The MBA and Life Checklist: Choosing your MBA Program (Part 2)

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Kellogg
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Dinner with Dean Blount & Tim Simmonds
Dean Sally Blount and Tim Simonds dine with students at Dean Blount’s home.

This post is part two in a series. See part one, part three, part four, part five, part six.

As I was making my decision to attend Kellogg, I asked myself six questions to determine whether it was the right place for me. Here is the second:

What kind of availability do I have to the people leading and representing me?

The senior administration should realize the importance of connecting with their students. Kellogg’s deans realize that. During my first year, I went to a small coffee chat with the Associate Dean of MBA Programs and Dean of Students Betsy Ziegler. We discussed my view of Kellogg, what I appreciated and what I thought could be different. She has these chats to hear our perspective as students. She challenged me, and I felt I was able to challenge her. I’ve built relationships with many members of the faculty and staff not only because of my involvement in school activities, but because they make themselves available to us. As co-president of the Black Management Association, an admissions interviewer and member of the Kellogg Student Association’s team focused on alumni relationships, I’ve had the opportunity to work with Dean of Admissions Kate Smith, Roxanne Hori in Corporate Partnerships and Liza Kirkpatrick in Career Management Center. The access to leadership at the school’s highest level is impressive. Dean Blount also hosts events on and off campus, and even at her home, to connect students, taking the idea of an open door policy to a new level.

Christopher Alexander ’14 is a 2008 graduate of Morehouse College and is in his second year of the 2Y MBA Program at Kellogg. His focus is on the Marketing and Management and Organizations curriculum. After graduation Chris will be heading back to Deloitte Consulting’s Strategy and Operations group. He will be based in Seattle, along with his fiancé and Kellogg classmate Jessica Lane ’14. Chris is very active on Kellogg’s campus, primarily as outgoing co-president of the Black Management Association, an admissions interviewer and a member of the class gift committee. Chris originally hails from Roxbury, NJ.