# Makhoul Leadership Fellows

![Professor Dolly Chugh sits on a windowsill and, with a smile on her face, attentively listens to a student, who is out of frame.](/sites/default/files/styles/866w/public/2025-04/24-0714-498.jpg?h=caf26d13&itok=juaiAGq4)

Leadership Accelerator

##  Makhoul Leadership Fellows

Leadership isn’t learned from the sidelines. It’s built in the Hot Seat.

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![A feminine-presenting person with fair skin and curly, shoulder-length hair sits with her arms crossed across from a masculine-presenting person with medium-tan skin and dark hair, as he olds a piece of paper in his hands and gestures while talking. A screen behind these two reads, "Welcome to the hot seat."](/sites/default/files/styles/500w_x_300h/public/2025-04/IMG_6644.jpg.webp?itok=ze1gmpe5)

###  Role-Play Scenarios with Professional Actors

Through high-stakes role-plays with professional actors, students experience the adrenaline of making tough decisions.

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![A feminine-presenting person with light skin and hair smiles intently at a partner whose back is to the camera.](/sites/default/files/styles/500w_x_300h/public/2025-04/24-0953-119_1_1.jpg.webp?itok=_skjYu6D)

###  Peer Coaching

Students coach each other through difficult conversations—asking probing questions, giving real-time feedback, and building confidence together.

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![A group of seven students stands in a circle clapping and laughing after a game of rock paper scissors.](/sites/default/files/styles/500w_x_300h/public/2025-04/lf_clapping.jpg.webp?itok=5zCxwIQh)

###  Small Cohort

In a small, tight-knit cohort, everyone has a voice. Together, students support, challenge, and learn from one another.

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![A group of twelve students addresses a feminine-presenting actor seated in the middle of the room. ](/sites/default/files/styles/500w_x_300h/public/2025-09/IMG_6944%20%281%29_1.jpg.webp?itok=g_wUcHXA)

###  Live Group Simulations

In a group setting, students navigate challenging conversations with professional actors who respond in real time.

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![Two masculine-presenting students sit outside under a tree in Sasaki Garden. They have notebooks in their hands and they give each other eye contact, as well as feedback.](/sites/default/files/styles/500w_x_300h/public/2026-05/IMG_7866.jpg.webp?itok=mpFZrPBA)

###  Extensive Reflection

Through regular reflection, students connect what happens in the room to how they lead outside of it.

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##  Sample Course Themes

##  Defining Leadership For Us

##  Self-Awareness and Authenticity

##  Giving and Receiving Feedback

##  Group Decision-Making

##  Influence

##  Perspective-Taking

##  Navigating Ethical Dilemmas

![A feminine-presenting person with light skin and hair smiles softly into the camera. She's wearing an oversized blazer, and her hair is in a bob.](/sites/default/files/styles/640w_x_535h/public/2025-08/brittany_lapointe_nyu_headshot.jpg.webp?itok=nqIKH96p)

Testimonial

##  Brittany LaPointe | NYU Stern School of Business '25

"We didn’t just talk about leadership; we practiced it. We engaged in live workplace simulations with professional actors, completed personal reflection exercises, and challenged ourselves to develop tangible leadership skills."

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Our Method

##  Leadership Practice in Action

Imagine being dropped into a high-stakes leadership moment, with a professional actor across from you and a group of your peers watching. The Hot Seat is our signature learning method: a live simulation where students lead through tension, try new approaches, and receive immediate coaching from peers and faculty. It's intense, iterative, and unforgettable.

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[Formats](https://www.stern.nyu.edu/experience-stern/about/departments-centers-initiatives/leadership-accelerator-initiative/leadership-fellows/formats)

[Professors](https://www.stern.nyu.edu/experience-stern/about/departments-centers-initiatives/leadership-accelerator-initiative/leadership-fellows/instructors-2)

[Frequently Asked Questions](https://www.stern.nyu.edu/experience-stern/about/departments-centers-initiatives/leadership-accelerator-initiative/leadership-fellows/frequently-asked-questions)