Semi Ibikunle, Kellogg MBA Class of 2021
Age: 25
Hometown: Lagos, Nigeria, then moved to York, Pennsylvania, when I was 9
Undergraduate Institution and Major: University of Pennsylvania 2015, where I majored in Health and Societies with a concentration in Healthcare Management.
Pre-MBA Work Experience (years, industry):
4 years in the Pharmaceutical industry at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). I spent 3 years in a rotational program where I held a variety of marketing roles in Sales, R&D, and Vaccines Analytics. I have held the role of Strategy Associate for the past year, primarily focused on conducting and evaluating market research projects to help create a brand strategy for a late-stage oncology therapy.
Why business school? Why now?
I was exposed to business courses in the latter half of undergrad and was able to gain a deeper understanding during my time at GSK. I felt that going back to school would provide the opportunity to gain foundational business, management, and leadership skills that would be invaluable as I continue my professional career.
Why Kellogg? What factors figured most prominently into your decision of where to attend?
Kellogg’s emphasis on collaborative and experiential learning coupled with its extremely student-driven culture stood out to me when evaluating business programs. But what really sold me was the time spent at the Kellogg Global Hub after my on-campus interview.
I had the opportunity to talk to multiple first-year students who really impressed me with their willingness to share their experiences and most importantly, their humility and warm nature. I left with a feeling that this was the school where I be my most authentic self and achieve the most professional and personal growth. Plus, the view of Lake Michigan from the Hub is amazing!
What do you think is your most valuable or differentiating contribution to the Class of 2021?
Studying healthcare management in undergrad and gaining practical experience from my roles at GSK has given me insight into the nature of our complex healthcare landscape. Unfortunately, consumers bear the brunt of the misaligned incentives across the insurance, health system, and biopharmaceutical stakeholders. I hope to bring that perspective to my class and leverage their unique experiences to ruminate on potential solutions to improve our healthcare system.
Fun fact that didn’t get included on your application?
I learned how to play a drum set around the age of 6.
Post-MBA career interests?
I would like to go into management consulting because it presents a great opportunity to build upon the knowledge I will have gained at Kellogg, as well as providing an opportunity to explore other industries of interest. I ultimately hope to leverage the innovative methods used across a variety of industries to positively transform the US and global healthcare system.
Advice to current prospective applicants:
–One thing you would absolutely do again as part of your application process?
I was fortunate to be a Management Leadership for Tomorrow Fellow, which allowed me access to 1:1 coaching. This coaching allowed me to better understand my skill set, so that I could confidently articulate it in essays and interviews. It was also a great way to network with other high achieving professionals from under-represented communities, some of whom are now my classmates at Kellogg!
–One thing you would change or do differently?
If you’re sure about going to business school early enough, I would recommend splitting up your applications between Round 1 and 2. This will improve the quality of time spent on each application and also provide additional time for introspection and refining the application process before applying in later rounds
–Part you would have skipped if you could—and what helped you get through it?
I was grateful for all the different parts of the application process, but I had the hardest time with the essays. Preparing for the GMAT was a daunting task, which made me think that the essays would be a lot less stressful and less time-consuming.
For me, the essays took just as much time and were even more stressful than the GMAT prep. All in all, the essay prompts forced me to delve deeper in my decision to pursue an MBA and prepared me for the interview portion.
What is your initial impression of Kellogg’s students/culture/community?
I’ve just completed Social Impact Days, a 2-day social impact seminar that provided an overview of the social impact program at Kellogg and an opportunity to listen to faculty and students speak about their involvement.
Incoming students were also placed into groups and tasked with pitching a startup idea to address climate change, healthcare, workforce engagement, and education. I was happy to brainstorm with extremely eager students and in turn get to know more about them and create and evaluate some pretty outstanding business ideas. Having this experience solidified my initial impression that Kellogg is full of passionate, and curious student leaders.
One thing you have learned about Kellogg that has surprised you?
Although Kellogg offers multiple MBA tracks (1Y, 2Y, MMM, JD/MBA and MD/MBA) I get a sense that the overall program is extremely cohesive and students across all tracks interact very closely.
Thing you are most anxious about in your first year?
Time Management! There is so much business school has to offer (clubs, recruiting case competitions, mid-year internships) and I am someone who likes to do a bit of everything.
I really have to be intentional about what I areas put my energy toward so that I’m giving it my all, rather than scratching the surface in a lot of different areas. I expect it to be a fine balance between general exploration and navigating areas where I want to dive deep, especially in the first semester.
Thing you are most excited about in your first year?
Learning from the amazing students at Kellogg. We all come from so many different background/industries/ businesses functions, that it’ll be exciting to see how we all look at the same problems through different lenses. I’m excited to learn to gain a deeper understanding about myself, my classmates and the world at large hopefully have the same impact on my classmates.
