Student Perspectives

If I could summarize my experience at the Lindner College of Business in one word, that word would be opportunity. Truthfully, in the beginning, it was definitely overwhelming opportunity. What would I major in? What organizations were right for me? Who would help me along the way to achieving my goals? And lastly, what actually were my goals?

Coming from a graduating class where less than five percent attended the University of Cincinnati, college became a fresh start for me. I had a vague idea of what my next four years would look like, but I knew the best way to start would be by stepping out of my comfort zone.

The best aspect about entering Lindner as a freshman was that the college pushes students to do just that — step outside of our comfort zones and step towards new opportunities. Within my first year, I joined organizations, tested out majors (I think five in total), and met many mentors along the way to help guide me through the process. I started to feel so connected within the college, and at a university of more than 40,000 undergraduate students, I began to feel at home.

My first-year experience led me to co-op after my freshman summer, working in personal wealth management at Merrill Lynch. Entering this role, I had little knowledge of the field, and by this point in my college career, I hadn’t taken any finance courses. Ironically, it was here that I truly found that my passion lies within finance, and shortly after, I declared what would be my final major.

The invaluable opportunity to obtain real-world experiences has been the biggest impact during my time at UC. Aside from coursework, I'll graduate with exposure to various working environments ranging from a big four accounting firm to a consulting firm with 50 employees. Co-op has given me exposure to operations management, IT auditing, data analytics, financial modeling, consulting and wealth management. Most of all, I've discovered what I am passionate about before deciding my career. Not only has co-op enabled me to experience what I love, but it has given me a jump-start to developing professional and leadership skills that will stick with me long after graduation.

I soon realized that the more I stepped out of my comfort zone and chased my passions, the more doors seemed to open for me. Shortly after my first co-op, I was accepted into the Kolodzik Business Scholars program, one of the most impactful organizations in my years at UC.

My largest piece of advice for prospective Lindner students would be this: aggressively chase your passions and the rest will follow. As I did so, the Kolodzik Business Scholars acted as a catalyst that led me to experiences I could have never initially imagined upon entering college. 

In the past few years, I have studied international finance in Spain, lived and worked in my dream city, and have met countless people who have inspired and enabled me to pursue new and exciting opportunities. Throughout each of my adventures, there seemed to be either current Lindner students or alumni walking alongside of me.

Now, looking back just four short years later, I'm faced with the same dilemma I entered college with: overwhelming opportunity. But I find that the questions I ask myself are much different than they were in the past. Where will life take me next?  Which full-time opportunity will I choose to pursue? Which city will I live in, and what will life be like without Skyline Chili? And, I’ve even wondered, how and when did I get here?

As I reflect on my time spent at UC, I do have at least one of those answers. I truly attribute my growth over the past four years to this college, its programs, its people and the way the college seems to make a new door open every time one closes.

I think it’s very important to help students younger than me reach their goals. If I could provide any advice to prospective students, I would encourage them to talk to their advisors and make sure they are on track. I would also encourage students to take advantage of the networking opportunities that the University of Cincinnati has to offer. These experiences have been instrumental in getting me to where I am today.

As a transfer student from another university, I found comfort in the numerous programs offered by the University of Cincinnati’s Lindner College of Business, particularly Business Fellows. This program has equipped me with the tools, knowledge and resources to succeed after college.

Business Fellows has also led me to a program I have grown to love: Management Leadership for Tomorrow (MLT)—a national career preparatory program for high-achieving students.

Outside of Business Fellows, the Lindner College of Business has prepared me for a successful career by pushing me to take advantage of study abroad opportunities and co-op programs to enhance my cultural competence. By engaging in those experiences, I have been able to solve problems that are applicable to the real world.

Recently, I was selected as a Forbes Under 30 Scholar and will be attending a national summit in Boston, MA with some of the top innovators in business. This is an amazing opportunity and I’m thankful to be given the chance to put the Lindner College of Business on the map!

After spending nearly five years working in the entertainment industry and more recently, at a B2B ad agency in Cincinnati, I found myself wanting to grow but simply didn’t know how. Coming from a non-business background, I lacked the foundation in business that I knew I needed in order to develop as a marketing professional. So, I left my job to pursue the full-time Master of Science in Marketing and MBA programs at the University of Cincinnati.

I was intimidated. It’d been a while since I’d been a student, and I kept questioning if my professional experience would be enough to contribute meaningfully to the classroom. To my surprise, I learned quickly that many of the other students were in the same boat. There were varying levels of work experience, but we were all working toward honing our business expertise. Despite the similarities, our professional backgrounds were very diverse, which led to enriching discussions in and out of the classroom.

During my time at Lindner, my classmates and professors challenged me—something that I’m truly grateful for now. Both programs exposed me to different disciplines that were completely foreign to me before. Above all, they instilled in me the importance of perpetually learning and continually striving for more.

Now, I walk into work every day knowing that I’m well-equipped to handle anything that comes my way. And if by some chance I’m not? I know challenge is worth the experience and growth.

Over the course of the past four years as a student at the Lindner College of Business, I have been able to write my own story of empowerment, adventure and growth. One might say that I took an unconventional path in college by majoring in Finance and Biology on a Premedical track. However, I was supported throughout my academic ventures. I aspire to one day go into private equity with a focus on the healthcare industry, so that I can indirectly impact patients through the growth of healthcare companies.

The honors programs that I am a part of pushed me to make an impact on campus, and the scholarships that I received showed me the importance of paying it forward. Lindner Honors-PLUS brought me to New York City for the first time and took me to European cities that I had never even previously dreamed of being able to see. My involvement with this program as well as my five Lindner Professional Experiences (co-ops and internships) have helped me develop as a professional. As a Cincinnatus Presidential Scholar, I have been able to see the positive impact that generosity has on a community, which inspires me to help others.

The Lindner College of Business has taught me that life is about so much more than getting a degree; it is about gaining experiences, broadening one’s horizons, and positively impacting others. As President of Lindner Student Ambassadors, I have had the honor of sharing my Lindner story with hundreds of potential new students. I want prospective students to know that my story could be theirs. Everyone has the opportunity to study abroad and experience a trip of a lifetime. Companies are constantly seeking out Lindner students for professional experiences and the Lindner Career Services advisors help each and every student sculpt their academic experiences into anything that they desire.

In addition to being an MBA candidate at the Lindner College of Business, I am also a professional cellist and have performed with orchestras at some of the best concert halls in the world, including the Sydney Opera House, the Kennedy Center and Music Hall in Cincinnati. I am currently a member of the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra and regularly take nationally competitive auditions for some of the country’s top orchestras.

Since entering the professional world of music, I have witnessed the challenges and struggles that many orchestras face. Financial hardships and declining interest in the art form are common themes when orchestras appear in the news, but there are exceptions. Our very own Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (CSO) is a national example of a thriving organization under great leadership. I wanted to learn from that example and contribute to finding solutions to these challenges, so I decided to pursue an MBA at the Lindner College of Business. With its exceptional reputation, accelerated pace, and urban location in a city with successful businesses and a vibrant arts community, I felt that this program would be a great fit and I was right.

The Lindner MBA’s cohort system has exceeded my expectations on every front. From the first day at base camp all the way through our study abroad experiences in Shanghai and the eventual completion of our capstone projects, we were able to draw upon our diverse professional backgrounds and personal experiences to make each other stronger. When there were challenges, someone was always well-equipped to support those who were struggling. My cohort taught me about better networking, adaptive communication, acknowledging disparate viewpoints and finding the middle-ground. I believe in the value of community and relish the opportunity to have worked through the program with such a strong, intelligent and diverse cohort.

The MBA cohort system reminds me of my experiences in summer orchestra festivals. These programs bring together musicians from around the world to live together while working towards a similar goal. Our MBA cohort functioned in the same way. I treasure the relationships that I have made since my entry into the program.

In addition to having the support of my cohort and Lindner faculty during my MBA studies, they were all supportive of my musical career. There were many occasions that I was asked to play my cello during class. After one of these mini-concerts, one cohort member had reflected that he was so moved by the performance that he needed to find his passion like I had found mine in the cello. One week, when I was performing with the CSO, my accounting professor, Molly Rogers, brought a large group of my classmates to the concert. The back two rows of Music Hall were filled with my fellow cohort members. One friend remarked, “I experienced emotions I didn’t know I was capable of feeling.”

In addition to expanding my skill set to help ensure the growth and sustainability of arts organizations, I became a liaison between the arts and business communities. Having the opportunity to expose those with budding careers in business to the cello and classical music was a joy and a privilege.

As I am nearing the completion of my degree in December 2018, I’m excited to serve the arts community with my MBA. I plan to create a chamber music concert series in Cincinnati that focuses on pairing local music and architecture. The encouragement of the faculty, staff, students and business contacts were instrumental in fostering this artistic venture.

For any prospective Lindner student, the best advice I could give is to challenge yourself to do new things and push yourself outside of your comfort zone. Find your passion, take risks, fail often and learn from failure. I’m thankful to the faculty and staff at the Lindner College of Business for their investment in my future and for creating such a transformative program.

For the majority of my life, I had an obsession with airplanes and anything that was built and could be operated. With this being the case, I was set on becoming a mechanical engineer. In high school, I took some AP physics classes and soon after realized for sure, I am not going to be a mechanical engineer.

At that time, I was heavily involved in a business role-playing organization that I really enjoyed, called DECA, which inspired me to delve deeper into the world of business. I eventually decided to pursue a degree in Operations Management because it combines the social interactions of business and the critical thinking of engineering.

My experience at the Lindner College of Business and the University of Cincinnati has been phenomenal, and I genuinely feel myself becoming a more astute business professional. Thus far, my college experience has been comprised of working in teams on long-term projects, professional development, plenty of networking events and heavy involvement on campus in several student organizations, such as Business Fellows, the UC African Student Association and UC Hyperloop, to name a few. My career-centered academic structure is preparing me well to take on my first co-op rotation this school year!

About 10 weeks into my full-time job, it had finally hit me that I was not a co-op student and that I would not be returning to another semester of classes. Usually, I would be ready to head back to the classroom after this small duration of rigorous professional work, but now I can confidently say that I am excited and more than prepared to conquer all that post-graduation has to bring!

After five years of personal and professional exploration within the Lindner College of Business, I had gained clarity on what my next steps in life might bring. In July 2018, I began working at LinkedIn as a Business Leadership Program Associate within the Global Sales Organization. While in this role, I spend time interfacing with clients from all around the world and assisting them with their talent acquisition needs.

As I reflect on my preparation for this role, I think back to the countless hours spent interacting with the diverse UC student body in student groups like student government and associations within the African American Culture and Resource Center. Also, I think about the handful of international experiences aided by the Business Fellows program, Lindner Honors-PLUS program and UC International. Lastly, the “real-world” experience gained from numerous co-ops and internships afforded me a wonderful sneak-peek into what I could expect for life after college.

As a recent graduate, I can say that I am confident in my preparation and take pride in telling all that I am a graduate of the University of Cincinnati. This school has molded me into a well-rounded professional but most importantly an ambitious individual with good character who is ready to tackle this next stage in life.

It has been an eventful and exciting journey since joining the Lindner College of Business in 2014! As a fifth-year doctoral student, I've been given the unique opportunity to work with and learn from some of the best researchers and teachers in management. My adviser, Heather Vough, as well as the other Management faculty, have played a key role in helping me grow as an academician and supporting my work.

My research is focused on understanding how daily workplace interactions and employee emotions shape employee well-being and workplace relationships. My work examines how different emotions (i.e., envy, guilt, embarrassment, annoyance and happiness) experienced in the course of daily workplace interactions (i.e., work interruptions, social undermining, prosocial behaviors or social gaffes) affect employees and their behavior towards others. My work has been accepted for publication in the Academy of Management Review as well as the Journal of Organizational Behavior, and this past year, I received the University of Cincinnati Graduate School Dean's Fellowship as well as the Lindner Outstanding Doctoral Student Research Award.

Teaching is also a passion of mine, and I consider it an important part of my identity as a management scholar. I’ve made the Dean’s List of Teaching Excellence for four consecutive years and also received the Lindner Excellence in Teaching Award for Graduate Students this past year.

When I reflect on my time as a student at the Lindner College of Business, I am reminded of the incredible amount of positive peer influence that prompted me to take meaningful action towards pursuing my goals.

Indeed, many of the things I accomplished weren’t even on my radar when I stepped foot on the University of Cincinnati’s campus some five years ago. My peers and professors continually encouraged me to do more, be more and achieve more, and I am forever grateful to everyone at UC that championed my life, my experiences and my career. You could say I took the advice of former Lindner Honors-PLUS Director, Jeri Ricketts, to heart when she told me and my fellow classmates, “Don’t just go to class, go to college!” I did precisely that and allowed my curiosity and joie-de-vivre for life to lead me to new adventures.

One such adventure was answering that big ‘ole question: What do you want to be when you grow up? Thanks to Lindner, at the ripe age of 19, I accepted my very first co-op position with Ernst & Young. I knew next to nothing about accounting at the time. This year, I’ll celebrate my ten-year anniversary since joining the firm and will return to Lindner as an adjunct professor to teach corporate tax in the Master’s program from which I graduated. It has been an incredibly rewarding career and I know the best is yet to come.

UC also led me around the world. Brazil = check. China = check. Korea = check. Nicaragua = check … and the list goes on! In fact, I stamped my passport some 15 times while a student at UC, with each journey leading me to new self-discoveries. The most transformative trip? A yearlong study abroad program in São Paulo, where I met my wife Isabel.

In 2016, Isabel and I helped plan a similar cultural and business exchange program to Brazil for Lindner Honors-PLUS students. One might say it was our way of giving back and saying “thank you” to UC for bringing us together.

In 2017, I used important lessons I had learned from my marriage to speak about cultural bias in the form of a TED Talk at UC. In a world where intolerance towards immigrants is the norm, I used my personal experience to share an important message of love and understanding to those in our community and around the world.

What would I say to current Lindner students? Dream big and go far. And, wherever you go and whatever heights you may reach, be humble and stay kind. Those are the hallmark traits of UC’s very best. Go Bearcats!

After 10 years in the workforce, mostly working in sales, marketing and product management, I made the decision to pursue an MBA. I didn’t have an academic background in business and I wanted to ground myself in business foundations through the lens of marketing and statistics. It was important to me to get my MBA through a university with a broad network of students and alumni because so much of the value you get from an MBA is the relationships and networks you build. The Lindner College of Business was the obvious choice because of the breadth and depth of the University of Cincinnati alumni network. That alone is worth the price of tuition. We live in a city full of Bearcats and I wanted to join and help contribute to that.

The cohort style learning environment was one of the biggest benefits for me. I was fortunate enough to be one of the older members of the cohort and I benefitted so much from collaborating with my younger classmates. Going in, I thought my experience was going to be all about improving my weaknesses and that all of my classmates would be held back by my lack of strengths. Instead, what I found was that my classmates had weaknesses in areas where I had strength, and rather than being held back by my weaknesses, they were some of my biggest supporters for emphasizing my strengths. That worked both ways as well. It seems counterintuitive but getting 45 of the most competitive people I’ve ever met into the same room for several days a week resulted in more mentoring and partnering than in fighting and individualism. It was one of the most important parts of the program.

The last thought that I have on my experience this past year is how important it is to follow your passion, and to share your goals and dreams with those around you. During an exercise at basecamp, I shared about my desire to create a successful podcast. When it came time for one of my group members to introduce me, Joey Kappen (who a few hours earlier was a total stranger) stood up and shared this with everyone and added that he knew I would one day achieve that goal. This sparked a conversation that resulted in Joey and I starting the UC MBA Thought Leadership Podcast. It was a great sandbox to play in and the value that I received from it was incredible. We were able to connect with leaders in the local business community and learn more about the work that they do, while at the same time learning more about content creation, branding, promotion, digital media and project management.

Don’t be afraid to take on a passion project that’s beyond your capabilities. If you’re passionate about it and honest about what you need help with to achieve success, at the very least it will be a valuable learning experience.

To members of next year’s cohorts and future cohorts, I would just say that you’re stronger and more capable than you think. You’re able to take on more than you think you can. Just learning how to get better at project and time management is a lot of what you learn when pursuing an MBA.

GO BEARCATS!!