In this Valentine’s Day blog, couples at Chicago Booth share what their experience has been like pursuing an MBA alongside their partner. They also share their advice on how to support one another and balance demanding work schedules during the MBA. After reading about their experience, we encourage you to take a look at the Booth Partners Club to learn more about our partner community at Chicago Booth.
Ludmilla (Lud): Lud is a 1Y MBA student at Booth born and raised in Brazil with a degree in civil engineering. Before coming to Booth, she started her career in FP&A at L’Oréal, worked both in France and Brazil, and then transitioned to consulting at Kearney, in Brazil. After a few years in consulting, Lud decided to pursue her MBA at Booth, with a focus on honing her skills in finance, leadership, and behavioral science.
Guilherme (Gui): Gui is a 1Y MBA student at Booth born and raised in Brazil with a degree in mechanical engineering. Before coming to Booth, Gui started his career in consulting at Kearney, and then transitioned to growth equity at Patria Investments, in Brazil. Gui decided to pursue his MBA at Booth to focus on finance, investing, and further develop his leadership skills.
Lud and Gui graduated from the same university in Brazil and met during their second year of engineering studies. They’ve been together ever since, for almost eight years! During undergrad, they did an exchange program together in France for a year. They had the opportunity to travel to more than 16 countries together during that time, and their favorite is a battle between Hungary and Italy. But, of course, Paris has their hearts because it is the city they lived together in.
After undergrad, Gui referred Lud to work at Kearney before leaving for Patria Investments. Coming to Booth was an easy choice for the couple because of Booth’s culture embracing couples, flexible curriculum that aligns with their different career goals, and social opportunities available to them outside of the classroom.
We believe communication and organization are key. We are always talking to one another about what our schedule is looking like and making sure that we split other chores, so we don’t feel any burden. In addition, it is important for us to have separate time to dedicate to our relationship, such as having meals together, watching a movie, going to the gym, going out on dates, etc.
We are fortunate to be doing the MBA together, so we do have a big understanding of each other’s routines. We’re able to complement each other while studying as well, as we’re able to offer one another support with the courses each of us has more familiarity with.
Also, by doing our MBAs as a couple, we amplify the reach of our network and community. We are always encouraging one another to meet new people, build strong friendships, and step out of our comfort zone.
We love to discuss which classes each of us is doing, allowing us to expand on the planned courses we want to take at Booth. Also, for the classes we have in common, the discussion goes beyond the 3-hour class, they usually last a whole day.
We also love to participate together in social activities, ranging from parties and the regular Thursday night outings (TNDCs) to small group dinners with other Boothies and their families. We are also super excited to go to Colombia with our friends soon, it will be an incredible trip with more than 400 Boothies!
The first day of Orientation is our favorite Booth memory so far. Being able to enter together at the Harper Center, meet a lot of the incoming students, and take pictures at Booth, was a “dream come true” moment for us.
We recently went to Monteverde, an Italian restaurant located in the West Loop, and we loved it!
They’ve been discussing over the last five months if they should get a puppy or not! Every week they change their minds, so far, no puppy. TBD!
Kofo: Kofo was born and raised in Lagos, Nigeria. Before Booth, Kofo worked in management consulting and financial services. Outside of work, she’s passionate about African literature and loves rewatching classic sitcoms.
Ayo: Ayo was born and raised in Lagos, Nigeria. Before Booth, Ayo worked as an Investment Banking Associate. When he’s not working, you can find Ayo watching retro movies or playing chess.
Their journey to Chicago Booth started after Kofo completed her CFA charter. As they explored business schools, they attended the Booth MBA Africa sessions in Lagos, and something just clicked. Conversations with admitted students and Booth Africa co-chairs reinforced their decision that Booth was the perfect fit. After attending similar conferences for other schools, Booth still stood out as their top choice and they’re currently working on finishing up their first year at Booth.
Kofo and Ayo met during their mandatory national service (NYSC) in Nigeria in 2018. They bonded over having the same weird-looking phone and became friends soon after. The couple didn’t start dating until June 2020, and in September 2024 they got married—just before heading to Booth together!
Think of your relationship as a team—divide and conquer when needed but always stay aligned on the bigger picture. Communicate openly about expectations, especially during high-stress periods like recruiting and exams, so you can proactively support each other rather than reactively fix problems. Protect dedicated time together, whether it’s a weekly date night or just a quiet coffee break, to ensure your relationship remains a source of strength, not stress. Finally, celebrate each other’s wins, no matter how small—sometimes, just having someone acknowledge your hard work makes all the difference.
We are each other’s first source of emotional support. Since we have similar goals and passions, we push each other forward, especially during tough moments. Having a partner who truly understands what you’re going through makes all the difference.
The best advice we got was to build individual friendships and experiences while also creating shared ones. This has helped us grow independently while still navigating the MBA journey together.
Not yet! The first few months were focused on recruiting, but now that we’re done, we’re looking forward to getting involved in the Booth Partners Club and other activities.
Navigating the MBA journey together—whether it’s attending events, recruiting, or just having someone who truly understands the process. The recruiting period, in particular, was much easier because we could support each other through every high and low.
The moment we both received our admission offers at the same time. It was the perfect culmination of months of preparation, and knowing we would experience Booth together made it even more special.
Our favorite date night spot is Liuyishou Hotpot in Chicago, nothing beats having spicy hotpot after a long week!
We hope the perspectives of our couples at Chicago Booth inspires you to see how pursuing your MBA, alongside your partner, makes for a unique, supportive, and fulfilling MBA experience. To learn more about the community at Booth, we invite you to sign up for our newsletters.
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