As part of Scheller’s Countdown to Commencement series, we interviewed a few soon-to-be graduates from our Undergraduate program to learn about their backgrounds, why they chose Scheller College, and what they plan to do after the Fall 2020 commencement.
Meet Jenny Choi, a fifth-year student graduating in December with a strategy and innovation concentration.
Where are you from?
I’m from Snellville, GA.
Who most influenced your decision to pursue business in college?
My parents have been lifelong small business owners and I think their entrepreneurial mindset definitely rubbed off on me!
Why did you choose Scheller College of Business?
I didn’t apply as a business major, but I decided to change my major prior to my first day at Tech. If I could go back in time, I’d choose it again. It’s opened so many doors for opportunities that I was interested in.
What concentration did you pursue and why? How has this helped prepare you for your future?
My concentration was in Strategy and Innovation. It gave me real-world, experiential learning opportunities through practicum courses that provided client engagement experiences solving problems that matter.
Where did you intern/co-op during school?
Arden’s Garden, Madeleine Frey Consulting, Guidehouse, and Create-X at Georgia Tech.
Where will you be working after graduation?
I will be working at McKinsey & Company as a Business Analyst.
Who was your favorite professor (and why)?
This is a really difficult question because I had many incredible professors, including Karie Davis-Nozemack, Bill Todd, Anne Fuller, Michael Oxman, and Jacqueline Garner.
Professor Davis-Nozemack’s Business Law course taught me much more than just law concepts as they apply to business; she taught me how to evaluate, craft, structure, and nail an argument. Her course was fundamental to how I write now and even to the way I approach problems. She has also been an invaluable mentor to me throughout my time at Scheller.
What was your favorite course (and what was the biggest insight you gained about business from it)?
Two of my favorite courses at Scheller were Dr. Anne Fuller’s Integrative Management Experience and Professor Todd’s Children’s Healthcare Consulting practicum.
Dr. Fuller’s senior-level strategy course had student teams running our own firms, making decisions through a virtual simulation game. This course gave me a holistic understanding of how different functions of business work together as well as how broad strategy translates into day-to-day operations. It is one of the most challenging courses I took during my time at Georgia Tech and I learned an incredible amount.
Professor Todd’s practicum course was an invitation follow-up course to Management in the Healthcare Sector, another great case-based course. My 10-person cohort evaluated and made recommendations on how to improve the patient experience within the cardiac services unit of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, working closely with their internal strategy team.
Children’s Healthcare used our findings to lead a bigger systems-level study across all their departments and the insights we passed on were foundational to making that happen. It was very similar to the type of consulting engagement I may expect to see in my future career, and it was incredible to be able to drive this level of impact as a team of all undergraduate students.
As a business student in the heart of Tech Square, how do you think Scheller College embodies the intersection of business and technology?
Scheller helps build foundational business skills in students that translate seamlessly to the growing innovation hub that surrounds us in Tech Square as well as more broadly in Atlanta. Being a business student at Georgia Tech is also unique in the interdisciplinary exposure we get to the constant innovation taking place across campus, from Create-X, Georgia Tech’s startup incubator program, to the Vertically Integrated Projects program.
What activities were you involved with on or off campus, and did your business education impact those activities in any way?
I worked on-campus through most of my semesters at Georgia Tech starting in the spring of my freshman year. Although I held various positions across different departments on campus, my two favorites were working as a student assistant for the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business (which led me to take Michael Oxman’s Sustainable Business Consulting practicum course) in 2018 as well as working as a student photographer for Serve-Learn-Sustain which gave me access to many workshops, conferences, and seminars about sustainability, community, and equity from 2017-2019.
I also participated in ORGT's (Outdoor Recreation at Georgia Tech) freshman leadership program, CORE, and played on Wreck, the women’s club ultimate frisbee team.
How did the Scheller College undergraduate career education program assist you with your job efforts? Did you end up working or interning for one of your top choice companies?
MGT 3599, or the career development course, was a great overview into expectations in the professional world. I feel that it gives Scheller graduates a competitive advantage. Furthermore, my advisor Steve Carriere in Scheller’s Undergraduate Program Office was an amazing support system for me as I navigated recruiting. I think Scheller has a great reputation among employers. For example, I was invited to interview with many of my top-choice companies and am thrilled to be going to work for one of them.
Did you participate in any hands-on/experiential learning opportunities? If yes, which projects/companies did you work with and how did you help them?
In addition to the courses described above, I worked with a startup to assess the feasibility of a solar marketplace platform in the southeast through the Sustainable Business Consulting practicum. Through Create-X, I had the opportunity to co-found my own startup called All Our Weekends, making business wear more comfortable and accessible for the modern, everyday woman.
What is your best piece of advice to an applicant hoping to get into Scheller College?
I would encourage you to think carefully about your “why” – what excites and inspires you? I think that excitement can drive both your application and decision-making process.
What is the biggest myth about Scheller College?
I’m not sure if this is a myth, but I think our Strategy department is fantastic. I feel it may be less well-known because it is a relatively newer concentration at Scheller, but I have found both the faculty and the curriculum to be outstanding.
Fun fact about yourself:
I’m a current intern at an amazing community pottery studio called Mudfire. I make and share what I make on Instagram (@selfcareceramics)!
Hobbies:
Ultimate Frisbee, ceramics/pottery, hiking, yoga, and biking.
If I hadn’t gone to business school…
I would have pursued a joint JD/Master of Public Health degree to work at the intersection of law and public health.
What are the top two items on your bucket list?
Spend a few months abroad fully immersed in the culture of another country and open an independent coffee shop/bookstore!
In one sentence, how would you like your peers to remember you?
I’d like to be remembered by my peers as kind.