How do you know when it’s time for an MBA? Find out by going around the globe with our newest full-time students!

Our campus was abuzz with activity when we welcomed new students for a supercharged orientation week in June that included extensive career coaching sessions, an exciting case competition, and meet and greets with alumni from elite firms such as Deloitte, Coca Cola, and UPS.

They traveled from places as diverse as Dallas, (home to twenty-four Fortune 500 companies), and Delhi, ranked 6th in world’s top ten best performing metro economies, as well as a constellation of cities in between. For some, it was a short car ride from Charleston or Charlotte, the second-largest banking center in the U.S. Others flew in from booming East Coast business hubs such as Boston and NYC as well as Seattle and San Diego, the top two high-tech spots on the West Coast.

The newest cohort holds passports from nearly every continent on the map but shares the sentiment that right now is the right time to start a full-time MBA.

So how did they arrive at that decision?

Meet some of these #unstoppable students and see what personal and professional influences shaped their path to business school.

From Europe
Anne Lenski (MBA ‘20) studied architecture in Germany before working in project management at a real estate firm based in Bavaria.

Although she enjoyed building hotels and apartment houses in the international business hubs of Munich and Frankfurt, she feared that a fixed career path prompted by the more focused nature of the German education system, would eventually pigeonhole her. Anne wanted more career options in the long term.

These thoughts were transformed into action when her U.S. Army boyfriend, who was stationed in Germany, was given a new assignment in South Carolina. His career move inspired Anne to make one of her own as well.

She saw a path to become #unstoppable in the school’s No. 1 ranking for graduate international business, according to U.S. News and World Report, and was impressed by the number of global courses offered. She also liked the option to earn an MBA in just 10 months. The fact that One-year MBA students take many classes with International MBA students was all the more reason why the program would be a great fit. 

From North America
Nathan Vogt (MBA ‘20) earned an undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering from Kettering University in Flint, Michigan and began his career as an individual contributor at Kohler, the kitchen and bath fixture manufacturer, headquartered in Wisconsin.

Over the years, he moved into management and then took a group leadership role at a German, family-owned automobile supplier. Most recently, he worked as an operations director at a company based in Camarillo, California that manufactures micro-batteries for wearable applications.

Although Nathan was on the radar of recruiters for even more senior positions, he would soon learn that he didn’t have the required credentials to act on these opportunities. Recruiters kept reminding him that didn’t have an MBA.

The One-year MBA program at the University of South Carolina proved exactly what he was looking for. The combination of a 10-month program at the state’s flagship university that partners with top manufacturing companies, all for under $50k, provided a strong value proposition that he could not turn down.

From Africa
Before business school, Dami Fatusi (IMBA ‘21) practiced law in her home country of Nigeria as well as Los Angeles. 

As Dami progressed in the legal profession, she became passionate about business. Her “aha” moment occurred when she realized her interest in business development superseded legal briefs. Dami’s career goal is to combine both fields, and business school is the perfect place to “think outside the box,” which better suits her personality.

She learned about the University of South Carolina MBA after considering another university on the west coast with a similar acronym. However, she was worried that an MBA from Southern Cal’s Marshall School of Business would be too expensive, and she didn’t want to continue with the uncertainty of remaining on the waiting list at Stanford.

Most of all, she was confident that an International MBA from South Carolina would enable her to be competitive in job interviews in the states.

From South America
Anderson Veronese (IMBA ‘21) is an expert in dairy production who earned a bachelor’s degree in veterinary medicine at a top technical university in Brazil and a masters at University of Florida. He has conducted extensive research for the dairy industry as he seeks to pivot to a management position in the agricultural and animal health sectors.

Because all full-time MBA students at UofSC have the option to earn a STEM-designated Graduate Certificate in Business Analytics or Enterprise Resource Management, these international students can work in the U.S. for up to three years after graduation without a H1-B- visa. This and the school’s the No. 1 ranked International MBA were very appealing to Anderson. In the months ahead, he is excited to begin exploring the school’s vast alumni network and the employment opportunities it can unlock prior to graduation.

From Asia
Binbin Weng (MBA ‘20) earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from the Zhejiang University of Science and Technology in China before obtaining an MS in accounting and starting a career as a senior associate at EY in Charlotte. Most recently, she worked as a senior internal auditor for a 3D printing manufacturer. Binbin was interested in an MBA because her career goal is to be a finance leader that business partners trust and rely on. Her ‘aha’ moment to be #unstoppable occurred when she realized she no longer felt the same motivation for the fundamental roles and responsibilities of her previous position. She was attracted to South Carolina because of the option to earn an MBA in just 10 months along with a Graduate Certificate in Business Analytics at no extra charge.

There are all sorts of professional and personal circumstances that can serve as a catalyst for an MBA, and we know that this ‘aha’ moment can happen at any time. That’s why we’re here to help whenever it does. Whether you’re at the beginning stages of thinking about an MBA or you know that 2019 is “your” year, reach out.  We’re happy to have a casual chat or a more serious conversation, depending on where you are in the process.

Either way, we want you to know that YOU can be #unstoppable, too!