We are proud to once again recognize the exceptional students and faculty selected by the graduating cohorts for awards. These members of the Rady community are thought leaders and changemakers, and they uplifted those around them throughout the challenging cirumstances of the pandemic.
The Robert S. Sullivan award, named in honor of the Rady School’s first Dean, recognizes students for a high level of leadership and contributions to the Rady School and larger UC San Diego community. The Dean’s award is given to students who epitomize our school values. Here are the award recipients, as recognized by each graduating cohort.
Full-Time MBA
Robert S. Sullivan Award
Kayla Winter
Excellence in Teaching
Hyoduk Shin, Jimmy Anklesaria Presidential Chair in Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Associate Professor of Innovation Information Technology and Operations
Most Valuable Professor
Vish Krishnan, Jacobs Family Chair in Management and Engineering Leadership, Technology and Operations
FlexEvening MBA
Robert S. Sullivan Award
Angela Garais
Dean’s Award
Veronica Zax
Excellence in Teaching
Michael Finney, former Visiting Associate Professor
Michael Finney, former Visiting Associte Professor
Master of Professional Accountancy
Robert S. Sullivan Award
Yingyuan Tong
Dean’s Award
Siqing Lyu
Excellence in Teaching
Robert Schmidt
MostValuable Professor
James Deiotte, Executive Director, Master of Professional Accountancy
Master of Business Analytics
Robert S. Sullivan Award
Miloni Shah
Dean’s Award
Ganesh Baleri
Excellence in Teaching
Terrence August, Jerome Katzin Faculty Fellowship, Associate Professor of Innovation, Technology and Operations
Most Valuable Professor
Vincent Nijs, Associate Professor of Marketing, Associate Dean of Academic Programs, and Co-Director of the Master of Science in Business Analytics Program
To commemorate the Day of Caring’s founding year, the entire UC San Diego community showcases its loyalty and support with 1960 minutes of giving. Between May 12 at 6 a.m. through May 13 at 2 p.m., supporters can choose their cause, share stories, and make a gift to UC San Diego that will impact the world now and for generations to come. For 2022, Dean Ordóñez has personally committed to match all gifts to any area of Rady, dollar for dollar, up to $5,000 with a gift to the Rady School Career Management Center.
The Rady School’s programs prepare the next generation of diverse, innovative leaders of technology-driven companies through education, experiential learning, mentorship, and venture funding.
The unique experiential learning opportunities that provide students with the opportunity to explore the many sides of innovation and entrepreneurship include:
The nonprofit StartR accelerator offers six focused tracks, including programs for diverse groups and veterans, to participate in focused, hands-on company development.
Pitch competitions: Triton Innovation Challenge and Border Innovation Challenge focus on bringing to the spotlight promising solutions and technologies to address environmental issues and meet the efficiency and security challenges of the region’s ports of entry.
Rady Innovation Fellows program deploys teams of Rady graduate students to support the commercialization of new technologies and assist entrepreneurs in various stages of development.
Our mentorship program DRIvE (Developing Rady Innovation Entrepreneurs) connects teams with high‐level mentors who provide guidance in the early phases of their startups.
The Rady Venture Fund offers investment capital to entrepreneurs as well as education and experience in venture capital management, including opportunities to invest in Rady alumni startups.
Visit giveto.ucsd.edu to choose any gift fund OR click below to support these Rady funding priorities:
In May of 2021, the Rady School community raised $12,905, including funding for Undergraduate Clubs, including the UC San Diego Speech and Debate team, fellowships, MPAc program, and greatest needs.
Powered by your support, we will prepare future leaders for new venture creation and growth, bringing to market solutions for global good and impacting the economy through job creation, revenue growth, and increased diversity.
Dean Lisa Ordóñez made history becoming the Rady School’s second-ever dean in 2019. Previously Vice Dean and professor at the University of Arizona’s Eller College of Management, Ordóñez is the first woman and first person of color in the role.
Ordóñez, who earned a bachelor’s in psychology, a master’s in marketing, and a Ph.D. in quantitative psychology all from UC Berkeley, is a recognized expert in the field of ethical behavior in organizations. She received a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant to support her work, and her research has been cited in numerous media outlets including New York Times, Forbes and The Economist. While Vice Dean at Eller, she also co-chaired the university-wide strategic plan.
A “double first gen” graduate—Ordóñez, who grew up in rural California, was the first in her immediate family to graduate both high school and college. Early in her career, she says that she struggled with impostor syndrome, feeling like she did not belong in academic and professional settings where her achievements had landed her.
Ordóñez is frequently asked to speak about her expertise and experiences, including many discussions of women in leadership. “There have been so many women’s leadership conferences over the past several years. This indicates that we are working on changing organizations to support and encourage more female leaders,” she says.
“We as women may unconsciously go into these discussions and think we are the problem. I don’t want us to think that we need to be ‘fixed,’ and that doing so would make the issues we face go away. Change needs to occur on multiple levels: 1) supportive organizations; 2) male colleagues as allies, 3) and yes, where we have the most direct control, develop ourselves as leaders.”
Recently, she presented a talk called, “Advice for All of Us,” at the 2021 WACUBO Women’s Leadership Forum. Inspired by the advice she says she needed to hear when she was younger—Ordóñez shared the lessons below for other women who may be feeling alone in their leadership journey.
You belong and you are entitled.
Childhood in rural California
I grew up in rural California. My parents did not finish high school, and I became a first-generation college student. When I got there, I didn’t feel like I belonged. Even in graduate school, most of my classmates had parents who were professionals. I doubted if I should be there.
The truth is that you do belong. You are entitled. Why do I use the word entitlement that often has a negative connotation? Malcolm Gladwell discusses the positive side of entitlement in his book “Outliers.” Everyone should feel entitled to information and help.
You are entitled to ask questions and get answers. You are entitled to ask for help and to receive it. You are entitled to feel like you belong.
Learn to accept help.
Professor at the Eller College of Management
When I was a new professor, a colleague Terry Connolly wanted to do research with me, but I was afraid that others would not see me as competent if I worked with a senior researcher. So, I initially said no. Luckily, he was persistent and we became great research partners. I owe him a great debt as an early mentor.
A friend of mine, a highly published economist and the current Provost at the University of Minnesota Rachel Croson, received an NSF ADVANCE Grant. She put together a networking and mentoring program to help women faculty in economics rise in the ranks. She received too many applications, so, being the excellent research that she is, she randomly assigned women in and out of this program and then measured the results. Women were more likely to receive tenure and move up the ranks who completed this program.
As women, we might have to ask for help. It’s important to make connections and receive it. No one does this alone.
Put people first and empower others.
Vice Dean at the Eller College of Management
When I was first appointed Vice Dean at the University of Arizona Eller College of Management, my husband asked me how I was preparing for this new role. He laughed at me when I said I was working on a new time management system so I could get more done. He reminded me of the leadership expert Marshall Goldsmith’s famous book title “What Got You Here Will Not Get You There”, which meant that I had to do more than get tasks done.
One of my faculty members came to me complaining about her salary. I was not prepared, and I said something to the effect of not being able to do anything for her then. She left the conversation upset with me for not taking the time to listen to her. I quickly learned that it wasn’t about getting work done– it was about considering people and their needs. They needed to know that I cared more about them than anything else.
You got this!
Dean at the Rady School of Management
When I was interviewing for my current role, the recruiter asked me if I was nervous about my upcoming campus visit. He seemed surprised when I confidently said, “no.” I told him that I was just going to present me—if “me” worked, great. If “me” didn’t work, that was fine since I had a great job already with people who cared for me.
It’s not that I am hubristic about my abilities in my new position. I just know that I am prepared. I know what data I need and what questions to ask before making big decisions. More importantly, I now know how to listen.
Leadership can be hard. People do expect you to have the answers. How do you truly listen and take advice while “having all of the answers?” I don’t pretend to know everything. Remember that you set the tone as a leader. If you push or cross the line, so will those watching you. You don’t need any advice from people on what to do when you feel that pang in your gut. Do the right thing.
Lessons Learned as a Leader
Never act on the first story you hear– triangulate with others.
Staff and some faculty do not have tenure and often need coaxing to share their opinions.
No one cares how much you get done if they don’t think you care about them.
Make integrity your true north– everyone is watching and will mimic your behavior.
Learn how to be comfortable with conflict and how to find solutions that benefit the organization.
Be comfortable not knowing everything by working through the expertise of others.
Remember to laugh and have fun– we spend too much time at work to be miserable.
As we all navigate a new reality as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, job searching can feel like particularly shaky terrain. To address concerns around the job market, FlexMBA and Alumni Career Consultant Linda Kurtz recently led virtual workshops for Rady School students. Below, we’ve compiled expertise shared by Kurtz and fellow Career Management Center staff to help provide guidance for the Rady community.
Research industries
of interest and look for trends.
“I want to be transparent,” Kurtz said during the workshop.
“Some companies are actively hiring and recruiting, some are putting things on
pause, and some are laying people off.”
To discover which companies and industries are actively hiring,
Kurtz and the Career Management Center staff shared several resources.
Industries of particular interest to Rady School graduates
such as consulting & services, business software and financial services are
showing a lot of hiring activity.
Startup San Diego, CONNECT San Diego and San Diego: Life Changing, a division of the San Diego Regional Economic Development Council, has put together this list of companies with current job openings.
“Think about the functional areas that are being impacted,” said
Mitchell Kam, Assistant Director of the Career Management Center. Ecommerce
companies experiencing an increase in online orders are also experiencing an
uptick of data. They’re likely to seek data analysts not just during the pandemic,
but in the aftermath as well.
Create a job search
plan.
While uncertainty can feel overwhelming, creating a plan can
help you prioritize and take action. Kurtz recommended these three steps:
Write down your goals. Where would you like to
be professionally in the next three to five years? What short-term adjustments
might you need to make to get there?
Create a list of desired industries, roles,
companies and locations. Include relevant advocates and contacts.
Continue applying to jobs and follow up on your
applications.
“Even if an interview process is put on pause, the good news
is that you are likely to be considered when interviewing resumes,” Kurtz said.
Be “politely persistent” as you follow up, and keep in mind that everyone you
are in contact with is likely experiencing their own concerns about the
pandemic.
Continue to network
online.
Without the opportunity to attend in-person networking events or schedule casual coffee chats, a thoughtful online networking strategy is more important than ever. You may find your inbox bombarded with Zoom happy hour invitations, connection requests, or colleagues checking-in.
Kurtz recommended prioritizing your networking efforts according to your job search plan so that you can maximize your time and make the most meaningful online connections. “Companies need the right talent to help them move their business forward,” she said. Conversations with your network can help you learn early about new opportunities, or learn about ways in which a business is shifting its priorities.
“It’s a better time than ever to be reaching out on LinkedIn,” said Graduate Career Advisor Michelle Sedgwick. “A lot of us have been through ups and downs of the economy in the past and people want to be able to provide some support.”
Now is also a good time to make sure your LinkedIn profile
(and website, if applicable), are up-to-date. When requesting new LinkedIn
connections, be sure to include a brief message about why you’re interested in
talking to them, and what you have in common. A little customization can go a
long way, and gives a personal touch to electronic communication.
Upskill (in a way
that makes sense for your goals).
Many online learning sites are currently offering free or
discounted courses. Research which programs can get you closer to the goals you
outlined in your job search plan. Students can arrange a meeting with Rady
Career Management Center advisors to personalize their plan. Online learnings
options to consider include:
It’s absolutely normal to feel overwhelmed by this pandemic. As you continue your job search, remember to look out for your health, too. UC San Diego has compiled a list of resources for coping with coronavirus stress that includes tips for preserving your mental, physical and emotional health. Your well-being comes first!
Tips and Resources for Job Searching During the COVID-19 Pandemic was last modified: April 21st, 2020 by Camille Cannon
Alumni working at the Scripps Research Institute are conducting a study to improve the real-time surveillance of contagious respiratory illnesses such as COVID-19 using data from smartwatches and activity trackers. Through the app-based DETECT study, Katie Baca-Motes (MBA ’09 and Director of the All of Us research project), Royan Kamyar (MBA ’10, physician and CEO and founder of Owaves app) and project manager and incoming MBA FlexWeekend student Lauren Ariniello, along with their colleagues, are crowdsourcing anonymized data across the United States.
“By evaluating individual changes to heart rate, sleep and
activity patterns, as well as logged respiratory symptoms and diagnostics test
results, the Scripps’ team hopes to complement traditional public health
surveillance methods, potentially leading to earlier detection and containment
of current and future outbreaks in various geographical locations,” said
Baca-Motes.
Rady Alumni Board president Josh Kuss is the Senior Director of Commercial Strategy at Illumina and the commercial lead for the company’s San Diego Emergency Management Team. The team has been working since March “defining and implementing the strategies for how we keep Illumina’s employees safe, while ensuring supply to our customers, many of which are on the front line of SARS-COV-2/COVID19 research, tracing, and treatment. We tackled how to transition to work from home, and are now in the process of determining a sound return to work strategy,” said Kuss.
Krithi Bindal (MBA ’17) is the founder and president of Aroga Biosciences, a regulatory writing biopharma firm which has been donating their scientific expertise to peer-review pre-print literature related to COVID-19 research.
“We are in a period of information overload,” said Bindal. “Misinformation about COVID-19, especially information lacking scientific rigor, can lead to significant risk to the public. I feel it is our duty as scientists to ensure effective communication and to help delineate scientific factual results from fiction. After all, our job as scientists is to find the truth.”
“The name of our company Aroga is based on the sanskrit term ‘arogya”, which means free of disease. We hope to continue to contribute to freeing the world of disease as we help to develop treatments for ailing patients. As we navigate these challenging times, our mission is unchanged and is stronger than ever.”
Richard Castle (FlexWeekend MBA ’13), the co-founder and president of Cloudbeds, a hospitality management software, launched the #HospitalityHelps initiative. The online platform facilitates connections between hotel properties that want to make their beds available to healthcare agencies, organizations or individuals who need them. Within a few days, the more than 1.2 million beds had been pledged at HospitalityHelps.org.
Andrea Yoder Clark (MSBA ’17), and her consulting company LiveGoode Programs & Analytics is working with 211 San Diego to analyze statewide data collected from regional 211s to support the state of California’s policy response to COVID-19’s impact on most vulnerable populations.
Jaden Risner and Clay Treska (FlexWeekend MBA ’19) founded Family Proud an app to help patients and their caregivers and loved ones manage their care, while they were students at the Rady School. In Spring 2020, the Family Proud platform was updated to include resources and support for those affected by COVID-19.
Snehanshu Tiwari, Vishnu Sharon R. and Sakshi Sharma (MSBA ’18) contacted Professor Ken Wilbur to offer their help reviewing resumes, preparing for interviews or make introductions for current MSBA students graduating this summer. When Professor Wilbur shared this update on LinkedIn, even more alumni offered to help!
Steve Prestrelski (FlexWeekend MBA ’06) is the founder and chief scientific officer of Xeris Pharmaceuticals, which is offering its GVOKE Pre-Filled Syringe—an injectable treatment for diabetes patients who experience severe hypoglycemia—for $0 copay through May 31st.
The team at Indigo Marketing Agency, founded by Claire Akin (MBA ’10). prepared a list of tips for working from home. “Indigo Marketing Agency is a company run almost completely virtually by mothers of young children,” said Akin. “We saw so many of our clients struggling to adapt, so we wanted to offer our tips and tricks for working at home (even with small children) … I believe that we are helping our team members support their families and spend time with their children. It’s the best of both worlds and it provides a highly fulfilling lifestyle!”
Sean Haggerty (FlexWeekend MBA ’17), founder of Protector Brewery, made curbside pickup and delivery available, in addition to offering the brewery’s supply of filtered water available to those in need. Protector Brewery has pledged to donate $1 from each order to Team Rubicon, a non-profit organization supporting veterans impacted by COVID-19.
Sara Jones (Flex Weekend ’13) is the CEO of Plum Blossom Creations. She is offering free workshops on The Big Four of Mental Toughness. “As an Unbeatable Mind student, I learned first-hand the power of the Big 4 of Mental Toughness in my fight against Triple Negative Breast Cancer. I used the Big 4 to feed my Courage Wolf, stare down my fears and thrive through the health crisis that threatened my life.”
Updated 3/26/20: This post has been edited to reflect that the FlexWeekend MSBA program runs on Saturdays.
For the fourth year in a row, the job search website Glassdoor reported that Data Scientist is the best job in America. “This is due to the high demand, high salary, and high job satisfaction,” Glassdoor Chief Economist Dr. Andrew Chamberlain told CNBC. Several other data-driven roles also made the list: including data engineer at #8 and data analyst at #31.
There’s no denying that data is very much en vogue.
“All organizations are collecting more and more data. It’s
never going to be less,” says Vincent Nijs, Associate Professor of Marketing
and co-director of the Rady School of Management’s Master of Science in
Business Analytics program. “In this competitive environment, what skill set do
you bring?”
According to a 2017 report by IBM, 39% of data scientists
and advanced analyst positions require a master’s or PhD. “I think of business
analytics as data science specifically for business,” says Nijs. “Our
curriculum is built on business problems that companies face in practice, those
that companies are willing to pay people to help solve them.” And pay they do.
“Continually learning and adding new knowledge in the field
of data science and analytics is a great long-term personal development
strategy that pays,” says Forbes writer
Louis Columbus. Indeed, that Glassdoor report shows the median base salary for
a data analyst at $60,000, but a data scientist can expect to see closer to
$110,000*.
“One piece of advice I always offer to students on the job
market is to try and start at the highest level possible,” says Raymond Petit,
Executive Director of the Rady School’s MSBA program. He has strong evidence to
support that advice. “Among graduates who report, 100 hundred percent of our
MSBA students are placed in jobs after graduation,” many of them in data
scientist roles.
“These companies see how our graduates our fulfilling their
needs and doing a great job at it,” says Terrence August, Associate Professor
of Innovation, Technology and Operations, and co-director of the MSBA program.
The Rady School of Management is currently accepting applications for its full-time, 11-month Master of Science in Business Analytics degree program and its FlexWeekend MSBA program. The 17-month FlexWeekend MSBA program will cover the same curriculum as the full-time program, with classes offered on alternating Saturdays. This new program will be the first of its kind in California, making it possible for professionals to continue working full-time while they pursue their MSBA degree.
If you’re deciding whether or not to pursue your Master of
Science of Business Analytics, here are a few questions to consider:
1. Do you want to earn
a higher salary?
*See above.
2. Do you want to be
able to communicate data more effectively?
“When we developed the curriculum for the MSBA programs, we talked
to a number of different large corporations in the area,” says Nijs. “We asked
them what they’d be looking for from our graduates. They talked about a lot of
things like looking at data, being able to analyze the data, but also very
importantly—being able to communicate the insights from that data back to
decision makers.”
This is a skill set that Rady MSBA graduate Josh Bhatnagar says he uses every day as a Data Analyst at Mazda North American Operations. In addition to supporting the company’s quantitative needs such as data accessibility, modeling and structuring, communication is critical to his job function. “I maintain ongoing dialogue with domain owners and IT to prioritize organizational data requirements, design strategic data solutions and implement those solutions,” he says. “Without my time at Rady, I would not have had the foundation necessary to be successful in my current role.”
3. Do you want more
confidence in your technical skills?
Rady MSBA graduate Swagata Chakraborty was working as an
analyst in Citibank’s Global Decision Management team when she found herself contemplating
how to move forward in her career. “I felt that people who already had a
specialization relevant to their role were somewhat more confident and had more
clarity about their role.” After graduating, Chakraborty secured a Data
Scientist position with Walmart Labs. “Concepts like the statistical significance
of the data, sampling methods for training and test data, working with
unstructured data, training machine-learning models and confidence interval
analysis are some of the topics which I learned through my coursework at Rady
and apply on a daily basis [at work].”
4. Do you want the
opportunity to expand your network?
Whether you pursue your MSBA in the full-time or in the
FlexWeekend program, the Rady Capstone Project provides the opportunity to
solve real business problems faced by real companies such as HP, Petco, Target,
and Thermo Fisher. Students work in teams of three-four for ten weeks,
ultimately to present their findings to the company. “It’s an experience that
very much feels like working for a company as opposed to just a school project,”
says August. And better yet, the capstone can become the stepping stone to your
next career move.
“Companies are setting up this capstone-internship-job pipeline with us so that they can start to build their analytics teams in a very safe, smart way and make sure they’re getting the right talent for what they need,” says Petit. That’s exactly what happened for Rady MSBA graduate Radha Srinivasan, who worked on a capstone project for Thermo Fisher, was offered a data scientist job upon graduation, and is now their Senior Data Scientist (one year after graduating).
5. Do you want to drive
up value in an organization?
“It’s great if you’re able to program something interesting
in Python that solves a problem, but if nobody wants to use it, we’re not creating
any value for anybody,” says Nijs.
Let’s look at that another way. According to a 2013 McKinsey
report, “By 2020, the wider adoption of big-data analytics could increase
annual GDP in retailing and manufacturing by up to $325 billion and save as much
as $285 billion in the cost of health care and government services … Big data
promises big things—but only if organizations have the right people in place
who know what to do with it.”
Hmm. Sounds like a job for a Rady MSBA graduate.
Learn more about the Rady School of Management’s MSBA program here.
Five Questions to Ask Yourself If You’re Pursuing a Career in Data was last modified: October 21st, 2020 by Camille Cannon
Amy Bernal’s path to become Chief Experience Officer at
artificial intelligence company Aira began before the company was even born. Prior
to entering the Rady School in 2011, Bernal, who graduated from the Flex MBA
program in 2014, had worked in project management and business development for
local non-profit organizations. “I was hungry to operate in an entrepreneurial
environment,” she says. “I knew that Rady was the best in terms of the ability
to connect to the right people.”
It was in her first study group at Rady where Bernal met classmate
Suman Kanuganti. Bernal and Kanuganti also worked together through their Lab to
Market course sequence. By their final quarter, Kanuganti had the idea for
Aira, which connects blind and low-vision people to remote human agents via smart
phone or smart glasses, and developed his concept through Rady’s Lab to Market
and StartR programs.
“I was able to see him create that company, leave where he
was working before, and I eventually followed him,” says Bernal, who a senior
offering program manager at Intuit before joining Aira.
Since 2016, Bernal has grown from Director of Agent Services
to Chief Experience Officer at Aira. Currently, she is working to expand Aira’s
network of 25,000+ partners across companies, locations, platforms and devices
to increase accessibility for Aira “explorers” (users).
In the video, Bernal explains how her MBA degree from Rady broadened her skillset and opened her world to new opportunities.
How Collaboration at Rady Changed Amy Bernal’s Career Path was last modified: November 6th, 2019 by Camille Cannon
Earning an MBA from the Rady School of Management was another accomplishment on Mariana Melcón’s (MBA ’14) long list of academic and professional achievements. Boasting a resume that includes a Ph.D. in Animal Physiology, publications in top academic journals and research experience in world-renowned laboratories, Melcón is well-versed in what it means to be a dedicated scientist.
As an expert in bioacoustics, Melcón studies the way sounds affect underwater ecosystems. Though her academic career was thriving, she knew her impact in the field could be more significant with a background in business.
“I wanted to get an MBA to become more employable,” she said. “I was interested in learning more tools and skills that I hadn’t developed during my scientific studies. I was drawn to Rady because of the high numbers of scientists active in the program.”
Within her first few weeks at the Rady School, Melcón immersed herself in a number of activities and organizations during her time at the Rady School, taking advantage of the wealth of opportunities to learn and grow. She interned as a marketing consultant at a small digital marketing company, and served as a business development for Sense4Baby, an innovative fetal monitoring system for expecting mothers. She also took a teaching assistant role, assisting with the Quantitative Analysis, Operations Strategy and Architecture-Based Enterprise Systems Engineering courses offered at both the Rady School and Jacobs School of Engineering.
Despite diving head-first into the business world, Melcón couldn’t shake her passion for research, so she joined the Life Science Club. “I joined the Life Science Club because I figured it would be an excellent opportunity to combine my new-found interest for data-driven analytics with my love of science,” she said.
Change of plans
With a more generalized love for data analytics, Melcón decided to take on a new career path. She leveraged her Rady School network and was offered a Pricing Analytics Manager position HP Inc., and has been flourishing in her career ever since.
“Getting into data analytics was the perfect transition for me,” she said. “It took me quite some time to realize that breaking what you love doing into single units gives you more opportunities. A big passion of mine is playing detective with data and I apply this task in many different settings beyond biology. Understanding this led me to take my analytical science and critical thinking skills and transfer them into real-world business applications, while truly enjoying my job.”
Though her full-time job kept her busy, Melcón still found the time to volunteer her expertise serving as advisor and consultant for Argentina-based cetacean (whales and dolphins) conservation foundation Fundación Cethus.
This summer, her scientific and business worlds collided when she was invited to the United Nations to serve as a panelist for the Nineteenth meeting of the United Nations Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea. Serving as an expert on bioacoustics and underwater noise, Melcón was called to share her experience and knowledge on “Cooperation and coordination in addressing anthropogenic underwater noise”. In this session she shared her story on how she was able to start from scratch in a developing country to get equipment, train human resources and build an international network that made it possible to be leading bioacoustics research on cetaceans in South America, and addressing important issues such as impact of noise on these animals.
“My time at Rady was instrumental for my success addressing the world leaders at the United Nations,” she said. “My courses helped me prepare a compelling argument to influence the audience. Also during my studies at Rady, I learned to collaborate with a diverse group of students to accomplish a common goal that turned to be a stepping stone to many of my accomplishments.”
Presenting her research on the world’s stage was a dream come true for Melcón. In addition to sharing her research in bioacoustics, she was able to make a case for cross-country collaborations and the benefits of working with scientists from developing nations to accomplish global sustainability and nature preservation goals.
“Rady exposed me to paths and opportunities I never knew were available to me,” Melcón said. “My MBA experience helped me open my mind and see how different backgrounds and disciplines can work together to solve problems and devise new, innovative solutions.”
From Scientist to Data Expert to UN Presenter was last modified: January 3rd, 2019 by Hallie Jacobs
The MBA program at the Rady School of Management at the University of California San Diego has been recognized as one of the top programs for entrepreneurship in the U.S. by the Princeton Review and Bloomberg Businessweek. The school’s MBA program ranked 16th in The Princeton Review’s “Top 25 Graduate Schools for Entrepreneurship of 2019,” and 24th in the Bloomberg Businessweek “Best Business Schools” entrepreneurship category.
Both rankings recognize the best programs for students aspiring to launch their own businesses. In the Princeton Review ranking, the Rady School ascended from 25th to 16th in this year’s 2019 ranking, placing the school’s MBA program among the elite programs for entrepreneurship in the U.S.
“Since its founding, the Rady School has been dedicated to providing an outstanding education focused on innovation and entrepreneurship,” said Rady School Dean Robert S. Sullivan. “This ranking recognizes that the Rady School is a leader in entrepreneurial education. The incredible companies founded by our students and alumni are transforming our world and are proof-positive of the quality of entrepreneurship education the school provides.”
Since the school’s first MBA class graduated in 2006, students and alumni have started over 150 operational companies, contributing over $2 billion to the economy. The rapid success of startups originating at the school can be attributed to the unique structure of the Rady School’s MBA program, which integrates entrepreneurial education into the program through its capstone Lab to Market course sequence.
Two Prestigious Organizations Laud Rady School of Management MBA Program for Excellence in Entrepreneurship was last modified: November 14th, 2018 by Hallie Jacobs
As I entered my first year at the Rady School, I prepared to hit the ground running in search of my summer internship. It is true what the Careers Connections team warns about during orientation – the recruiting season is well underway by the time first year students start at Rady. It is important to start the job search early! In October of 2017, I attended an on-campus IBM panel featuring IBM employees in different roles, including distinguished engineers, offerings managers and Summit Program representatives. After the event, I used LinkedIn to connect with the Summit Program panelist to set up a call to get a more detailed perspective on what the Summit Program entailed. The Summit Program representative had gone through the program and was able to answer my questions and provide guidance on how to apply for the internship successfully. What I was not aware of initially was that this representative had direct access to the program’s recruiting team and recommended me on the back-end for a position.
Assignment
A few months before the start of the internship an IBM in San Francisco, the Summit Program managers paired me with an industry leader for the State of Washington. My assignment was to conduct a sales prospecting analysis to help implement best practices for the territory sales team. Working closely with each team member was valuable in that I got 15 different perspectives on what it is like to be an IBMer and learn about the company culture simultaneously.
Travel
The Summit Program sponsored travel to Dallas for orientation and to your host region for summer assignment purposes. Since the territory I was assigned was Washington State, my host manager and I planned for me to fly to Seattle twice, one for client-facing meetings and the second for internal planning meetings. The opportunity to travel was a nice perk to have as an intern and it also gave me a taste of life at IBM.
Takeaways
Participating in a summer internship is an invaluable experience for an MBA student pursuing the corporate track. What better way to “test drive” a new industry, company and geography? My experience this summer allowed me to explore the tech industry and live in the Bay Area where tech is king. While my summer was filled with travel and a heavy workload, I was able to find networking opportunities inside IBM and in the San Francisco area. Needless to say, it was nice to have a month off before my second year at Rady commenced!
Elizabeth Castaneda is a member of the Rady School of Management Class of 2019 MBA cohort. She is also the president of the Women of Rady student organization.
My Summer Internship at IBM was last modified: October 1st, 2018 by Elizabeth Castaneda
Earning an MBA from the Rady School of Management was another accomplishment on Mariana Melcón’s (MBA ’14) long list of academic and professional achievements. Boasting a resume that includes a Ph.D. in Animal Physiology, publications in top academic journals and research experience in world-renowned laboratories, Melcón is well-versed in what it means to be a dedicated scientist.
This summer, her scientific and business worlds collided when she was invited to the United Nations to serve as a panelist for the Nineteenth meeting of the 
Assignment