Celebrating Black History Month with Ope Sunmola, Co-Chair of Booth Africa

Ope is originally from Nigeria, and his path to Booth has been shaped by curiosity, reinvention, and a desire to build at the intersection of business and impact. Ope studied chemical engineering at the University of Lagos, then moved to France to pursue a Master’s in International Business. Over the last several years, he’s worked across three industries in Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa, from oil and gas to financial services to tech, often in roles that span between strategy, operations, and product.

Across those experiences, Ope kept coming back to the same question: how do you build systems that expand access and work at scale, especially in emerging markets? That curiosity pulled him deeper into fintech and product work, and it also made an MBA feel like the right next step. Ope wanted stronger managerial foundations, sharper strategy tools, and a community that would push his thinking.

To Ope, Booth stood out because it felt like a place where ambition and rigor were paired with openness. Being able to bring your point of view, pressure-test it, and walk away better at Booth was a method of teaching that Ope appreciated from the very beginning of his Booth journey. That mix of analytical depth, flexibility, and people is what brought him here, and it’s also what has made his experience the most meaningful so far.

Booth sold me on two things: how seriously it takes thinking, and how much freedom it gives you to design your own path. When I was choosing a program, I was looking for an MBA that would not force a single narrative but would give me the tools to build a coherent one grounded in data, debate, and self-awareness. I hoped for a place where people could disagree productively, learn quickly, and still feel deeply supportive. What I got has been exactly that.

Academically, Booth’s culture has matched what I envisioned. You are encouraged to have a point of view, defend it, revise it, and keep going. The flexibility of the curriculum has also been real in practice, not just on paper. I have been able to go deep in finance and strategy while still investing in leadership, negotiations, and experiential learning.

Just as importantly, the community has been what I hoped for. Booth has students who are incredibly accomplished, but also genuinely willing to share, challenge, and support one another. For me personally, knowing there was a vibrant community through Booth Africa, alongside a broader, connected Black community across student organizations, made Booth feel like a place where I could both belong and contribute from day one.

Broadly, I’m pursuing a path at the intersection of strategy, finance and tech, roles where I can work on growth, market expansion, and product strategy, ideally in contexts where infrastructure and access are uneven. Booth has helped me sharpen that direction and build the skills to match it. Over the summer, I worked in consulting at BCG, which strengthened my interest in tackling complex, ambiguous problems and helped me sharpen how I think about strategy, stakeholders, and execution.

On the career side, the Career Management team has been helpful in translating a multi-industry background into a clear narrative. Student communities have also made a big difference; not just through formal programming, but through peers openly sharing preparation strategies, lessons learned, and honest feedback.

Academically, the value has come from pairing structured, analytical learning with leadership development. Booth has pushed me to be more precise in how I evaluate opportunities, while also being more intentional about how I show up on teams and in ambiguous environments. Overall, Booth has been a place where I can pressure-test my career direction in real time, through classes, community, and practical feedback, and keep refining both my goals and the story I’m building toward.

Booth Africa is a student-led community focused on celebrating African culture, building belonging, and creating professional and personal support for African students and allies across Booth. It’s a space where people can show up fully, where you can talk about career goals and leadership growth, and also feel at home through shared culture, music, food, and humor.

I decided to join because I knew I wanted my MBA experience to include community, not just coursework. Moving across countries has taught me that thriving in a new environment often comes down to finding the people who “get it” without you needing to explain everything. Booth Africa offered that, while also being outward-facing: it’s a platform for events, partnerships, and building bridges across campus.

One thing I’ve really valued is how connected the broader Black community is at Booth, and how much more meaningful it becomes when student organizations collaborate. Booth Africa works closely with the African American MBA Association (AAMBAA) across shared priorities, from recruiting support, joint programming and events, and prospective student conversations to professional programming and community-building. That partnership helps us grow a community that feels globally expansive while also celebrating the distinct histories, cultures, and lived experiences that make our stories unique.

What I appreciate most about Booth Africa is that the work is both deeply communal and meaningfully visible. It is not only about hosting events; it is about shaping how people experience Booth by creating a place where African students feel supported, and where the broader Booth community gets to engage Africa with more depth and nuance.

The most rewarding initiatives are the ones that build real bridges, across cohorts, across student groups, and between Booth and the city. Some of that is big and public, like our annual welcome party that helps new students feel anchored early. Some of it is quieter and just as important, like small group gatherings that turn casual connections into real friendships and support systems. A big part of that bridge-building has been partnering with AAMBAA. One collaboration I’m especially proud of is the “Families” program, which we launched jointly this year. We paired incoming first-years with second-years in small cohorts before school started, creating early touchpoints for mentorship, practical support, and community. It gave students a more personal landing place and helped strengthen connections across the broader Black diaspora at Booth.

I have also loved contributing behind the scenes to initiatives that connect Booth to the continent, including supporting planning efforts for the South Africa trek. As a co-chair, it has been especially rewarding to see how Booth Africa can be both a home base and a platform, a space where people arrive as strangers and leave as a community, and where that community becomes a real source of confidence and momentum throughout the MBA journey.

Check out the Booth Africa Instagram to learn more about the student group.

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