Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), Tepper School of Business - "My heart is in the work" (Andrew Carnegie)

Carnegie Mellon University, also referred to as CMU, is a private research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It is home to a variety of highly ranked schools, such as the School of Computer Science, the H. John Heinz III College for studies in public policy and the College of Fine Arts. Fun fact: It is the only college in the US that offers a master’s degree in bagpiping.

It is also home to the Tepper School of Business, where I’m currently in my final year. Tepper provides a variety of educational programs from undergraduate to doctoral studies. The school is known for its research in finance, entrepreneurship, operations management and information technology. I am part of the full-time MBA program, a two year master’s degree which includes a 10-12 week internship over the summer.

While selecting a school to get my MBA, I primarily focused on schools in the US. I had previously spent time in the US as an exchange student in high school and also during an internship. I decided to attend the Tepper School for two reasons: small class size and opportunities for cross campus collaboration.

First, class size is important to me as my undergraduate program was rather small. I really enjoyed the close interaction with classmates and professors and was hoping for the same experience with my graduate program. Tepper provides the community I was looking for. I know all members of my class by name and most professors do so as well. This creates not only a great learning environment but also a community of support and friendship outside the classroom.

Second, I wanted a program where I could take advantage of all the University had to offer. CMU definitely promotes cross campus collaboration. As a student in the business school I am able to take classes from all other schools on campus. I decided on a concentration in Technology Leadership where I get to take management classes at the computer science school. However, the possibilities are endless. For example, one of my classmates is taking a full class about the Beatles.

This collaborative environment is also a great source for entrepreneurial endeavors. There are many events on campus to meet students from the other schools and talk about projects they are working on. This is supported by great faculty who all have a long track record of founding their own business and are now often involved in angel investing.

After coming to campus, it was important for me to find ways to get involved with extracurricular activities. At CMU, a big part of extracurricular activities is provided by the lively club structure at the school. It reaches from professional clubs such as the Marketing Club or Consulting Club, to social clubs such as the Wine Club or Poker Club. I am currently the president of the Business & Technology Club which is focused on exposing members to career opportunities in technology across functional domains. We are in the process of planning one of our most exciting events: treks. A group of students head out to New York and Seattle and visit companies such Amazon, Google and Microsoft.

One thing I was surprised about, coming to a business school in the US, was the big role of corporate involvement. Projects with corporate sponsors are part of a lot of classes and provide real world experience in the classroom. Companies are also very active in on-campus recruiting. Almost every day there are one or two companies on campus for corporate presentations or information sessions, usually bringing in alumni from the school who work there now. When it comes to interview season, these firms then come back and conduct the interviews at the school as well.

Overall, I feel honored to be part of such a close knit community, while receiving a world class education. Attending the Carnegie Mellon Tepper business school has opened me the opportunity to explore a wide array of career paths and choose where I want to go next.