M7A: How Did You Get In?

Archana Sohmshetty got into Stanford GSB before she'd worked a single day. She applied as a deferred admit during her senior year at Michigan, took the GMAT twice while finishing an industrial engineering degree, and landed a 750. Then she deferred a third year to join Roblox , worked through both years of her MBA, and is now Head of Finance at Monzo Bank, US.

We get into how she found the threads that became her application, why the "what matters most to you" essay is harder at 21 than at 27, and the mentor argument that got her to trade near-term career momentum for a degree that compounds over decades. She also makes the case that AI raises the value of an MBA rather than lowering it.

00:00 What AI can't replace

00:39 Meet Archana: Michigan, JPMorgan, Roblox, Monzo

02:54 Taking the GMAT senior year, twice

04:30 Stumbling onto deferred admissions

05:22 Finding the threads that became the application

07:33 Splitting the story across essays and recommenders

10:52 Two years in banking before matriculating

13:16 The client meeting that changed everything

14:23 Choosing the degree over career momentum

16:24 Stanford GSB during COVID

18:20 Working at Roblox as a full-time student

20:26 Does AI change the value of an MBA?

21:36 The classes that still pay off

22:41 Inside Touchy Feely

24:01 The biggest takeaway, four years out

25:39 From Roblox to Monzo

27:12 Advice for anyone on the fence

In this episode, we sit down with Krupa Adusumilli (GSB '25). Krupa studied business and economics at Berkeley Haas, started her career at Goldman Sachs covering healthcare, consumer, and industrials in San Francisco, and then spent four years at SoFi as it grew from 400 people to 4,000, went public, and picked up a bank charter. She was managing a team by 25, which is a big part of why she applied. She now leads a team as a Director at Incode.

Krupa walks through why she applied to Stanford, Harvard, MIT, and Wharton, the four months of thinking and two weeks of writing behind her essays, and why she deliberately under-prepared for her interviews. She also gets into how different the HBS and GSB interview processes felt, why one day at Admit Weekend made the decision easy, and the two years she spent building a fintech product with a classmate before they decided to stop.

(00:00) Opener
(00:30) Introducing Krupa Adusumilli
(02:09) From Goldman Sachs to SoFi
(03:19) Why an MBA, and Why Then
(06:07) MBA Naysayers in Tech
(07:50) Building the Application Narrative
(13:49) School Selection: Stanford, HBS, MIT, Wharton
(16:13) HBS vs. GSB: How the Interviews Compared
(19:38) How to Prepare for the Interview
(22:07) Admit Weekend and the Final Decision
(24:22) What the GSB Was Actually Like
(27:10) Exploring Entrepreneurship at the GSB
(30:57) Recruiting After Two Years Away
(33:47) Advice for Future Applicants

Krupa Adusumilli spent two years at Stanford GSB trying to build a fintech company, and then walked away from it. In this episode she explains why, and what the GSB actually did to her risk tolerance along the way.

Krupa graduated from Berkeley Haas, started her career at Goldman Sachs covering healthcare and consumer, and spent four years at SoFi as the company scaled from 400 people to 4,000. She was managing a team by 25. She applied to Stanford, Harvard, MIT, and Wharton, and chose the GSB after reading the two interview processes as cultural signals. She now leads a team as a Director at Encode.

We get into the essay process that took four months of thinking and two weeks of writing, why she deliberately under-prepared for her interviews, how three founders in every class session changes what you believe is possible, and the honest conversation with her co-founder about why their product no longer had a moat.

Chapters

00:00 In fifteen years, that could be us00:30 Meet Krupa01:20 Berkeley, Goldman Sachs, and getting over a fear of finance03:11 Why an MBA: managing people at 2506:07 Facing the MBA naysayers in the Bay Area07:34 Finding the narrative: public, private, nonprofit11:07 Shower thoughts, long drives, and two weeks of writing13:24 School selection: Stanford, HBS, MIT, Wharton16:02 Reading school culture through the interview process19:39 Interview prep: five stories, four bullets each22:20 Admit weekend and the decision24:07 Two years at the GSB, broken down and rebuilt27:12 How Stanford lowers your fear of risk29:45 Building in fintech, and why they stopped30:52 Recruiting into Encode33:34 Make the pie chart before you arriv

In this episode, we sit down with Sonal Chopra (GSB '26). Sonal studied engineering at Delhi College of Engineering, then joined BCG as one of the first (and youngest) members of its big data engineering team in India. She spent several years at Procter & Gamble, first in a president's office role she worked through COVID and later back in India running analytics and insight alongside the country CEO, before interning at LVMH on the Digital Innovation team in the Fashion Group.Sonal walks through why she held off on an MBA, what changed four to five years into her career, and how she interviewed seven or eight consultants before carefully selecting one on track record and reference checks. She breaks down the GRE attempt that went sideways, the Michigan Ross application she wrote in a single day, and getting waitlisted. Her takeaway is that intentionality is paramount as an MBA applicant, and it starts with writing your own story down.(00:00) Opener(00:09) Introducing Sonal Chopra(01:13) Early Career and Experiences in Big Data(02:36) Working in Singapore during COVID(03:13) Motivation to Pursue an MBA(06:34) Starting the MBA Application Process(09:48) Selecting an MBA Admissions Consultant(10:02) Choosing the Right MBA Consultant and Application Process(10:33) Crafting an MBA Application Narrative(13:50) Life at Stanford GSB(15:05) Reflecting on Post-MBA Goals(18:31) Advice for Future Applicants

In this episode, we sit down with Chase Lin (GSB '27), a joint MA/MBA candidate at Stanford GSB studying education and business administration. Chase grew up in a first-generation household in Queens, went to NYU Stern, and built a career across consulting, JP Morgan, and Iron Mountain before deciding an MBA was how he'd close the gap between his technology background and the thing he actually cares about, which is education access.

Chase walks through how he tied his technology background to a long-running passion for education, why he treated every optional section of the application as valuable real estate, and how he closed the gaps in his profile without chasing credentials for their own sake. He breaks down his GRE journey and the decision to retake the test until he maxed out his verbal score, the Stanford ethos that shaped how he presented himself ("be one in a million, not one of a million"), and the banana shirt he wore to his interview. His takeaway is that letting your real personality show is what got him in.

(00:00) Opener

(00:55) Introducing Chase Lin

(01:50) Early Career, From NYU to Consulting

(03:02) JP Morgan and Iron Mountain

(04:19) Joint MA/MBA in Education and Business Administration

(04:45) Reflections on Career Trajectory

(05:32) Developing a Passion for Education

(08:04) MBA Application Authenticity

(09:16) Developing Extracurriculars

(10:08) The Decision to Pursue an MA/MBA

(12:57) Navigating the MBA Application Process

(14:42) Stanford GSB MBA Application Advice

(16:07) Earning Awards for Volunteer Experience

(18:07) Closing Gaps in Your Application

(19:29) Navigating GMAT vs GRE

(26:37) Stanford GSB Culture

(29:07) On Whether or Not Academics Matter

(29:31) Extracurriculars at Stanford GSB

(30:37) Post-MBA Career Plans

(32:11) Advice for Future Applicants

In this episode, we sit down with Simi Shah (WG '25) to hear how she went from private equity to serving as Chief of Staff to former PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi before building South Asian Trailblazers, a media company and agency elevating South Asian leaders. Simi opens up about crafting a cohesive application narrative across three very different career chapters, why she believes every experience compounds, and how she launched an agency her first week at Wharton. She also talks about finding her application "theme," navigating Wharton's team-based discussion, managing internship FOMO as a founder, and what it takes to build a company while earning your MBA. Simi is a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree and Harvard undergraduate alum.

This episode is brought to you by Juno, the collective-bargaining platform that helps MBA students secure lower rates on student loans. Learn more at juno.us/m7a

(00:00) M7A Sponsor: Juno

(00:34) Opener

(01:27) Introducing Simi Shah

(02:26) Pre-MBA Background

(03:14) Decision to Pursue an MBA

(06:12) Crafting a Cohesive Narrative for Applications

(08:14) Identifying an Application "Theme"

(11:26) Why MBA?

(14:47) Challenges in the MBA Application Process

(17:28) Working on Indra Nooyi's Memoir

(20:01) B-School Selection

(22:04) Wharton Highlights

(24:20) Strategies for the Team Based Discussion

(27:35) Reflections on the MBA Journey

(32:31) Pursuing Entrepreneurship at Wharton

(35:24) Founder's Mindset

(38:29) Recruiting and Internship FOMO

(41:25) A Day in the Life of an Entrepreneur

(44:37) Advice for Future Applicants

In this episode, we sit down with Hannah Zhang (WG '24) to hear how she went from investment banking in Hong Kong to tech in Mexico City before landing at Wharton. Hannah opens up about burning out in finance, why she wishes she'd taken the GMAT in college, and how her international experience helped her stand out in a competitive applicant pool. She also talks about choosing Wharton over Booth, navigating the pressure of business school recruiting, and how she built Career Hannah – a personal brand with over 100k followers that landed her a product marketing role at Allium.

This episode is brought to you by Juno, the collective-bargaining platform that helps MBA students secure lower rates on student loans. Learn more at ⁠⁠juno.us/m7a

(00:00) M7A Sponsor: Juno

(00:34) Opener

(00:48) Introducing Hannah Zhang

(01:35) Pre-MBA Background

(02:29) Motivation to Pursue an MBA

(03:26) Why MBA?

(04:41) MBA Application Timeline

(05:55) Preparing for the GMAT

(06:52) B-School Selection Process

(09:17) Crafting an MBA Application Narrative

(10:06) Reflecting on MBA Goals and Career Path

(11:35) How to Stand Out as an Applicant?

(14:43) Deciding Between Wharton and Booth

(16:02) Why Wharton?

(16:50) Wharton MBA Highlights

(18:49) Post-MBA Planning

(21:04) Building a Personal Brand

(22:46) Pursuing a Career in Product Marketing

(24:59) Advice for Future Applicants

In this episode, we sit down with Nicolas Echegaray (WG ’21) to unpack his path from Lima to Wharton – including how taking the GMAT early helped him score a 750, how he built a mission-driven narrative around financial inclusion, and how he navigated interviews as a non-native English speaker. Nico also shares how a viral LinkedIn post led him to an internship at Juno during COVID, why he ultimately chose Wharton, and how the MBA shaped his transition from investment banking to becoming COO of a fast-growing fintech startup.

This episode is brought to you by Juno, the collective-bargaining platform that helps MBA students secure lower rates on student loans. Learn more at ⁠⁠juno.us/m7a

(00:00) M7A Sponsor: Juno

(00:34) Opener

(01:01) Introducing Nico Echegaray

(01:58) Pre-MBA Background

(03:34) Motivation to Pursue an MBA

(04:43) Taking the GMAT Early

(05:36) B-School Selection Process

(07:19) Starting the Application Process

(08:05) Hiring an MBA Admissions Consultant

(08:20) Crafting an MBA Application Narrative

(11:09) MBA Application Challenges

(11:54) Preparing for MBA Interviews

(13:42) Value of an MBA Admissions Consultant

(14:57) MBA Application Results

(16:42) Wharton MBA Highlights

(17:51) Advice for Future Applicants (and Current Students)

(19:08) Post-MBA Career

(24:07) Juno

(25:42) Working as a COO

(26:18) Changes to Federal Student Loans

(27:24) Value of a Wharton MBA

(28:21) Advice for Future Applicants

In this episode, we sit down with Christopher Ghadban (WG ’23) to explore his unconventional path from a 2.7 GPA and initial MBA rejections to earning a 740 GMAT score in just five days and ultimately getting into Wharton. Chris shares how his early experiences founding a synthetic biology lab at 19, working in clinical strategy and innovation at AstraZeneca, and later moving into venture capital shaped his views on resilience, curiosity, and impact in the biotech ecosystem. He reflects on using Wharton as a platform for exploration, the real ROI of an MBA, and the mindset that helped him turn setbacks into success.

This episode is brought to you by Juno, the collective-bargaining platform that helps MBA students secure lower rates on student loans. Learn more at ⁠⁠juno.us/m7a

(00:00) M7A Sponsor: Juno

(00:34) Opener

(00:59) Introducing Christopher Ghadban

(02:13) Undergrad Academics

(03:13) Early Entrepreneurial Ambition

(04:43) Professional Experience at AstraZeneca

(06:19) Why MBA?

(07:55) Crafting an MBA Application Narrative

(11:20) Rejection and Reapplying

(15:24) Scoring a 740 on the GMAT

(16:53) Wharton as a Networking Platform

(18:10) Was a Wharton MBA Worth It?

(19:31) Post-MBA Career in VC

(23:54) Advice for Future Applicants

In this episode, we sit down with Simo Mohamed Senhaji Rhazi (WG ’22) to unpack his journey from Morocco to Boston College, Wayfair, and ultimately Wharton. Simo shares how he navigated the challenges of being an international student, built an authentic narrative around making a difference in the world through entrepreneurship, and found community in the Lauder Institute’s MBA/MA joint degree program. He reflects on the ups and downs of the GMAT, his experience as a Leadership Fellow, and his transition from McKinsey Canada to the startup world at Clutch.

This episode is brought to you by Juno, the collective-bargaining platform that helps MBA students secure lower rates on student loans. Learn more at ⁠juno.us/m7a⁠.

(00:00:00) M7A Sponsor: Juno

(00:00:34) Opener

(00:00:57) Introducing Simo Mohamed Senhaji Rhazi

(00:06:18) Discovering the MBA

(00:09:05) Crafting an MBA Application Narrative

(00:11:28) Why MBA?

(00:13:10) GMAT Challenges

(00:16:25) MBA Prep Courses vs. Tutors

(00:17:11) MBA Program Selection

(00:18:47) MBA Welcome Weekends

(00:19:17) Impact of COVID

(00:20:48) MBA/MA Lauder Joint Degree Program

(00:23:33) Wharton Leadership Fellows

(00:26:09) Recruiting for MBB

(00:28:57) McKinsey Canada

(00:30:01) Strategy & Ops at Clutch

(00:31:12) Advice for Future Applicants