Episode 803 — Recruiting at Ross: Resources for Meaningful and Impactful Careers

The main focus of the conversation is recruiting journeys and the resources the CDO offers to Full-Time MBA students. Through this discussion, the panel dives into career path philosophies, the MBA recruiting process, and steps students can take to enhance their career planning experiences.

In the first part of the conversation, the panel focuses on the people behind the CDO. Byrne and Lynn explore what motivates them to help students find internships and post-MBA jobs that will lead to long-term success. A shared sentiment was the responsibility to support students’ paths toward fulfilling jobs and impactful careers.

As is common in business schools across the country, there are some prestigious and particularly high-paying post-MBA roles in industries such as consulting, investment banking, and tech that students often gravitate toward. Although the CDO has impeccable resources to support students in entering those fields, Byrne and Lynn share the philosophy that students should seek out roles that will position them to fulfill their personal values and goals.

“We are looking at long-term career trajectories,” said Byrne. “The reality is that most students will be at their first post-MBA job for 18-20 months. A good outcome is a job that you want, that you can contribute to and learn something at. It sounds really simple, but it can be that simple.”

In the second half of the episode, the panel discusses individual resources available to Full-Time MBA students. As Byrne and Lynn share, the CDO process begins before students get on campus. The summer before their first semester, the CDO helps incoming first-year MBAs chart their career goals, values, and preferences through an online career prep course. This course is essential for deciding what connections to make, what presentations to attend, and which industries they should focus on. All the students in the episode share that this process helped them discover what they truly wanted from their MBA recruiting experience.

Once students are on campus, the CDO supports them in connecting with the alums, hosting recruiting events, providing one-on-one career advisement sessions, and connecting them with student mentors through the Functional Accountability Career Teams program. The program pairs a group of first-year MBAs interested in specific industries with a student and a staff mentor. Aishwarya Dhume, MBA ’25, shared that the peer-to-peer mentoring culture didn’t stop at FACT group mentoring.

“Whether they’re peer coaches or MBA2s I have approached unofficially, everyone is very willing to help,” said Dhume. “I often talk to MBA2s about their recruiting journey. These insights were so useful in my coffee chats, in whom I approached, and in which conversations I attended because prioritizing your time is so important in this process.”

To close the episode, the group discusses advice for current and prospective students. The main focus of the advice was to ensure that students know what resources are available to them and trust themselves and their instincts throughout the process. 
 

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Business + Society: Michigan Ross professors discuss the business world and how it impacts our society. Each episode features a panel of featured experts addressing a current issue or problem facing our world.

About the participants

Hosts: Arpit Sharma and David Amorim

Guest:  Heather Byrne, Leslie Lynn, and Aishwarya Dhume

Executive Producers: John Brown, David Amorim, Arpit Sharma, and JT Godfrey

Audio Engineer: Jonah Brockman