Duke MMS Student Blog

I found myself more excited than ever about my future career path. I had been exposed to consulting, which appeared to be a perfect fit. The field appeared to line up neatly with my skills and personality, however, one glaring issue still existed: I had absolutely no experience in the industry.

The search for a post-Fuqua career started as soon as I began the MMS program. Coming from a health background with little to no experience in business or job searching I felt intimidated.

It’s no secret that the Class of 2020 ended the academic year differently than expected because of the pandemic. Our students found themselves job searching while navigating sometimes challenging personal circumstances in different geographies.

Fresh into the MMS program, I wanted an opportunity to hone my client-facing skills, while gaining hands-on consulting experience and I stumbled upon Duke Interdisciplinary Social Innovators.

As I researched various schools, Fuqua’s opportunity clearly differentiated it from other management programs. The core benefit of this program is that it goes beyond solely academic coursework to develop practical, technical, and communication skills.

Around May of 2019, I had just finished my undergraduate degree, graduated, and was looking forward to yet another graduation the following year at Duke.

I was thrilled to accept an offer to join The Lafayette Group in Washington, D.C., as a management consultant. Now, I want to share the lessons I learned during my job hunt to help future generations of MMS students.

I spend a lot of time thinking about other people’s jobs—specifically the job market for our MMS students. For the past three years, I’ve focused on MMS career services for our Career Management Center, and it’s my job to identify trends in the skills companies are looking to hire.

For students interested in gaining marketing experience or learning about the fast-moving consumer goods industry, this competition is one of the best opportunities during the program to get front-line exposure to the business world

As the senior associate dean of full-time programs, I am frequently gathering input from students and alumni about their Fuqua experiences and asking recruiters about the skill sets they are seeking