Experiencing the Full-Time MBA as a Chicago Booth Scholar

Once you become a Chicago Booth Scholar, you're in a unique position. Rather than beginning the program the following Fall, you head out into the working world to continue developing your professional experience. This gives you two to four years to build connections with fellow Booth Scholars and other Boothies while building up the anticipation of beginning your Full-Time MBA. After that build up, it's no surprise that our Booth Scholars say there's nothing like walking onto campus for the first time as a current student. We recently sat down with Julia Chang, '20, to share her insights on life at Booth following her deferral period.

What did you do during your deferral period to ensure you were prepared for Booth's MBA program?

I was able to leverage my deferral period to try out different career tracks to figure out what I really wanted to pursue post-MBA. During my deferral, I worked in investment banking in NYC before switching to an early-stage tech startup. Since I knew I'd be going back to Booth for my MBA, I had the flexibility to try out various job functions and industries, which was incredibly valuable to me.

How did your Chicago Booth Scholars mentor help you during the deferral period?

The mentor I was paired with during my deferral period helped to answer all of the questions I had. These ranged from how best to prepare myself for the MBA as well as learning more about what the MBA experience would be like. Since I expressed an interest in pivoting into a career in tech, my mentor was able to connect me with current students at Booth who were making a similar career switch. This was extremely beneficial as I was thinking about where to work post-investment banking.

How would you describe the student community at Booth?

Boothies are very collaborative, high achieving, and intellectually curious! We like tackling complex problems and new challenges (often in a team), and we are always looking to push ourselves further and learn new things.

What has stood out about your Booth experience so far?

One of the most impactful insights I've gained from my Booth experience is how to use the extensive Booth and broader UChicago network. Before coming to Booth, I was less likely to tap into my personal network and ask for help. Now, I've been able to see and experience the power of the Booth network firsthand at school (ranging from recruiting to working on my own startup called Gratitude Plus) ...so now I've learned to tap into the Booth community when I need help.

What is it like getting your MBA in the city of Chicago?

Chicago is an amazing city to pursue an MBA. There's so much great food (which is also very affordable), the city is super diverse, and there's an endless amount of fun stuff to do. Plus many activities and social clubs at Booth tap into the city's vibrant scene, which create no shortage of opportunities for Boothies to explore. Just remember to pack a winter coat!

As a Chicago Booth Scholar, Julia joins a community of driven leaders with diverse background experiences, interests, and goals for the future. Curious about connecting with current students like Julia? Reach out today using our Connect with a Student.

Julia Chang is a second-year Full-Time MBA. After majoring in Economics and Political Science at the University of Chicago, she worked as an investment banking analyst at Credit Suisse, as well as in tech as a business development associate at RapidSOS. Julia is also involved in the Booth Technology Group, the Wine Club, and is a Dean’s Student Representative. Julia also is an admissions fellow at Chicago Booth, helping to shape future generations of MBA talent.