My name is Susanna Wright and I鈥檒l be continuing our MBA Blog for the Leeds School of Business for the next academic year.听 I moved to Boulder from Ohio in June of 2016.听 Before coming back to school full-time, I worked as a plant manager for an animal feed mill.听 After spending seven years in the Midwest in plant operations, I was ready for a career鈥攁nd location鈥攃hange.听
For me personally, one of the biggest selling points about the Leeds鈥� MBA Program was the location.听 I love being outdoors and had recently gotten interested in backpacking and rock climbing; not exactly ideal hobbies for someone that lives in the middle of cornfields.听 Because of this, I only looked at high-caliber MBA programs with mountains, specifically focusing on Colorado, Oregon, and Washington.听 Of these programs, Leeds was the best fit for me鈥攊t is the #1 ranked MBA program in Colorado, and the 8th oldest business school in the United States.听 The campus visit really sold me on the program; the school vibe was relaxed (no one dressed in suits!) but the classroom discussion was intense.
Before starting the program, I took some time off and spent about a month backpacking the Colorado Trail.听 It was an amazing experience and a great mental reset to prepare myself for going back to school!
Within the program, I鈥檓 focusing on a developing my skills for a future career in marketing.听 I had the opportunity to work two different internships this past summer, which got me experience at a large non-profit in the tech industry, and in the Organics + Natural鈥檚 space at a startup.听 Both of these opportunities came from networking throughout the year; I can鈥檛 overemphasize how important it is to network.
One thing I鈥檝e learned since coming back to school is that I love planning events and getting people together.听 There are so many things that I want to do and experience in Colorado鈥攁nd since starting the program, I鈥檝e had 90 friends to go on adventures with!听 Because of this, the VP of Social Relations was a natural fit for me.听 My unofficial (and more embraced title) is the official Fun Captain of the MBA鈥檚.听 I鈥檝e been working closely with our MBA Association to plan a variety of events throughout the year to get everyone together.听 We鈥檙e doing some tried-and-true events, like attending a Rockies game, and also some new ones鈥攍ike going hiking with llamas!听 I鈥檓 looking forward to another awesome year and getting to know a new cohort of classmates.
