Stern Students Speak

MBA Student Spotlight

Name: Tina Williams Age: 27 Program: Langone Part-Time MBA, Specialization in Marketing Graduation Year: 2012

Why did you choose to attend NYU Stern?
NYU Stern’s national reputation for attracting the strongest students and faculty was important to me in selecting a business school. I thrive in a competitive environment, and do my best work around highly-driven colleagues whose intellect and acuity inspire me. That competitive spirit is also why I choose to pursue an MBA part-time. The Langone Program enables me to enhance my career without interrupting it.

What is your favorite class?
I enjoy Brand Strategy with Professor Galloway because it is more of an experience than a class. I have used examples from our unconventional in-class discussions as inspiration in creative brainstorms at work.

What is your favorite:
Music genre/band/artist: I have a Pandora station entitled "Quirky Indie Worldly Music." I've spent a lot of time training it to play everything from M.I.A. to Radiohead to Brazilian Girls, Wisin y Yandel, Santogold, MGMT and Télépopmusik.
Book: The MBA lifestyle doesn't lend itself to pleasure reading. Looking forward to hitting the books once I graduate in 2012!
Movie: I love Kill Bill for the music, the action and Quentin Tarantino's unapologetic intensity.
TV show: I was a Lost fanatic. Still waiting for the next series that will suck me in.
Hobby: I always promised myself that I'd never say "I used to dance." So far I've kept up my end of the bargain, taking classes as often as I can. It's a great way to express yourself and get a good workout.

What keeps you busy outside of your coursework?
I work full-time as an Account Solutions Manager on The Zoo, Google's Creative Content Development team. In this role, I develop engagement programs and brand activation strategies for automotive clients across Google and YouTube platforms.

What would be your advice to your students who want to study at Stern?
Have a vision of what you wish to accomplish and make relationship building (beer blast, core group outings, participation in clubs) a priority.

What is the best thing about being in Stern/NYU/New York, doing what you do?
The longer I live in NYC, the smaller it gets. I run into friends on the street, in client meetings, and at social events. I have an amazing network here.

What's one thing about Stern Marketing that people don't know?
I was amazed at the brands and agencies represented by students in the program. Being an active member of the Stern Marketing community gives you access to a social rolodex of the most desirable companies to work for.

What are your aspirations career-wise?
During my second year of the NYU Stern program, I made a job change from partnership marketing at MTV Networks to digital advertising at Google. My short-term goal is to master my new field, and long-term goal is to transition from tactical to strategic brand management.

What do you do for fun?
As often as possible, I try to act spontaneously and take advantage of living in the city with so many great friends and experiences nearby. Given the extremely scheduled MBA lifestyle, this can be difficult!

Undergraduate Student Spotlight

Name: Alex Crosby Age: 22 Program: B.S. in Marketing & Finance Graduation Year: 2011

Why did you choose to attend NYU Stern?
Upon graduating from high school, I had not yet figured out "what I wanted to do with my life." However, I realized the things I was truly passionate about: human interaction, communication, and problem solving. I felt that Stern would allow me to not only hone these skills but also apply them to the real world while still in school. By going to school in NYC, you have the opportunity to take internships and jobs during the year so by the time you graduate, you not only know the theories of subject areas such as entrepreneurship and consumer behavior, but also how they are applied on a professional level.

What is your favorite class?
I took my favorite class the second semester of my senior year : "Ready, Fire, Aim: Entrepreneurship 2.0." I have become very interested in online technology and the start-up industry and this class opened my eyes to the various possibilites in the field. We had the freedom to develop our business plans including the customer segmentation, financial projections, go-to-market strategy, etc. It allowed me to incorporate the past four years of education at Stern into a profession that truly drew my interest.

What is your favorite:
Music genre/band/artist: The Strokes, Empire of the Sun, Passion Pit, The Broken Bells, Mac Dre
Book: The Things they Carried
Movie: Thank you for Smoking
TV show: Californication
Hobby: FItness, Nutrition, Entrepreneurship

What keeps you busy outside of your coursework?
I am currently traveling through Brazil before I begin working at Google. I will start working full-time in Google's Biz Ops team which handles the strategic business decisions for the company in Silicon Valley.

What would be your advice to your students who want to study at Stern?
My main advice is to be outgoing early on and meet as many people as possible. Stern emphasizes the importance of teamwork in the business world and if you are able to develop a strong network of friends within the Stern community, it will not only make your classes easier but you will have more fun along the way. Also, pursue interests outside of business. Though some students have their own companies or trade on personal accounts, many businesses want well-rounded individuals who can not only work hard in the office but also diversify the social aspects of the work environment

What is the best thing about being in Stern/NYU/New York, doing what you do?
Very few schools give students the opportunities that Stern does in terms of career guidance during their very first year. The average NYU student has 3-4 internships over the course of their four years, whether full-time during the summer or part-time during the school year. This allows NYU students to enter the professional world with an unparalleled understanding of specific industries.

What's one thing about Stern Marketing that people don't know?
People do not realize the versatility of the marking program at Stern. The program offers a diverse variety of classes, all of which draw upon different skills. Throughout my marketing curriculum, I was able to improve my analytical, communicative, and collaborative skills, to name a few. The classes I took at Stern 100% prepared me for the next step of my life. Undertaking customer development and creating business plans for a wide array of products and services are activities/assignments that not many students are exposed to.

What are your aspirations career-wise?
At this point, I don't know my specific career aspirations but I know that it will be within the online technology sector. Over the past few years, we have seen almost every industry dramatically change because of technological development. I want to be an expert in that industry so no matter where my career takes me, I will have the knowledge and experience to be a valuable asset to my company.

What do you do for fun?
I love the outdoors. Whether it be playing sports or backpacking in the Sierra Nevadas, there's nothing I look forward to more than relaxing outside in the sun. Additionally, I often attend concerts for bands that I follow and music festivals such as Coachella and Outside Lands.