Part-Time MBA Student Profile Ryan Bormet, ’17
Relationship Manager, Associated Bank
City of Residence: Chicago, IL
Education: Bachelor of Arts in Economics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Ryan Bormet: 00:04
I work for Associated Bank. I’m a relationship manager in their corporate banking group. After work, I take the water taxi to Booth. I’m excited to come to class in the evenings because it’s such an engaging environment. It’s always an incredibly dynamic conversation. We have a lot of variety in terms of our classwork, so we’re really able to pick things that are genuinely of interest. It’s things like how to run a meeting effectively, how to ask better questions, how to give good feedback. It’s skills that are useful in a very broad set of professions. All of my classmates are working, so you get perspectives from a lot of different fields and it broadens your thinking.
Ryan Bormet: 00:42
The biggest surprise in my experience at Chicago Booth has been, we have a lot of clubs here and an unbelievable number of activities. We’re lucky because we have over 45 different student groups, the most of any part-time program in the country. I’ve had the opportunity to be the co-president of the Student Advisory Council. We do four main signature events every year. Our most popular is a formal. It’s an evening of dinner and drinks and dancing with friends. And we all go out on Lake Michigan. Providing opportunities for us to connect outside of the classroom and build that camaraderie in that sense of community. It’s been a great experience.
Advice
In addition to the academic fit, consider the community and the opportunities to get involved outside of the classroom. Those aspects will add another level of depth to your experience.
Biggest Surprise
The level of engagement across the Booth community has been incredible. The number of student groups, professional and social events, and alumni interactions creates an environment that facilitates diverse and lasting relationships.
Student Groups
Student Advisory Council co-president, MBA Cup captain, Booth Sales Club (founding co-chair), LAUNCH mentor coordinator, Booth Ambassador, Admissions Committee member