Sarah Wood, BBA '18

Sarah Wood is a notable name at Michigan Ross. The junior’s lengthy resume is already full of eyebrow-raising items, such as launching her own artisanal oatmeal company, serving as a leader in U-M’s student government, and landing a competitive internship at Goldman Sachs this summer.

So it’s surprising that Wood was initially less than enthusiastic about the school. She struggled to find her footing her first semester, and even considered leaving for another program. But after a few mentors guided her toward her interests, she discovered that her education at Ross could be exactly what she wanted it to be.

Your Ross experience can fit wherever you’re at, whatever you’re interested in.

“Mentors have been faculty, but also fellow students, alumni, and Ross guest speakers who have taken the time to get to know me,” Wood says. “They have guided me in my journey to find a comfortable place at Ross.”

Wood studied in India through Ross’ India Initiatives program. A professor pointed her to the Forte Rising Star challenge in California, where she represented U-M with success. She landed a PR internship in Manhattan for Shinola, discovered that she wasn’t in love with PR, and connected with Ross alumni in New York who were happy to provide her career advice.

"Stuff like that is so special about Michigan Ross — that people would leave work a little early or come all the way down to TriBeCa to talk about my career,” Wood says. "They took me out for coffee and would say: I can put you in touch with this person, this person, this person. It was just amazing."

Wood, inspired by her mentors, has become a mentor herself. She’s one of four Michigan Ross representatives to U-M’s Central Student Government, focusing on mental health issues. “Helping people find their niche at Ross is very important to me,” she says. “Your Ross experience can fit wherever you’re at, whatever you’re interested in."

Wood knows this all too well, as her journey has taken a few turns, from entrepreneurship to PR and marketing to her next stop: a sales and trading internship at Goldman Sachs this summer. She beat a pool of competitive candidates from Ivy League business schools for the opportunity; Goldman Sachs only hired 3 percent of applicants.

As for her future? Wood is still open to the possibilities. "I don’t think there’s an exact destination yet, but there’s a person I want to be. I want to be the type of person that is going to be a mentor for other people, that’s going to help them figure things out.”