “easier” questions compared to “harder” questions.

What led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA? As an MD/MBA student, I did look into and apply to other full-time MBA programs (both one and two year programs). Because my medical school has a formalized program with Rice Business, it made the most sense to continue my studies at Rice. With my interest in health care, staying in Houston with the largest medical center in the world (the Texas Medical Center), I can pursue my dreams of effectively combining health care and medicine. Another advantage of Rice is the small class size – by far the smallest among its peers. With the small class size, we are truly a family. We even have a group WhatsApp with all of my classmates participating!

Tell us about your dream job or dream employer at this point in your life? Finding a position where I am able to solve health care’s problems while integrating the art and science of medicine.

What would you like your business school peers to say about you after you graduate from this program? Sonny is a thoughtful, compassionate and focused leader in both health care and business.