Interview with Rabia Ahmed, Executive Director of Strategic Marketing and Admissions at NYU Stern School of Business [Show Summary]

NYU Stern is always on the cutting edge, and their new Change: Studio branding reflects that. Executive Director of Strategic Marketing and Admissions, Rabia Ahmed, shares details of the new program as well as what else is new at Stern.

At NYU Stern, change is in the air! [Show Notes]

It gives me great pleasure to have on Admissions Straight Talk for the first time, Rabia Ahmed, Executive Director of Strategic Marketing and Admissions at NYU Stern School of Business. Rabia attended Montclair Sate University and earned her MA in International Education from NYU. She began working at NYU Stern in 2005 and in 2006 became the Assistant Director of MBA Admissions. She has been climbing the admissions office ladder every since, and while this is Rabia’s first time on AST, NYU’s Isser Gallogly has been on several times. I don’t usually like to have school representatives on year after year. However NYU Stern always is innovating and changing things up, so I’ve needed to invite someone from NYU Stern to the show year after year. Indeed NYU Stern’s focus and brand are synonymous with change. We’re going to learn more about that from Rabia.

Can you give a brief overview of the Stern MBA program focusing on the more distinctive elements? [2:25]

I would highlight three main things – our location, our attitude, and our people. We are located in the greatest neighborhood in the greatest city in the world, we are able to bring in amazing adjunct faculty, and have partnerships with organizations for recruiting but also for experiential learning projects in our backyard. We are also on the move, unbound by tradition, and always thinking about where business is going to make sure we stay in front of it, innovate, and experiment. Finally, people you meet at NYU are really special. When you meet the people you can see how incredible they are. Our faculty is one of the largest, and runs the gamut of industry and function.

My next question is usually “what’s new?” but there is so much new at NYU Stern that I’m going to change things up. Last month Stern announced a re-branding focused on embracing and initiating change. We’re going to explore some of the elements in the program that really reflect that brand starting with Change:Studio. What is Change:Studio? How is it going to work? [5:31]

We want students to leave with preparation for the future. When thinking about how quickly things are changing – technology, how people work - we think about how we prepare students to embrace that change. Change: Studio brings together leadership, experiential learning, and entrepreneurship in co-curricular programming to provide a structure with which to drive change in an organization. The curriculum overall is called Dare It, Dream It, Drive It. Dare It is focused on leadership, Dream It on experiential learning, and Drive It on starting something new. Everyone goes through the beginning stages of Change:Studio with orientation in the leadership simulation and then they can opt into the Change:Studio program.

NYU Stern recently started allowing its applicants to submit the GMAC Executive Assessment in addition to the GRE and GMAT. Why?