Anika Sharin (’20) has commuted from the Bay Area to L.A. for three years because she chose UCLA Anderson over UC Berkeley. She keeps her base up north because she was hired by fellow alumnus Paul Badawi (’00), who founded the Silicon Valley-based company Sight Sciences. “The way we talk about sharing success at Anderson,” says Sharin, “he is really doing that.” Now, as she prepares to graduate, Sharin reflects on her Anderson SuperSaturday admission interview experience, launching her own health care startup, being a powerful woman in tech and FEMBA puppies (of course).

Featuring: Anika Sharin (’20), Senior Partnership Development Program Management, Sight Sciences Inc.

Hosted by Dylan Stafford, assistant dean and director of admissions of UCLA Anderson's Fully Employed MBA program (FEMBA), the Drive Time podcast features interviews with FEMBA alumni, current students, faculty and administrators who discuss leadership, work-life balance, entrepreneurship, career development and more.

More episodes here anderson.ucla.edu/degrees/fully-employed-mba/culture/femba-drive-time-podcast

Even the assistant dean and CFO of the UCLA School of Law had to overcome his fear of public speaking. Double Bruin and alumni board member Steve Yu is an active mentor and tireless advocate of higher education, yet he says doing the dishes is crucial to staying productive. The winner of the UCLA alumni network’s 2017 Volunteer of the Year Award proves he’s just like us.

Hosted by Dylan Stafford, assistant dean and director of admissions of UCLA Anderson's Fully Employed MBA program (FEMBA), the Drive Time podcast features interviews with FEMBA alumni, current students, faculty and administrators who discuss leadership, work-life balance, entrepreneurship, career development and more.

More episodes here: https://www.anderson.ucla.edu/degrees/fully-employed-mba/admissions/assistant-deans-advice/drive-time-podcasts

Get to know Brent Pressentin and, 30 minutes later, you might be managing your money better than you were before. Despite the peripatetic nature of his early career, the self-described Cheese Head says, “Planning is a consistent theme in my life,” something he learned to value at 23 working for E&J Gallo. Post-college, he test-drove the carbon-fiber Trek bike Lance Armstrong rode in his fifth Tour de France, got his feet wet in internet security and chased the girl of his dreams to Washington, D.C. But He found his “why” in wealth management when he earned his MBA from UCLA Anderson — which he is not above rubbing in his siblings’ faces.

Hosted by Dylan Stafford, assistant dean and director of admissions of UCLA Anderson's Fully Employed MBA program (FEMBA), the Drive Time podcast features interviews with FEMBA alumni, current students, faculty and administrators who discuss leadership, work-life balance, entrepreneurship, career development and more.

FEMBA Drive Time post-production by Samantha Hollon (’20)

More episodes here: anderson.ucla.edu/degrees/fully-employed-mba/culture/femba-drive-time-podcast

Ashley Merrill (’15) launched her sleepwear business, Lunya, one month after starting business school in Anderson’s FEMBA Flex program — and a few weeks after finding out she was pregnant. She initially couldn’t picture how she’d manage all of it at once. “Confidence was one of the gifts of business school,” she says. “It wasn’t like I went to accounting class and that was the gift, it was feeling like I could wrap my head around business terminology, basic structures of business and leadership.” Now she is “reinventing sleepwear for the modern woman,” including some very recognizable figures.

Hosted by Dylan Stafford, assistant dean and director of admissions of UCLA Anderson's Fully Employed MBA program (FEMBA), the Drive Time podcast features interviews with FEMBA alumni, current students, faculty and administrators who discuss leadership, work-life balance, entrepreneurship, career development and more.

More episodes here anderson.ucla.edu/degrees/fully-employed-mba/culture/femba-drive-time-podcast

Located in San Diego and a two-time Olympic Gold Medalist in rowing, Susan now works for a medical research company that is working on a coronavirus vaccine.

Hosted by Dylan Stafford, Assistant Dean of Admissions of the Fully-Employed MBA (FEMBA) program, the Drive Time Podcast features interviews with current students, faculty, and administrators from the UCLA Anderson as they discuss leadership, work-life balance, entrepreneurship, career development, and more.

More episodes here: https://www.anderson.ucla.edu/degrees/fully-employed-mba/admissions/assistant-deans-advice/drive-time-podcasts

Growing up in China, Sophie Gao dreamed of an American experience. Her father made sacrifices to pursue becoming a medical doctor, and Sophie followed his work-hard example to get herself to the U.S. for college and career. She completed her Anderson MBA while living and working in Arizona and, distance notwithstanding, served as a FEMBA Council member and tutor. She was an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion student representative and, in 2020, she co-founded the nonprofit Humans of Wuhan to educate people and diminish racism. Through on-campus recruiting, she landed a new job at Amazon she’ll start right after graduation. Her advice for incoming FEMBA students? “Be ready to have fun. Be ready to be open-minded.”

0:00​ – Intro

7:55​ – My American Dream

13:53​ – Network, Chris Thompson, Director of Admissions Operations, UCLA Anderson culture

18:51​ – My OG Flex (Hybrid) section (commute from AZ)

20:21​ – Anderson Halloween

21:53​ – Dodgers game and Global Access Program Company Launch

25:55​ – FEMBA takes over Las Vegas

41:42​ – Career: two new companies, Shutterfly and Amazon; Support from FEMBA Career Services (Pam, Susan, Jackee and the team)

51:32​ – Final thoughts for entering and graduating FEMBA classes

Hosted by Dylan Stafford, assistant dean and director of admissions of UCLA Anderson’s Fully Employed MBA program (FEMBA), the Drive Time podcast features interviews with FEMBA alumni, current students, faculty and administrators who discuss leadership, work-life balance, entrepreneurship, career development and more.

More episodes here anderson.ucla.edu/degrees/fully-employed-mba/culture/femba-drive-time-podcast

#Finance​ #MBA​ #CareerDevelopment

Recent graduate of the class of 2020 Rob Busalacchi, Investment Banking Associate at Barclays talks about his experience going through the Fully-Employed MBA (FEMBA) program as a former Marine.

00:00​ Intro

03:15​ Family Background

09:05​ Undergrad Experience at Marquette University

11:00​ Becoming a Marine/Military Experience

19:35​ Deciding on an MBA & Grad School

26:00​ Choosing Anderson

30:00​ Being “Rough around the Edges”

33:10​ Focusing on Finance

36:35​ Anderson Student Clubs Highlight

43:50​ Adjusting Study Habits

45:05​ Finance Academic Internship

50:40​ Barclays IB Internship

56:00​ IB Preparation & Mentorship

59:07​ Global Immersions & GAP Experience

01:04:05​ Balancing Everything

01:11:52​ Happy Hours Highlight

01:13:30​ Spring Quarter 2020 & Covid-19

01:18:00​ Ally Opportunities

01:25:15​ Picture Slides – Family, Military Experience, John Wooden, Anderson Experience

01:34:18​ John Wooden Award – applying and being chosen

01:36:00​ Final Thoughts

01:38:45​ John Wooden Awards Video

Hosted by Dylan Stafford, assistant dean and director of admissions of UCLA Anderson’s Fully Employed MBA program (FEMBA), the Drive Time podcast features interviews with FEMBA alumni, current students, faculty and administrators who discuss leadership, work-life balance, entrepreneurship, career development and more.

More episodes here anderson.ucla.edu/degrees/fully-employed-mba/culture/femba-drive-time-podcast

#Finance​ #MBA​ #CareerDevelopment

A decade after earning her Anderson MBA, double Bruin Kate Greenberg (B.A. ’04, ’10) has led a remarkable career. When she was an undergraduate, the communications job she does now for the Washington Nationals’ charitable arm didn’t exist. She’s gone from managing PR for high-profile companies like Disney to shaping the communication strategies of nonprofit and philanthropic organizations, and she is now immersed in the #NATS4GOOD​ community response fund. Perks along the way have included seeing her name inscribed on a Nationals 2019 World Series championship ring and meeting President Barack Obama.

00:00​ Intro

09:14​ Choosing Anderson, FEMBA experience, & Disney!

20:28​ Moving Across the Country

29:39​ PR & Sports Marketing experience

39:49​ Beijing Global Immersion, ‘Stay at Home’ experience, transition to DC

47:45​ Joining the Washington Nationals, nonprofit work, and Covid-19

01:12:20​ Photos from Disney, the Nationals Championship, and – Obama?!

01:37:44​ THE CHAMPIONSHIP RING!

01:40:22​ Closing Remarks

Hosted by Dylan Stafford, assistant dean and director of admissions of UCLA Anderson's Fully Employed MBA program (FEMBA), the Drive Time podcast features interviews with FEMBA alumni, current students, faculty and administrators who discuss leadership, work-life balance, entrepreneurship, career development and more.

More episodes here: anderson.ucla.edu/degrees/fully-employed-mba/culture/femba-drive-time-podcast

#SportsMarketing​ #CareerDevelopment​ #MBA

Recent graduate of the class of 2020 Dominique Kagele, Global Product Strategy— Heme/Onc, Integrated Insights Leader talks about her experience going through the Fully-Employed MBA (FEMBA) program as a working mother.

00:00​ – Intro

05:35​ – Family and Growing Up in Reno, Nevada

08:15​ – Undergraduate Experience at University of Nevada-Reno

10:00​ – The Road to a Ph.D.

12:23​ – Post-Doc Experience

12:45​ – Choosing Between Academia & Industry

13:35​ – Working at Pharmaceutical company GSK Deciding to get an MBA for a better understanding of how a business works.

14:01​ – Choosing UCLA Anderson

17:22​ – The Career Enhancing Experience

18:43​ – Spring Quarter 2020 Experience as a Working Mom

27:45​ – Family Role Models and Advice for Her Children

34:27​ – Most Memorable FEMBA Experiences

35:37​ – Trade-Offs During FEMBA

37:12​ – Diversity of Experiences/Backgrounds in FEMBA

39:00​ – Impromptu Trips Around the Country with Classmates

44:05​ – Women Worth Watching Recipient

45:14​ – Global Access Program (GAP) Experience

52:17​ – Planning for an Academic Rainy Day

01:03:37​ – Measuring Return on Investment

01:08:05​ – Post-Anderson

01:11:19​ – Career Steps During FEMBA

01:26:14​ – Final Thoughts & Shout-Outs

Hosted by Dylan Stafford, assistant dean and director of admissions of UCLA Anderson’s Fully Employed MBA program (FEMBA), the Drive Time podcast features interviews with FEMBA alumni, current students, faculty and administrators who discuss leadership, work-life balance, entrepreneurship, career development and more.

More episodes here anderson.ucla.edu/degrees/fully-employed-mba/culture/femba-drive-time-podcast

#Healthcare​ #MBA​ #CareerDevelopment