Maria Peña, Johnson MBA Class of 2021
Age: 27
Hometown: Bogota, Colombia
Undergraduate Institution and Major: Universidad de Los Andes (Colombia), Law Professional Degree
Pre-MBA Work Experience (years, industry): 4 years working as a corporate and financial lawyer at a boutique firm.
Why business school? Why now?
I wanted to take my negotiation and experience working with cross-functional teams as an advisor and use it in a more executional role, where I could be a product owner. I believe it’s the perfect time to go to business school. I have already put my legal skillset into practice and am eager to earn the necessary business acumen to stand in the shoes of the people I was advising previously and be the actual decision maker.
Why Johnson? What factors figured most prominently into your decision of where to attend?
The community, class size, and career-oriented curriculum. Coming from a non-traditional business background and being a career switcher, I knew I needed to find a close-knit environment where I felt supported. I’m also keen to build a quantitative skillset and prepare for a career in tech. Walking around Sage Hall, you get an immediate sense of a great school and community where you can build working and social relationships. I have found that the students, faculty, and staff members are personal and open to helping you.
What do you think is your most valuable or differentiating contribution to the Class of 2021?
I am a lawyer, so I think that coming from a social sciences background enables me to have a different perspective on business. So far, it has helped in the leadership team competition, where I led my core team and had a lot of fun playing the devil’s advocate to make sure we stayed ahead of the possible questions we could get from a jury.
Fun fact that didn’t get included on your application?
I love experimenting with cooking and trying different recipes and varying them according to the resources available. I focused on pastries in the past, but now with the necessity of providing meals for myself this has led to an interest in saltier fare.
Post-MBA career interests?
I am interested in pursuing a product management role in a tech company.
Advice to current prospective applicants:
–One thing you would absolutely do again as part of your application process?
Visit the schools if you can. It gives you a great sense of the culture and whether you see yourself as part of the community.
–One thing you would change or do differently?
Begin writing ideas for my essays earlier. You do not have to write full sentences, just bullets that force you to think about some of the deep personal questions that will also help you assess what you want to achieve from going to a business school.
–Part you would have skipped if you could—and what helped you get through it?
The GMAT. Now that I am taking microeconomics and accounting, I can see how useful it was to review the math you have to re-learn for the GMAT. I definitely struggled with it. To get through it, I had a sticky note on the wall of my bedroom with the name of the schools I wanted to apply to. Every time I had to wake up at 5am and thought about the attractive idea of sleeping more, I would see that and remember the final goal.
What is your initial impression of Johnson’s students/culture/community?
Johnson has a wonderfully tight-knit community. The collaborative focus is a real priority for the school and it is stamped in the social, academic, and career events we participate in. I have already started some recruiting processes and have been amazed at the collaborative nature of Johnson students who help each other prepare for interviews and are not competing against each other. This has made a real impression on me.
One thing you have learned about Johnson that has surprised you?
The Student Services office leads a great initiative to build your business toolkit outside the usual career and academic events through the Managerial Skills Program. There are several courses to choose from that will help us not only in our recruitment process, but in our daily work once we graduate.
Thing you are most anxious about in your first year?
The quantitative classes. Apart from the GMAT, I have not seen numbers in 10 years.
Thing you are most excited about in your first year?
Working with my core team in the leadership competitions. We have about eight and must lead two throughout the first semester.
