Student Experience – Executive MBA

Meredith Carter, EMBA 2020

Senior Director of Finance, Gamestop

I’m thankful to have pursued an Executive MBA instead of the format I seriously considered earlier in my career. This program provides the opportunity to practice critical thinking, influencing and delegation skills. I particularly appreciate how courses like Operations Management and Performance Transformation require students to think deeper and more holistically about issues and possible solutions. The course content builds through the program and enables students to view business differently than their functional or technical lens.

Khaled Hallak, EMBA 2021

Bank of America, Officer, Syndicated Loan Closer

I joined the EMBA program at UT Dallas with aspirations to hone my business acumen and skillsets gathered from academia and real-world experience through both entrepreneurship and large corporate ventures. The EMBA program did not polish my current understanding; they shattered my foundation and rebuilt my business knowledge with the most cutting-edge academics through a prestigious curriculum and world-renowned professors. Throughout the rigors of this program, I quickly learned the importance and power of my cohort. With an ocean of information flowing towards you, it is impossible for one person to absorb and process on their own. I formed a tight bond with some of the brightest executive minds across an array of industries. In this program, we did more than just dissect and examine case studies from historic events; we were able to consult with real corporations in efforts to aid with ongoing and current issues. Our impact was evidenced when select corporations successfully implemented our recommendations. This program is far from easy, it will push you to new heights and you will need to reintroduce yourself to your family and friends upon graduation. On the bright side, the leaders of this program, Pamela Brady (Program Director) and Connie Imhof (Program Manager), are such genuine and caring people, you will feel like a part of a new family throughout the duration of this program. If you are looking to expand your knowledge and grow your network, the EMBA at UTD comes highly recommended.

Karthik Nandula, EMBA ’20

Program Management Center of Excellence, Jacobs

The UTD EMBA is a program that prepares you for a C-suite executive and entrepreneurial lifestyle. It simulates a powerful environment where you can boost your performance, learn business skills, and practice the attributes that characterize an inspirational leader. This was an evolutionary experience that propelled me outside my comfort zone and helped elevate my thought process and executive presence.

Varun Gadhok, EMBA

Senior Director – Information Systems, Tenet Healthcare

After an exhaustive national search for EMBA programs, I chose UT Dallas due to their outstanding reputation, cultural fit and academic rigor. I am pleased to report that the coursework lived up to my lofty expectations of an executive program and has yielded a positive return on my investment. The collaborative group studies and presentations boosted my confidence, refined my delivery and left me with a lifetime of fond memories in and out of the classroom.

Jake Henne, EMBA 2021

World Wide Technology, Client Manager SLED

As a military veteran who spent 7 years as an active duty Army officer, serving exclusively in light infantry units, I had a lot to learn as I transitioned to civilian life in June 2018. I undertook immense self-study and networking primarily via LinkedIn, but I ultimately knew that I would need to refine my business skills and prove myself. Earning an MBA was always something I was interested in, even while on active duty. However, after leaving the Army, that desire heightened immensely. I was fortunate to be accepted in to the UTD EMBA program and will be forever grateful. It has been challenging in many ways, but I have learned so much about how to think about and analyze the bigger picture, and how to communicate and collaborate with professionals from all walks of life. As a type-A personality, the EMBA program has truly challenged me to get out of my comfort zone and grow both personally and professionally. #UTD #UTDEMBA #Veteran #JSOM

Vinay Rao, EMBA 2021

ERP Specialist Advisor NTT Data Services

As an engineer, who made decisions mostly based on data, I was most impacted by courses like organizational behavior, c-suite leadership, and performance transformation. I also enjoyed all the finance and economics classes. These topics helped broaden my perception of what I can do for my company and community.

Rachel Xiao Liu, EMBA 2020

Asia Pacific Business Executive, Motivating Graphics

Working for private companies and running my own businesses for several years, I felt like I needed the core fundamentals for a more structured growth. The support from the faculty and my executive coach have made it so much easier for me as a nursing mom during the whole process.

Ben Richard, EMBA ’20

Director EPMO and Operational Excellence

By learning about NPV, IRR, and cost of capital, in Financial Management with Dr. Reichert, I have greatly improved my ability to pitch ideas and speak with the CEO, CFO and SVP of Strategy (a former CFO). This has helped me secure a promotion to the “Director – EPMO and Operational Excellence” which is responsible for leading all enterprise projects and process improvement for my entire company (a Fortune 400 company).

Kilynn Sommer, EMBA ’15

Strategic Demand Generation and Marketing Communications Leader, Mitel

The UT Dallas Executive MBA program has helped me grow substantially in my role in leading a multicultural task force. I have been able to foster the respect, trust and engagement among disciplines that don’t typically intersect with one another. The disciplines now see the value in ‘the cause’ in their respective roles and also for the patients.

Jennifer Masie, EMBA 2022

Vice President, Retail Operations and Chief of Staff

I immediately began to apply the skills sets from statistics and economics at work. I can see how the knowledge and confidence has enabled me to be a better contributor overall.

Mo Katibeh, EMBA ’11

Chief Operating Officer, Ring Central

UT Dallas helped round out specific skills sets that I needed to move to the next level of my career. With a broad operations and project management background, the financial, organizational architecture and executive leadership projects at UTD were immensely helpful. They immediately helped me when I was promoted to manage the Northeast Mobility Construction and Engineering organization.

Daniel Hendrickson, EMBA 2022

VP, Sr. Financial Analyst, First United Bank

The EMBA cohort means being a part of an elite group of individuals with similar drives, intelligence, and upward mobility ambitions. As a member of the cohort, I have benefited from my fellow members’ experience and industry knowledge. The EMBA program is competitive, but the cohort is out for its members’ well-being and improvement.
Business Economics has been my favorite class so far. Professor Kiser’s wealth of knowledge is absolutely world-class. Economics is not an easy subject, but he has the ability to take complex concepts and make them easy to understand.
I would recommend the UTD EMBA program as they create an environment to focus on your professional development and advance it for decades. The material and classes are fantastic, but the quality of the cohort is even more impressive.

Jon McBride, EMBA ’11

Technology Consultant, Chief Technology Officer, Integrated Healthcare Association

I pursued my MBA for many reasons, but chiefly among them was to start my own company, grow said company, and successfully exit. Win, lose, or draw I wanted my own startup experience. The company I co-founded after our program graduation was recently acquired. My co-founders, investors and I walked away with a great return on investment and with much more knowledge.

Thomas Rodgers (EMBA 2022)

The Executive MBA program has been a fantastic experience, and the cohort has become more than just a group of students taking a class together- we have become friends that can lean on each other and help our fellow cohort members no matter what. Aside from the incredibly talented faculty and staff, the networking opportunities have been invaluable. I know the connections that I’m making with this cohort will last and benefit my career well into the future. The curriculum has been curated to be relevant and useful for today’s business environment. The academic experience has been challenging and is one of the myriad reasons why I would recommend this program to anyone considering an MBA.

Denis Zub (EMBA 2022)

Just one year ago, when COVID-19 have not even appeared in top-1000 Google searches and flying anywhere on Earth was a five-minute decision, I was sitting in my chair thinking of the next career steps. The only thing I knew then was that I needed inspiration, rethinking, rebooting if you will. Boiling in your day-to-day problems, solving your pre-determined pattern of tasks, and being eventually stuck in your narrow life-box with a boring forward-looking prospect was not the life I wanted to live.

Alexander Moeller, EMBA ’17

Quality Director, Diodes Inc

UTD provided an excellent education during the 21 month-long EMBA program. The academic rigor was challenging, yet content was presented in a way that engaged and motivated everyone. The curriculum had the perfect balance of hard and soft skills to thoroughly prepare for executive roles. The program has completely changed the way I contribute and execute management decisions at work.

Andrew Svatek, EMBA 2022

Director of Operations, Svatek Consulting

When researching EMBA programs to pursue it was clear early on that UTD’s EMBA was the perfect fit for me. The elite faculty, diversity of the program, and relevant and evolving curriculum were huge drivers in my decision and made it a no-brainer. I always anticipated an academic journey that would challenge me personally and professionally, but what I did not anticipate was the unbelievable camaraderie and support of my cohort that was established on the first day of orientation. I have learned as much from my classmates as I have from my professors, and I know I will leave UTD with lifelong friends and a world-class executive education. I am so grateful for the opportunity to earn an EMBA at UTD JSOM

Darla Chapman Ripley, EMBA’97

Associate, Dave Perry-Miller & Associates Real Estate

Darla Ripley places a lot of importance on maintaining all networks, regardless of industry or location.

Sid Keswani, MBA’09

President, Pandora Americas

As president of the Americas region, Sid Keswani is responsible for PANDORA’s markets in North America, the Caribbean and Latin America.

Sarah Hagan, EMBA’11

CFO, Omnitracs

Hagan, a Dallas resident, joined Omnitracs, LLC, in April 2016, after a successful 11 years at Sabre Corp., where she held senior leadership positions in accounting and finance.

Joseph James, MBA’10

Enterpreneur

James, who completed his Executive MBA degree in 2010, manages two startup businesses. At 2020 Commercial, he provides commercial real estate sales, leasing and development services. At Mango Farms Digital Marketing, he and his staff provide web and mobile application development and manage digital marketing for clients.

Charles Gillis, MBA’04

Executive Director, Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr, PC

Technology and an evolving mindset about work-life balance is completely changing the legal services profession.

Will McIntosh, EMBA’06

Senior Manager, Advisory Services, Ernst & Young LLP

McIntosh, a senior manager in Advisory Services at Ernst and Young’s Dallas office, measures his success by the quality relationships he has developed with clients and coworkers throughout his 15 years in the management consulting and financial services industries. He assists leading banks and lenders in solving various management problems and improving their operations in order to better serve customers and meet the demands of other key stakeholders.