Some of the MBA students in the Class of 2019 at the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business
Some schools know how to recruit. Others know how to teach. Count the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business among the latter. It is an MBA program with a history of turning good applicants into great professionals.
Just ask employers. In the 2017 Bloomberg Businessweek employer survey, Foster ranked 11th among recruiters, besting West Coast competitors like Stanford, UCLA, Berkeley, and USC. Not surprisingly, this popularity translated into results. The Class of 2016, for example, boasted a 98% placement rate – better than any Top 25 program. Employers also paid a premium for Foster talent, as starting pay rose 7% to $141,121.
AVERAGE DEBT IS A QUARTER OF FIRST YEAR PAY
Better yet, Foster set its graduates up for success. The Class of 2016, for example, averaged just $32,047 in debt after graduation – the second-lowest debt burden of any Top 25 program. As a result, Foster has become as popular with MBA candidates as employers. In fact, applications to the program have nearly doubled over the past five years – more than any other program during that same period.
So what’s behind Foster’s success? Being located in the heart of Seattle – home to Amazon, Starbucks, and Microsoft – doesn’t hurt. However, Joshua Rodriguez, a 2017 Best & Brightest MBA who joined Goldman Sachs after graduation, attributes it to something more: “a hunger to win.”
“There are no real barriers to success in this program,” he explains. “You want to go into IBD? We have a first year who scored an internship before her first day of class. You want to go to a top consultancy? We have folks that got offers at two of the top three. You want to go to finance? Come with me, I’ll introduce you to Thomas Gilbert and Chris Hrdlicka, two professors that rival any other in the country. Interested in tech? This is Microsoft and Amazon University! We have a home-field advantage that never goes away….This school owns the Pacific Northwest and is always branching out further. Plus, an MBA student at this school is learning about business in a city that is rapidly growing with no signs of slowing.”
A HUNGRY CLASS…IN A GOOD WAY
This hunger defines the Class of 2019. Look no further than Andrew Peppler. His motto: “Tell me I can’t do something—I love being underestimated.” A U.S. Army platoon leader and company commander who served in Afghanistan, Peppler has turned into a Renaissance Man since the service. He managed a $120 million dollar budget at Amazon; taught military science at the University of Seattle as an adjunct; and even launched a regular podcast that provided veterans with a voice on policy issues. He has set the highest standards for himself – and appreciates that Foster has done the same with their incoming class.
“The intention with which the staff approach the application process is a reflection of the quality of the program and the curriculum more generally—they don’t just pay lip service to diversity—and they ensure the very best people make it into a Foster cohort together,” he says. “This is extremely important to me because throughout my Army career, I was surrounded by America’s best—high achievers who understood the value of teams. When I left the Army, I pursued a position at Amazon for the same reason. Foster sets a high bar and I can’t wait to work with and learn from my new teammates.”
Peppler won’t be disappointed. He’ll be joined by Skyler Brown, a West Point grad and Green Beret who worked with Afghan entrepreneurs to sharpen their business skills. Perhaps Peppler could swap career transition stories with Nimit Pathak, who went from being a philosophy major to a derivatives trader. When it comes to setting the bar, he may find some kinship with Kate Neupert. Her motto? “I aspire to live my life in all caps.” He may even get a run for his Renaissance Man title from Derek Kumagai, an econ major who went from recruiting teachers to running a sports academy to being a consultant for PwC.
The class is as colorful as it is hungry. When he isn’t nerding out over basketball, Kumagai is a “ukulele-playing cat dad.” Katie Tinker-Langenfeld is the adventurer of the group. This Arkansas native had seen 46 of the 50 states before she’d even turned 14, thanks to long RV trips with her parents and seven siblings. Pathak, however, prefers to keep his feet on the ground. He has backpacked through 33 countries on six continents. These jaunts have given Pathak plenty of time to ponder life, which may be why he describes himself as a “patient pragmatist and optimistic adventurer who’s always been more interested in questions than answers.”
A CASE OF MISTAKEN IDENTITY
Fake it til’ you make it? That has to be Kumagai’s motto? He has sung karaoke in five different language…though none where he was fluent. Perhaps he could do a duet with Giulia Pellegrino, another “language enthusiast” who also happens to be a classically trained opera singer. And Pellegrino knows how to fake it too. She used to do the work of a first-year attorney…despite having no legal training. But that didn’t stop her. “Within a few months, I was drafting loan amendments that would be ready for clients, needing no extra revisions by the supervising partner,” she says.
University of Washington, Foster School of Business
Want a good cocktail story? Ask Tim Luk about the time he did the Heimlich to save someone who was choking. Spoiler alert: It comes with a stunning O. Henry twist: “She was choking on a piece of food I cooked for her. I feel both very proud and very guilty.” Then again, Yangyang Pan can top that with her true-to-life doppelgänger. “I have an identical twin sister,” she shares. “Even though we have lived in different cities, we keep bumping into each other’s friends who don’t know our twin status. Once during a snorkeling trip in Hawaii, I was approached by two complete strangers so enthusiastically calling me by my sister’s name. It’s simply amazing to realize how small the world is.”
This hunger is also reflected in the class’ accomplishments. Take Tinker-Langenfeld. At Wal-Mart, she spearheaded an accelerated development program for international professionals who held master’s degrees. This program created a talent pipeline, where participants were trained on best practices in areas like merchandising and supply chain so they could apply these lessons in Wal-Mart operations in emerging markets. “Building this new, innovative program allowed me to exercise my entrepreneurial spirit inside a Fortune 100 company,” she says. “And most importantly, the experience of working with aspiring global leaders opened my eyes to the tremendous ability to use business as a force to positively impact the world.”
BIG DECLINE IN NUMBER OF STUDENTS
Looking at the Class of 2019 as a whole, it represents a bit of a departure. Applications plateaued during the 2016-2017 cycle, with the school receiving just six more than the previous year. Technically, Foster remained a relatively exclusive program, accepting just 22% of applicants. This is down nearly two points, putting it on par with UCLA and Duke. That said, the big news comes with the student population. Last year, the program enrolled 125 students. This year, that number fell to 98 first-year MBAs, a 22% decline that makes Foster perhaps the smallest full-time MBA program among the Top 25.
Go to page 2 to see in-depth profiles of incoming Foster students
Foster School of Business at the University of Washington
Despite the diminished size, the quality remains intact. Average GMATs rose two points to 693, with undergraduate GPAs creeping up as well by .05 of a point. The class composition is also markedly different over the previous year, with a greater infusion of liberal arts and STEM majors. Overall, 39% of the class majored in social sciences and the humanities, up 11% over the previous year. That difference was nearly made up by economics, whose share of the class plummeted from 16% to 7%. STEM majors accounted for 35% of the class, led by engineering at 19%. Business majors round out the class at 19%, down four points over the 2018 Class.
Despite its academic credentials, the class is less diverse than previous incarnations. After the percentage of women spiked at 43% last year, it slipped back to 36% in 2019 – a concentration that’s still higher than programs like Rice, Vanderbilt, and USC. There are also fewer international students in the class, with the percentage falling by a third to 26%. Professionally, you won’t find many small programs with as much diversity of experience as the Class of 2019. 19% of the class hails from the tech sector – no surprise considering Foster sent the highest concentration of graduates to that sector in 2016. Consulting (12%), financial services (11%), and non-profits (11%) also broke double digits in the class. Government and media and entertainment each constituted 9% of the class, followed by consumer products and manufacturing (7% each), and energy (5%).
NEW SPECIALIZATIONS AND A DEEPER GLOBAL COMPONENT
The administration at Foster has remained hungry as well, introducing several initiatives over the past year. Notably, the program launched two MBA specializations: product marketing and marketing analytics – with a special Foster spin. “Faculty have recast these courses with a focus on the latest technologies and tools needed in industries and companies that are transforming how decisions are made and redefining how business is conducted,” writes Dan Poston, assistant dean for masters programs, in a statement to Poets&Quants.
Recently, Poston notes, Foster became a member of the Forté Foundation to increase opportunities for female MBA candidates. The school has also begun rolling out its Foster Global Business Center, beefing up international programming that includes exchanges, global competitions, new courses, and even a research partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Dan Poston
“The Foster Global Business Center is a reimagining our MBA international component,” Poston adds. “The new programming will focus less on a traditional model – spending time just studying or touring in other countries – and put more focus on hands-on experiences and skills development immediately relevant to managing within a multinational company. The students in this program will have opportunities to test their skills on projects and experiences of varying length in international settings.”
THE TOP COMPANIES…ALL WITHIN A 20 MILE RADIUS
Hunger also defines the Seattle area. Long regarded as a gateway to Asia, the Emerald City has emerged as Silicon Valley North, a tech and entrepreneurial cluster whose success stories have included T-Mobile, Expedia, Avvo, PACCAR, Zillow, and Holland America. Forget emulating the Valley, however. Seattle’s ambitions are centered on carving out its own identity and operating on its own terms – a more communitarian vision marked by reduced economic stratification and greater life balance.
Pellegrino notes it is hard to miss the Seattle boom, particularly with the roar of construction in every corner. Within a 20 mile radius of the Foster campus, she observes, students will find many of the most progressive and innovative firms in the world. In other words, Foster students need only take a short drive to expose themselves to the best models and practices from an array of industries. The variety and capabilities of such firms set he Pacific Northwest apart says Kumagai, who is excited to study near Nike and REI since he aspires to work in sports and apparel.
“Seattle is a hotbed for multiple industries which creates an advantage for Foster MBA students when recruiting,” he explains. “Within these industries are large multinational employers from the tech industry (Microsoft and Amazon), consumer products and retail (Nordstrom and Starbucks) and even large scale manufacturing (Boeing). Due to the global nature of these companies, I am looking forward to the potential for future domestic and global career mobility.”
A BALANCE OF COMPETITION AND COLLABORATION
That said, it was Seattle’s culture that has inspired and guided such firms. Here, being lean, clean, and green is as much part of the culture as software, coffee, and rain. “Though I may be biased as I grew up here, I know first-hand how incredible the people of Seattle really are,” says Neupert. “Seattlites are full of ambition, adventure, and compassion and I couldn’t think of a better environment to get my MBA.”
This culture has filtered through Foster as well. Tinker-Langenfeld, for one, doesn’t mind competition as long as students can come together to collaborate. She believes the school has developed a culture that balances both ends. “From my first interaction with the students and faculty, I was impressed with the willingness to share, learn from, challenge, and better each other,” she recalls. “It’s a rare gem when people are equally as concerned about becoming the best they can be while making sure you are also becoming the best you can be.”
Seattle, Washington
This ‘hungry-but-helpful’ dynamic is embodied by a story shared during a career panel. According to Rachel E. Johnson, a project manager and consultant from Tennessee, two Foster students were competing for the same internship. The student who received the offer eventually declined – and then proceeded to champion the runner up. “She told the other company why her classmate was the best choice to take her place,” Johnson relates. “It worked! The student on the panel received an offer and accepted the internship. The interview on Saturday reinforced the collaborative culture at Foster. That’s when I knew it was the right decision for me. I know that at Foster, I will be set up for success, not only by the school’s staff, faculty and alumni, but also by my classmates.”
SUCCESS MEANS FINDING A NEW PASSION
So what will success look like for the Class of 2019? Afa Malu, a Nigerian engineer, defines success as eventually “achieving a level playing field” with classmates who possess more business experience. For Peppler, success will bring a certain feeling. “If I’m worn out and feel like my brain was removed, reconstructed, and implanted back in my head, I’ll call that success,” he jokes.
In contrast, Parthak’s view of success takes its cue from Seattle’s more homespun, laid back ethos: “Finding balance, feeling at home, and staying healthy. Progressing in my desire to become more comfortable being uncomfortable, not getting lost in the noise, and having the wherewithal to consistently balance expectations versus reality.”
For Tamara Geiger, a project manager who describes herself as “tenacious,” a rewarding first year will be rooted in building her skill sets and relationships – all while finding something that further fuels the hunger that brought her to Seattle. “Success will be finding at least one new thing that I haven’t done before that I love. It may not be something that I will pursue in my career, but a new challenge that I willingly immerse myself in will fuel my continued passion for my education.”
To read profiles of incoming Foster students — along with their advice on tackling the GMAT, applications, and interviews — click on the links below.
DON’T MISS: THE PIONEERING MBAs OF THE CLASS OF 2019 OR MEET WASHINGTON FOSTER’S MBA CLASS OF 2018
| Name | Hometown | Alma Mater | Employer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skyler Brown | San Jose, CA | United States Military Academy | U.S. Army (Green Berets) |
| Tamara Geiger | Glen Ellen, CA | University of California, San Diego | Metal Toad |
| Rachel E. Johnson | Murfreesboro, TN | Trinity University | Periscope Holdings, Inc. |
| Derik Kumagai | La Cañada Flintridge, CA | New York University | PwC |
| Tim Luk | Atlanta, GA | Boston College | Gerson Lehrman Group |
| Afa Malu | Jos, Nigeria | Calvin College | Leland International |
| Kate Neupert | Seattle, WA | University of Southern California | GlobalScholar |
| Yangyang Pan | Chengdu, China | Sichuan University | American College of Cardiology |
| Nimit Pathak | Chicago IL | Iowa State University | Toro Capital Management |
| Giulia Pellegrino | Pasadena, CA | UC-Santa Barbara | Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP |
| Andrew Peppler | Pensacola, FL | University of Florida | Amazon Global |
| Katie Tinker- Langenfeld | Fayetteville, AR | University of Arkansas | Walmart Stores, Inc. |
Skyler Brown
University of Washington, Foster School of Business
Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Adventurous and engaging innovator with a very high tolerance for calculated risks.
Hometown: San Jose, California
Fun Fact About Yourself: I spot and assess cryptocurrencies for growth potential with a group of friends.
Undergraduate School and Major: United States Military Academy at West Point, BS in Law and Legal Studies (International Focus)
Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation: I was commissioned into the U.S. Army after graduation and initially served in a ballistic missile defense unit as an engagement control officer and trainer. I went on to complete the Special Forces Qualification Course (for “Green Berets”) and deployed as a mountain team detachment commander. I finished military service as a special operations planner.
Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Helping a contingent of Afghan entrepreneurs create lasting economic benefits for their community with an incredible team of business-focused and people-focused Green Berets.
Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? Deliberately plan to ideate, produce, review and improve both your essays and your talking points. Add time for others to review your products.
What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? Foster is uniquely positioned in the epicenter of the Pacific Northwest tech boom. Foster’s graduate network and faculty have developed the infrastructure for MBA students to benefit from special access to companies that are pushing the tech envelope. These advantages will give me the skillsets to make an immediate impact in business.
What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? I am starting a challenging internship; I have built strong bonds with my classmates; I have worked hard to get the maximum benefit from faculty; and I have properly balanced work time with family time.
Tamara Geiger
University of Washington, Foster School of Business
Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Tenacious.
Hometown: Glen Ellen, CA
Fun Fact About Yourself: I am the youngest of nine, and 30 years separate me from my oldest brother.
Undergraduate School and Major: University of California, San Diego – B.A. Urban Studies and Planning
Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation:
Metal Toad – Portland, OR – Product Manager, Agile Project Manager
Aequitas Capital Management – Lake Oswego, OR – PMO Practitioner, PMO Specialist
Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council – Bend, OR – Program Coordinator, Program Assistant
Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: I joined Metal Toad at the impetus of their renewed commitment to Scrum/Agile development. Agile transformations are fraught with challenges. A successful transformation requires buy-in from the top to decentralize power, and it separates individuals from their managers as they join cross-functional, self-organizing teams. The driving force behind this structural shift is the goal to exceed client or end user expectations by delivering high quality software fast. However, getting there requires the entire company to commit. Metal Toad knew from experience that without this commitment, the transformation would fail – resulting in projects exceeding budgets and timelines by 200-400%, poor code quality, and employee exodus.
My first day, Scrum development teams had been formed and I was assigned as Project Manager for one of those teams. There was an innate conflict with my title and Scrum methodology – which explicitly excludes the role of Project Manager. The role is viewed as too dogmatic and authoritative to fit within an Agile team. An Agile team does not take direction from a Project Manager (or any manager for that matter), but organizes itself to get the work done as efficiently as possible. I took this as an opportunity to define Agile Project Management and applied lessons from my previous experience, certifications, books and podcasts about the development of high performing teams to add value to both the team and the company. Scope, timeline and budget management over a project portfolio remained critical to the success of the company. As a result, I challenged myself to find a way to manage those outcomes and the expectations of leadership without directing work. I was still able to report up to leadership successes and challenges or issues, as well as their solutions – which were determined collaboratively with the team. The role is now seen as a complement to Agile, not a contradiction, and I feel in my departure that I’ve set future teams up for success.
Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? The piece of advice I would give to anyone thinking about applying to business school is to build close working relationships now – not just with bosses, but also with peers and other managers or directors who you do not report to. Simultaneously, if you have the opportunity to work with or for any of these people, do your best. This may seem obvious, but if you show up for them, they will show up for you. Requesting letters of reference was the easiest part of my application process. I was so relieved that I didn’t even have to think about who to ask, what they may say about me, or whether they would turn down the opportunity. The application process requires so much attention;
it’s a great feeling to have one of the requirements essentially taken care of.
What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? Foster offered the best understanding and acknowledgment of the personal financial commitment that comes with a full-time MBA. They emphasized ROI and job placement – two stats that I consider crucial indicators of the quality of education, value and real-life utility of skills taught.
I had considered pursuing an MBA for a few years, but until I found Foster, I couldn’t get past my anxiety surrounding the finances. I graduated with my B.A. in Urban Studies and Planning in 2009, one of the worst years in recent history to graduate from college, and spent the next three years charting a course (living in South America for a year, working in food service, interning for a local government organization) that finally culminated in a fulltime career position in 2012. I am proud of my perseverance to get there, but leaving the job market that I had worked so tirelessly to enter and climb was a daunting decision, particularly when looking at potentially accumulating over $100k in student debt in two years. However, Foster’s commitment to ROI was clear, with year-over-year improvement in the debt to salary ratio, and average student debt less than one-third of many other top programs. To me, that was the best indicator of Foster’s commitment to setting its students up for success.
What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? I began looking at MBA programs because I want to be a leader who understands every level of the organization, and recognized that I needed additional education in the foundations of business, particularly finance and analysis for that to be possible. At the end of year one, I hope to have the tools to assess business problems with rich quantitative analysis, so that I can utilize data in decision making rather than just qualitative observation. Success also looks like positive working relationships with my cohort and the teams that we will work in throughout our coursework. Foster emphasizes collaboration, and I’m looking forward to meeting my classmates and building relationships with each of them. Finally, success will be finding at least one new thing that I haven’t done before that I love. It may not be something that I will pursue in my career, but a new challenge that I willingly immerse myself in will fuel my continued passion for my education.
Rachel E. Johnson
University of Washington, Foster School of Business
Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Energized by exchanging ideas that disrupt the status quo to create a brighter future.
Hometown: Murfreesboro, TN
Fun Fact About Yourself: To stretch my mind, I like to attend the ballet or opera because it allows me to think in a different way than I do most days.
Undergraduate School and Major: Trinity University, Political Science and Communications
Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation: Periscope Holdings, Inc.; Business Consultant and Project Manager
Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: While I’m proud of my work on client implementations, I believe the project that had the biggest impact was an internal one. Before the project was initiated:
- The headcount of our practice had almost tripled in the past 18 months.
- The individual perspectives and experiences of project managers largely determined how clients were served.
- There were indicators that our project approach was producing inconsistent results both internally and for clients.
Luckily our team was experienced, with managers with strong backgrounds in client service and smart and hard-working analysts. I collaborated across our team to develop standard project methodologies and deliverable templates for projects. These frameworks allowed the team to spend more of its time working with the client to understand problems and develop solutions, rather than re-inventing the wheel when it came time to document. The project had a significant impact on our team’s ability to deliver implementation services in a consistent, rationalized, and value-based manner. Ultimately, the success of the project meant a greater level of success for our clients.
Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? Start thinking early about your essays. Write and re-write them to focus on your most important themes. Have at least two people who know you well review them. Talk to people who have applied to B-school in the past two to three years. Ask them about their process to write the essays, and what they wish they had done differently. This is your opportunity to personalize your application – outside of your GMAT and GPA. And unlike your recommendations, you are in control of the narrative.
What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? My decision was made when I visited the school for my interview. The interview was scheduled on a Saturday morning after a Friday night career changes panel, which included current students answering questions about Foster. Overall, the current students conveyed that they were there to support and champion each other. One student even recalled a story where another student received a summer internship that she had pursued but didn’t get. The other student received another offer, and when she rejected the summer internship, she told the other company why her classmate was the best choice to take her place. It worked! The student on the panel received an offer and accepted the internship. The interview on Saturday reinforced the collaborative culture at Foster. That’s when I knew it was the right decision for me. I know that at Foster, I will be set up for success, not only by the school’s staff, faculty and alumni, but also by my classmates.
What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? Working closely with committed clients and a creative team in a large consulting firm. I’m most excited about working with talented people on hard problems because I think you can learn so much when you collaborate to solve unique problems. And I believe that if you are not learning, your career can become stagnant and unexciting. Ultimately, I want to grow into a position where I can have a significant impact on people – both employees and customers or clients. I am constantly imagining how things could be better. So I want to be in a position to turn those ideas into real change.
Derik Kumagai
University of Washington, Foster School of Business
Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Just a basketball nerd, ukulele-playing, cat dad looking to make a social impact through sports.
Hometown: La Cañada Flintridge, CA
Fun Fact About Yourself: I have sung karaoke in 5 different languages (although I’m definitely not fluent in all of them…).
Undergraduate School and Major: NYU, Economics
Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation:
PwC – Senior Associate
PwC – Associate
Impact Sports Academy – CFO, Co-Founder
Pacific Search Associates – Business Manager
Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: One of the most complex assignments in my career as a consultant was creating a target operating model for a foreign national bank for a new line of business offering a US mortgage product to their high net worth individuals. As the client had never operated in the US home lending space, our team was brought in as subject matter experts. It was incredibly rewarding and challenging to create the final deliverable while educating the client on US business processes in this highly-regulated environment while navigating different cultural norms and business practices.
Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? I would advise future applicants to hone in on the MBA program attributes that are most important to you. Don’t let other people’s criteria, or criteria that you think should be important to you, steer you from your preferences. There are hundreds of MBA programs, so without a few defined criteria, even the task of choosing which schools to apply to may be daunting. Consider carefully what industries and roles you want to pursue and what you hope your experience during business school will be like. I found this to be extremely helpful not only in selecting schools, but also in writing application essays. This will also help tailor questions during campus visits and MBA recruiting events. After sorting through the top programs using my specific criteria, I ended up with a very different list than I started with!
What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? For me, one key factor that sets Foster apart is its location in the Pacific Northwest. Seattle is a hotbed for multiple industries which creates an advantage for Foster MBA students when recruiting. Within these industries are large multinational employers from the tech industry (Microsoft and Amazon), consumer products and retail (Nordstrom and Starbucks) and even large scale manufacturing (Boeing). Due to the global nature of these companies, I am looking forward to the potential for future domestic and global career mobility. Since the industry that intrigues me most is the sports and sports apparel industry, (Nike, REI, etc.) the opportunity to be in such close proximity to multiple sports apparel, outdoor recreational apparel and professional sports franchises is an opportunity that I could not pass up.
What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? To me, success would be to develop meaningful relationships with my peers, professors and career counselors and acquire the additional industry knowledge and skills for my future full-time position. This would prepare me to complete my studies and be a useful resource for incoming MBA students.
Tim Luk
University of Washington, Foster School of Business
Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Just trying to do the right thing.
Hometown: Atlanta, GA
Fun Fact About Yourself: I once successfully performed the Heimlich maneuver on someone who was choking and saved her life. The other part of this story is that she was choking on a piece of food I cooked for her. I feel both very proud and very guilty.
Undergraduate School and Major: B.A. Philosophy & English, Boston College
Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation: GLG, Business Development Associate, North American Financial Services HouseWorks; Executive Assistant to the CEO/COO Reece & Associates; Executive Assistant to the President Jesuit Volunteer Corps, Residential Aide
Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: My biggest accomplishment is pivoting from a career in law to a career in business. I worked at a boutique law firm focused on public affairs with the intention of going to law school. I took the LSATs, wrote the essays, and sent in applications. But as I went through that application process, I realized that law school wasn’t for me. It was a risk to drastically alter my career path, but this decision led me to GLG, the world’s largest membership network for professional learning where I worked with some of the most sophisticated investors in the world, and now here to Foster to pursue my MBA.
Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? Really focus on connecting the dots in your story. Think hard about all of the things that are motivating you to apply to business school – your past experiences, your passions, your areas of improvement, and your desired career path – and figure out how to package them into a compelling, professional journey that shows who you are, who you want to be, and how business school is the key to get you there. Practice communicating your story so you don’t ramble and can tell all the major highlights in a way that flows.
What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? It’s easy to become caught up in rankings, salary numbers, each school’s brand, etc. After receiving multiple offers from various schools, I realized that these figures were helpful in starting my initial diligence on schools, but faded to the background as the application process progressed. The decision-making process became much more about fit. Where did I think I would thrive? Which school would help me become the best version of myself? At the end of the day, all the schools I got into have excellent reputations and all of them have the ability to change the trajectory of my career. I chose Foster, though, because of the program’s intentionality. The students I spoke with were incredibly focused, accomplished, and humble. The admission staff and career management team genuinely wanted to get to know me to tailor the program around my goals and are really able to do that due to the intimate class size. This personalized approach left a distinct impression and ultimately was the deciding factor to choose Foster over other programs.
What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? The full-time MBA program is an incredible opportunity to pause and reflect on my personal and professional journey thus far. It’s a luxury to have a safe place to take risks and fail in order to learn and recalibrate for the future. Success will be taking full advantage of this and making sure I fully explore before I commit.
Afa Malu
University of Washington, Foster School of Business
Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Curious mind dedicated to surpassing other’s expectations. Doing it with as much fun as possible.
Hometown: Jos, Nigeria
Fun Fact About Yourself: The only thing I enjoy more than business and technology is sport. My passion for soccer (especially Real Madrid) sometimes leads me to take impromptu hours long trips on the slight chance I might catch them in action.
Undergraduate School and Major: Calvin College, Mechanical Engineering
Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation: Leland International – Quality Manager, Office for Nigerian Content Development – Ecosystem development team member
Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: My biggest accomplishment thus far has been leaving a secure job to explore a product idea a friend and I had. The successful creation of our product without any prior experience has been the most positive aspect of my profession and has altered the trajectory of my career. That process was a completely enthralling experience and the lessons I learned are probably more valuable that if I had stayed at my previous job.
Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? The one piece of advice I would give to future business school applicants is not to sell themselves short. I was skeptical about my ability to get into a top business school. Once I took stock of my accomplishments thus far – and my motivation for pursuing an MBA – I realized I was in a perfect position to get into a school like Foster. I have encountered a lot of people who do not try because they do not think they are qualified; self-doubt has denied them potentially great opportunity. There really is little to lose if they just believe in their ability and taking a chance.
What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? The key factor that led me to choose Foster is its history of producing a large number of students that end up in top technology companies. This was important to me because my career goal is to have a good blend of business and technology; Foster offers exactly that.
What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? Since I come from a non-business sector, success would be achieving a level playing field with my classmates who have prior business experience. To develop my skills to a point where I attract top companies would be a good metric of success.
Kate Neupert
University of Washington, Foster School of Business
Describe yourself in 15 words or less: I aspire to live my life in all caps.
Hometown: Seattle, WA
Fun Fact About Yourself: I never set the alarm clock on an even number, ie always 5:33 am never 5:30 am.
Undergraduate School and Major: University of Southern California – Major in International Relations, Minor in Communication Design
Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation:
- Employer: GlobalScholar/ Title: Marketing Manager
- Employer: BBDO / Title: Assistant Account Executive (accounts: FedEx)
- Employer: mcgarrybowen/ Title: Account Executive/Supervisor (accounts: Verizon, United Airlines)
- Employer: GREY / Title: Account Supervisor (accounts: the National Park Service, Downy)
Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: My biggest career accomplishment thus far was receiving a full refund from a vendor project gone wrong. While working with a fairly conservative client, we were constantly trying to expand their advertising efforts to new mediums. We had finally convinced them to partner with a technology vendor to build an innovative social platform for their centennial. While this vendor was thoroughly vetted and recommended by our agency, things quickly took a negative turn and the end product was far less than what was promised. For months, I had to work with an incredibly difficult and unwilling vendor to get the project finished while managing an upset client. We completed the project to contracted standards and I was able to receive a full refund for the client.
Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? One piece of advice I would give future applicants is to utilize your essay to describe how that specific school will help you achieve your professional goals. Many of the applications host similar questions and one could easily copy and paste answers to schools varying greatly in size, location, concentrations, etc. I strongly believe that business schools look not only for talented candidates, but candidates that will excel at that particular school. For that reason, be thoughtful in where you apply and explain how that particular school program is best for you.
What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? The key factor that led me to choose Foster is the location of the school: Seattle. It’s no secret that Seattle is the birthplace to many of the greatest companies in the world today and for that reason alone I knew I wanted to attend to attend Foster. There’s entrepreneurship in the city’s air and I knew I wanted to be a part of that community.
Additionally, though I may be biased as I grew up there, I know first-hand how incredible the people of Seattle really are. Seattlites are full of ambition, adventure, and compassion and I couldn’t think of a better environment to get my MBA.
What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? A successful first year of business school will mean I’ve learned more than I could imagine, met some great friends in my classmates, just completed a successful internship, and am on a path to land a job!
Yangyang Pan
School: Foster School of Business, University of Washington
Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Fearless boundary pusher who enjoys the fast pace of career expansion and multi-dimensionalities of life.
Hometown: Chengdu, China
Fun Fact About Yourself: I have an identical twin sister. Even though we have lived in different cities, we keep bumping into each other’s friends who don’t know our twin status. Once during a snorkeling trip in Hawaii, I was approached by two complete strangers so enthusiastically calling me by my sister’s name. It’s simply amazing to realize how small the world is.
Undergraduate School and Major:
Sichuan University, B.S. Materials Science and Engineering
University of California Los Angeles, M.S. Materials Science and Engineering
Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation:
EnerG2 Inc – Research Scientist II
Innovation Centre Denmark, Shanghai – clean-tech consultant
American College of Cardiology – Project Manager, China Region
Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Late 2010, the startup company I worked for was very close to its very first sales order. However, our sales team could not convince our client that our product exceeded a particular quality specification due to inconsistent performances shown over our client’s testing lab. As a chief scientist, I was brought to communicate directly with our client to identify the problem. What I found out was that due to the very different lab equipment and testing criteria adopted by our labs, much of the superior quality of our product was not effectively shown to our client. Moreover, some communication inefficiency existed due to the cultural difference between our Japanese client and our U.S. home office. I made an effort to mimic our client’s test in our lab and identified the key performance factor that would sell our product under the special circumstances, and reworked a different sales pitch towards our client. In addition, I communicated directly with our client to push for their recognition of our newly submitted quality performance, which cleared the last hurdle before they finally put down a purchase order. One PO may not be significant for an established business, but for the cash-tight startup I worked for at the time, it was huge and mattered to our survival. This project meant so much to both my company and me. I learned the art of persuasion amid different perspectives, and gained more confidence on what I could bring to my company.
Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? When choosing which program to apply or attend, really research and weigh on the program’s location. An optimal business school experience will involve close proximity to your targeted industries for career advancement. For example, Seattle houses numerous innovative tech companies and is a regional bio hub. New York City, on the other hand, has much stronger finance and consulting industry roots. A good program will let you reach industry networks nationwide, but the local presence will put you at a more advantageous position in terms of industry exposure and job hunting.
What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? The Foster School of Business full-time MBA program has a long reputation for excellent career coaching service and maintains top rank in job placement nationwide. My main reason for attending business school is to guide myself to a career change into product management from my early roles in engineering and consulting. While Foster’s strong curriculum will provide me with solid business knowledge like other programs do, its delicate career management component will prepare me to achieve my goal with more well-rounded knowledge about the job market.
What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? A successful landing of an internship in my targeted product management area and a clearer understanding of corporate finance and accounting which are foreign to me at this point.
Nimit Pathak
University of Washington, Foster School of Business
Describe yourself in 15 words or less: A patient pragmatist and optimistic adventure who’s always been more interested in questions than answers.
Hometown: Chicago, IL
Fun Fact About Yourself: Backpacked and traveled through 33 countries on 6 continents.
Undergraduate School and Major: Iowa State University, Philosophy
Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation: Senior Derivatives Trader, Toro Capital Management
Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: My biggest accomplishment in my career is probably, ironically enough, my career itself. The journey from a degree in philosophy and graduating without a job to transforming my skillset and climbing the invariably steep learning curve of derivatives to finally gaining the trading clerkship that ultimately started my career has defined my perspective on what I am capable of and what is possible.
Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? Be honest with yourself and really sit down and decide what you want out of the experience. Applying to school is a grind from day one of GMAT prep all the way thru navigating the seemingly endless parade of essays and deadlines. Throw in a few MBA fairs and flights across the country for interviews – all while working full-time – and you’ll quickly learn the process is as daunting as it is rewarding. But whatever your ultimate goals are, define them and start fighting to make them a reality. It’s critical to appreciate and enjoy the process, reflect, embrace uncertainty, and stay focused. Never become complacent, don’t settle, take risks, and always trust your gut.
What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? From the second I first set foot on campus in Seattle, I knew there was a distinct energy about UW and Foster. The feeling was palpable and new and impossible to ignore. Once I weeded through the droves of rankings and subtext – the buzzwords and marketed platitudes of culture and compensation statistics at each school – I found that in the end if you’re choosing a school simply because it’s slotted here or there on somebody else’s list of what’s best for them, then you’re probably doing it wrong. I knew I wanted to spend the next two years of my life in a unique, challenging, and supportive environment that felt more like I was gaining a second family rather than just going back to get my MBA. Foster’s distinctly smaller class size and second-to-none job placement along with its amazing location nestled in the mountains of the beautiful Pacific Northwest made it an easy, albeit distant, leap from the quiet comfort of Chicago.
What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? Finding balance, feeling at home, and staying healthy. Progressing in my desire to become more comfortable being uncomfortable, not getting lost in the noise, and having the wherewithal to consistently balance expectations versus reality. I believe this whole experience is about learning to be true and authentic and accountable to yourself…and pushing myself to embody and live that mantra while being constantly pulled in a dozen different directions would certainly define success after year one.
Giulia Pellegrino
University of Washington, Foster School of Business
Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Language enthusiast with an eye for strategy and analysis in all things disorderly.
Hometown: Pasadena, CA
Fun Fact About Yourself: I am a classically trained singer in opera.
Undergraduate School and Major: UC Santa Barbara; BA in Linguistics: Language, Culture & Society
Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation:
Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP – Recruiting & Talent Management Assistant
Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP – Finance Document Specialist
California Institute of Technology – Graduate Option/Program Manager
Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: While at Sheppard Mullin, I was given an unprecedented promotion to Finance Document Specialist, a role that would effectively do the work of a first-year finance attorney. I had no legal training at all, but, within a few months, I was drafting loan amendments that would be ready for clients, needing no extra revisions by the supervising partner.
Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? Prepare for the admissions interview. It’s easy to get in the mindset that there’s nothing really to prepare. After all, you don’t need to “study” your life. However, I found that there was huge value in going through a deliberate reflective process that organized my thoughts and allowed me to shuffle through my experiences beforehand, and not in the interview room!
Here is a preparation framework that worked for me:
- Anticipate those interview questions beforehand.
- Spend some time brainstorming answers. Associate concrete examples with the points you are trying to convey.
- Then get them out of your head, onto paper, and practice saying them out loud. You’re not creating a script, but rather, a “bag of tricks” that you learn to articulate and can reach for at any point in the discussion.
Having gone through this process, I felt armed and ready to answer any question and I also had a handy guide that I could review before each of my interviews. Good luck!
What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? Location, location, location!
It was very important to me that I choose a school that was geographically situated in a place where I’d want to work post-graduation. My thought-process was: Why spend so much time and money cultivating a network that you don’t fully reap the rewards of?
With that said, as I began researching schools, Foster stuck out to me for its incredibly prime location. Seattle has just been booming (construction everywhere…) and the number of companies that are within a 20-mile radius of the UW campus is an incredible asset to the program.
This element, coupled with Foster’s top employment statistics, really exemplified the great opportunities that I would have at my disposal as a Foster MBA student and so my decision was made. I knew I could thrive there and saw a future for myself beyond the 2-year program.
What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? I hope to really make the most of the next few years, both professionally and personally. I want to take challenging classes, make a ton of new friends, and embrace everything that Foster has to offer in and outside the classroom.
If, by next summer, I have laid the groundwork for my transition into a marketing career through all these means and secured an internship that sets me up for success post-graduation, I will be very happy.
Andrew Peppler
University of Washington, Foster School of Business
Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Tell me I can’t do something—I love being underestimated.
Hometown: Pensacola, FL
Fun Fact About Yourself: Challenge me to a game of ping pong at your own peril.
Undergraduate School and Major: University of Florida, BA Anthropology
Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation:
U.S. Army
-Platoon Leader, Company Executive Officer, Brigade Planner, Company Commander
U.S. Army Reserve
-Adjunct Professor of Military Science
Amazon Global Corporate Security & Business Continuity
-Program Manager (Strategic Plans & Finance)
Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Commanding a company in Afghanistan for nine months of combat operations that reduced significant Taliban activity by over 50%, and bringing all my men home alive set a pretty high watermark. But transition from the military to corporate America was really tough. I had to leave an environment I’d been developed within and indoctrinated into for 8+ years. I was forced to adapt, learn, and grow at a pace well outside my comfort zone, and I excelled, eventually earning a promotion, running my department’s strategic planning process, and controlling their entire $120M+ budget.
Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? Don’t quit. Also, if you struggle with a section of the GMAT like I did, don’t continue to try the same thing over-and-over again, and expect different results. In retrospect, I regret not experimenting a bit more with different study techniques or tutoring regimens.
What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? I applied to Foster three times. Each time, I was extremely impressed with the effort the admissions team took to look beyond my application packet and get to know me as a person. The current Foster MBAs and alumni only reinforced my observations. The intention with which the staff approach the application process is a reflection of the quality of the program and the curriculum more generally—they don’t just pay lip service to diversity—and they ensure the very best people make it into a Foster cohort together. This is extremely important to me because throughout my Army career, I was surrounded by America’s best—high achievers who understood the value of teams. When I left the Army, I pursued a position at Amazon for the same reason. Foster sets a high bar and I can’t wait to work with and learn from my new teammates this year.
What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? If I’m worn out and feel like my brain was removed, reconstructed, and implanted back in my head, I’ll call that success. I want to learn something new every day. I want to forge lasting friendships with my classmates. Oh, and it’d be great to have an internship in hand at a firm that is the right fit for me, not the biggest company with the most name recognition—or the firm of last resort.
Katie Tinker-Langenfeld
University of Washington, Foster School of Business
Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Adventurer with passion for creating change, exploring the world and laughing through awkward situations.
Hometown: Fayetteville, AR
Fun Fact About Yourself: My sense of adventure and love for travel was inspired early in life, and in an RV. My parents were brave enough to take me and my 7 siblings on long road trips in our motorhome. I saw 46 of the 50 states in the United States before I was 14 years old, and we visited all major preserved presidential homes along the way.
Undergraduate School and Major: University of Arkansas, B.A. and M.A. in Communication
Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation: Walmart Stores, Inc. – Specialist, Manager, Senior Manager, Director
Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: My biggest accomplishment so far has been building an accelerated development program to create a talent pipeline in Walmart’s emerging and developing international markets. I worked with technical experts and senior leaders across the business to build a robust program for key functional areas in the retail industry: Supply Chain, Merchandising, and Real Estate. In this role, I had the opportunity to recruit, hire and work with exceptional foreign national students who obtained their Masters degrees in the United States and wanted to return to their home countries of China, Mexico, India or Brazil to be local ambassadors of change. Building this new, innovative program allowed me to exercise my entrepreneurial spirit inside a Fortune 100 company. And most importantly, the experience of working with aspiring global leaders opened my eyes to the tremendous ability to use business as a force to positively impact the world.
Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? Have fun and learn about yourself in the process! If you’re considering b-school, there’s a good chance that you are already more ambitious than your peers, meaning you usually know the answer or know how to get to the answer before anyone else does. Unfortunately, that also means we’re often the people who forget to have fun and experience the moment. When you apply for b-school, it presents a unique opportunity to sit back and ask yourself who you are, where you want to be, and determine how you will get there. While it can feel overwhelming, the opportunity to take a pause and reflect is a luxury. Take the time – it’s a valuable experience!
What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? Collaboration. I chose Foster School of Business because it offers a unique culture and one that I feel represents the real world business environment. I believe in competition and each person striving to be the best they can be, but I also believe collaboration and the ability to work in a team present a more compelling business case. Foster provides the right balance of both dynamics. From my first interaction with the students and faculty, I was impressed with the willingness to share, learn from, challenge, and better each other. It’s a rare gem when people are equally as concerned about becoming the best they can be while making sure you are also becoming the best you can be.
What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? Success after my first year looks like making a bigger impact with more confidence than I had before starting business school. This looks like exercising my leadership skills with a broadened perspective, utilizing enhanced finance and analytical skills to solve business problems, and continuing my passion for helping meet customers’ needs.
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