Graduate student ambassadors

Executive Board

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Professional Development Ambassadors

Aman Bains

Aman’s LinkedIn | Aman’s email

Where is your hometown? West Palm Beach is home. I’ve been here for ten years now.

What are some of your interests, personal or professional? You can answer this question a different way every other day. But for me one thing I love to do, one of my hobbies you could say is reading fictional books. If I want to, I can finish 20 to 30 books a month. I have to stop myself because it’s an investment.

Do you participate in any Warrington clubs/affiliations? I am a part of MBA Association. I am a member of the board. I’m a court representative and attend meetings once a month.

I am also Sikh by religion and a member of the Sikh Student Association. Another organization would be the Indian Student Association.

What is your favorite class? Dr. Takeda’s Finance class. It was very difficult, I have no finance background whatsoever. So, it was twice as difficult but, I had so much fun because she made it that way. You could see her passion when she was giving a lecture. It was also fun for us as first-years because it was the course that brought us together as a cohort.

Who is your favorite professor? It’s Dr. Takeda, her Finance course, was what brought my cohort together. The struggles to understand and ace Finance were balanced by long study sessions with my peers.

What were your plans, pre-MBA? To fill in any gaps in knowledge that I had. I came to the program after graduating with an MSM and with three years of working in operations under my belt. I wanted to build upon knowledge that I didn’t have already . . . someone in admissions asked me to consider the one-year program given my MSM and work experience rather than the two year. I am very thankful for them. They recognized that I already had the foundation.

What are your plans post-MBA? My plan is find work in South Florida, a strategic role ideally in CPG industry.

What is your favorite thing about Gainesville? I think Gainesville has its own energy to it. Just being here in that young explorative phase. You also see people of every country summed in there together and the different cultures, just the energy. It’s a small package, a tiny city built around UF. It’s so academic.

What is your favorite business book? These aren’t necessarily business books but I love autobiographies of people who have dipped their toes in either politics or business. My father encourages me to read books about leaders such as Nelson Mandela. I love to read articles about others as well, people like Steve Jobs. Our professors are also good at suggesting books. They will comment that the book isn’t necessarily academic but is in the realm of business.

What is some MBA advice you may have given a younger self? Be confident in your soft skills. I know a lot of people would talk about the hard skills, but I think soft skills are an area you need to be confident in. Being able to open up and talk to an individual, shake hands, introduce yourself, being able to tell your own story in an authentic way. Those are things I was unaware of and learned in business school. That’s something I would tell my younger self to learn.

How about those who are just beginning the application process? I began the program wanting to pivot, wanting to dive into marketing, into product development and product management, I knew going in this was a shift I wanted to make. The market is competitive it’s important to do your due diligence, so you know where you are going early on.

Kate Bennett

Kate’s LinkedIn | Kate’s email

Where is your hometown? Ft. Lauderdale.

What are some of your interests, personal or professional? I am fascinated with consumer behavior. I love understanding the psychology behind what influences customer decisions and why we do the things we do. I also feel like it’s really important to work with your hands. I enjoy gardening and have bred 7 different breeds of Florida butterflies. It’s a deeply moving process to be a part of their incredible metamorphosis.

Do you participate in any Warrington clubs/affiliations? I am a member of Graduate Career and Peer Mentors.

What is your favorite class? Dr. Munson’s Quantitative Analysis Class. I was really dreading it as Excel is not my strong suit, but it was my favorite class so far! To me, it was a blast to play with the data as if it were a logic puzzle.

Favorite professor? Dr. Madsen. You wouldn’t necessarily think that accounting would be engaging, but Professor Madsen is so passionate that it rubs off on his students.

What were you plans pre-MBA? Before the program, I thought I had a clear idea of my interests and talents, but this program has really taught me new things about myself. Before I was a nervous public speaker and did not compete in case competitions, now I’ll participate in the SEC. I also found myself nervous to dive into spreadsheets and now I enjoy them and find them like a puzzle.

Plans post-MBA? Right now, I’m most excited about my internship. I am going to be working with Hershey this summer and I am hoping to return there in a full-time marketing role after graduation.

What is your favorite thing about Gainesville? The people here are so kind. And I’d have to say the natural beauty that surrounds the city.

What is your favorite business book? Seth Godin’s book, Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable and Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap… and Others Don’t.

What is some MBA advice you may have given a younger self? The MBA pays back in dividends, providing value, enrichment, and verifiable outcomes.

How about those who are just beginning the application process? I spent about a year mulling over if an MBA was truly right for me. I nearly submitted my applications the year before and ultimately decided not to. If I could go back in time, I would tell myself to “Just Do It” and not to wait!

Kyle Conger

Kyle’s LinkedIn | Kyle’s email

Where is your hometown? Boca Raton, Florida.

What are some of your interests, personal or professional? I am very interested in art. I love going to art museums. I like impressionist era paintings, they are just the coolest thing. I got glasses a couple of years ago and the impressionists capture how I see, like Monet.

I am passionate about creating different businesses and have a political background. Being able to engage people and unite them in a coalition is something I am good at. I am also very passionate about volunteering in workforce development and veteran support.

Do you participate in any Warrington clubs/affiliations? I am the chair of sustainability for the MBA Association. I am also a TEDxUF speaker coach, a student government representative, and whip for the graduate caucus.

What is your favorite class? I am really liking my Quantitative Management Analysis Class.

Who is your favorite professor? Dr. Rob Stein.

What were your plans, pre-MBA? Learn as much as I could and eventually go down the executive track. For me it was all about finding that growth level.

What are your plans post-MBA? I want to be on the corporate strategy side. I also love government relations. You have to be able and willing to learn politics and use those politics to your advantage in the corporate world.

What is your favorite thing about Gainesville? Dragon Fly Sushi and Albert E. Gator. I also love how collaborative Gainesville is. People don’t realize the caliber of UF. People work very hard here but there are other outlets as well.

What is your favorite business book? Mastery by Robert Greene. It describes how important mentorship is.

What is some MBA advice you may have given a younger self? I think some would say to prepare for the GMAT and take time for yourself, but I did unique and interesting things that set me apart. Make sure you do something interesting and noteworthy, something to set yourself apart from the crowd.

How about those who are just beginning the application process? Be yourself in the interview. Everyone is so different in our program each with unique experiences, backgrounds, and capabilities. If you don’t show who you are as a person you are underselling yourself.

Carson Neil

Carson’s LinkedIn | Carson’s email

Where is your hometown? Dallas, Texas.

What are some of your interests, personal or professional? I love the Bloomberg Lab. I go in and see what I can find out. I am very interested in capital markets. I speak to the Master of Finance students while I’m in there. On the personal side I love sports. I’ve been playing a lot of basketball with the guys in my cohort. I also enjoy reading. I’ve been reading a lot of finance books.

Do you participate in any Warrington clubs/affiliations? I am a member of the MBA Association. I am the Assistant CFO. The other day I met with the CFO to go over our budget and schedule events that will bring together our cohort.

What is your favorite class? I just finished up a Mergers and Acquisitions class with Dr. James Parrino and that was a phenomenal class. I’d like to get into Mergers and Acquisitions for my career. The job that I just accepted is going to be in portfolio management and investments. I am looking to pivot that into an MNA career.

Who is your favorite professor? Dr. James Parrino and Dr. Michael Ryngaert.

What were your plans, pre-MBA? Pre-MBA I didn’t really know what I wanted to do. I did know that I wanted to pursue a career in Finance, but I was entirely uncertain about the industry that I wanted to work within, or anything else regarding my career.

What are your plans post-MBA? I am joining the JM Family, located in Deerfield Beach, to work in a Capital Markets and Finance role. My fiancée and I will be moving down to the area upon my MBA graduation, and I am incredibly excited about a career working in finance at such a well renowned company.

What is your favorite thing about Gainesville? I love how many outdoor activities there are in Gainesville. Gainesville truly has incredible outdoor opportunities to explore, ranging from walking/biking trails, outdoor sports and recreational opportunities. There is always a new thing to explore here in Gainesville.

What is your favorite business book? The Psychology of Money. I am infatuated with finance which is why I am majoring in that for my MBA. It teaches you about capital markets and how unreliable and non-theoretical they can be and how they depend on the psychology of people. When it comes to people losing a certain percent the worst thing you can do when you have a bunch of stocks, bonds . . . is sell at a dip. But human nature, human psychology is that when you are down you panic. And a lot of people sell.

What is some MBA advice you may have given a younger self? Keep your options open. Don’t be close minded. Be incredibly open to different career paths. Take classes you think you wouldn’t like. Get yourself involved as much as possible.

How about those who are just beginning the application process? Don’t be afraid to take a risk and apply to schools that you may not get into. Take chances on your dream schools, and apply to all of the schools you are interested in. Don’t ever sell yourself short. Additionally, go and look at all of the MBA programs you are considering, and talk to current and former MBA students from those programs.

Mychal Mclean

Mychal’s LinkedIn | Mychal’s email

Where is your hometown? I’m from Niceville, Florida. It’s in the panhandle. About as close to Alabama as you can get but still be in Florida. In my opinion it has some of the best beaches in Florida.

What are some of your interests, personal or professional? I did have a bunch of hobbies before I had kids. I used to play video games, workout more. But now I have twin toddlers a boy and a girl running around the house and they take up most of my time. But when I’m not busy chasing them around the house . . . academically, I am really interested in leadership, talent identification, and I’ve started to get more interested in AI.

Do you participate in any Warrington clubs/affiliations? The Graduate Career and Peer Mentorship program.

What is your favorite class? Right now it’s Game Theory. All of our other classes are finance based, accounting based, or marketing. I really enjoy strategy and it allowed me to exercise that interest.

Who is your favorite professor? Dr. Madsen who taught accounting which arguably is my least favorite topic but he brought a lot of energy to the material he presented. The way he teaches can keep anyone engaged.

What were your plans, pre-MBA? Graduate, obviously. Ha. But my plans were to learn as much as I could from the curriculum as well as my peers. I came in with an open mind hoping to learn as much as I could.

What are your plans post-MBA? My wife is finishing up a residency program at Shands so a lot of my career progression will be based on where she ends up. At the end of the semester, we’ll have a good idea what city we’ll be heading to. I am looking for something that interests me, I like technology, defense, and leadership. Strategy or operations, or something like that.

What is your favorite thing about Gainesville? Just outside of Gainesville within 20 to 30 minutes you can go to Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park or Sweetwater Preserve, which is a walking trail that surrounds natural ponds. The ponds are home to alligators and other wildlife.

What is your favorite business book? I’m a huge fan of Simon Sinek while his stuff doesn’t directly tie into business. I would say my favorite is Leaders Eat Last.

What is some MBA advice you may have given a younger self? Invest in Bitcoin? Ha. I’m not sure I would have given myself any MBA advice because I was on a different journey then and it led to a bunch of great places.

How about those who are just beginning the application process? I think a lot of people get really hung up on scores for getting into business school. That is one metric to measure how successful a person might be coming into this program but it’s certainly not the only metric that would predict someone’s success. So, as you begin the journey of applying, I wouldn’t get to wound up in it. Obviously, try to do your best, but realize even if you don’t get a good score, that doesn’t mean you’re not going to be successful wherever you land.

Kevin Vado

Kevin’s LinkedIn | Kevin’s email

Where is your hometown? Miami, Florida.

What are some of your interests, personal or professional? I would say socializing, hanging out with friends. Going out to eat and catching up. That’s my favorite thing to do. I also love playing sports. I play basketball with people from my cohort. I enjoy basketball and have been to every home game this season.

I’ve also taken a Customer Analysis course with Dr. Cooke using Python and R. In the course, we analyze customer data from different industries and use these tools to build models and create visualizations that help us better understand consumer behavior.

Do you participate in any Warrington clubs/affiliations? I’ve held two leadership roles within the MBA Association and have also served as president of the Marketing Club. In that role, I’ve organized live panels with professionals from companies like Smithfield Foods and General Mills, where students can ask targeted questions about their career paths and industry experiences. I’ve also participated in three case competitions during the program, which have given me the opportunity to apply what we learn in the classroom to real business challenges.

What is your favorite class? My favorite class is Web-Based Marketing. I liked it because it was my first real exposure to how companies actually run digital advertising and decide where to spend their marketing budgets. We looked at analytics from platforms like Google Ads and learned how things like keyword searches and search engine optimization help companies reach the right customers. It was interesting to see how much strategy and data go into something that most people just experience as a simple online ad.

Who is your favorite professor? Dr. Cooke in Customer Analysis. He is very empathetic and student-focused, and you can tell he genuinely cares about our learning and professional development. Many of us are feeling the stress of the job market right now, and he clearly picks up on that. Recently he shared a job opportunity with our class, and that gesture meant a lot to me.

What were your plans, pre-MBA? Before coming to UF, I worked in Investment Banking for about 6 years. Initially, I planned to continue working in Finance, ideally for a company that produced products I believed in such as brands like Google or Nike. Finance felt like a natural fit given my background.

That perspective changed after a conversation with Jared Rizzo. He described what a career in brand management at a CPG company looks like and shared a story about a brand manager he worked with who was flown to Italy to discover a new gelato flavor for the company. She led the initiative from ideation all the way through execution and launch. I thought that was fascinating. I’m grateful I met Jared, because that conversation opened my eyes to an entirely new career path and ultimately led me to pursue marketing.

What were your plans post-MBA? It was to pursue a career in CPG Finance. Now, I’m currently pursuing a role within CPG marketing. I could see myself being a marketing manager, a brand manager, or growth marketer.

What is your favorite thing about Gainesville? I would say the community, people are lovely here. They’re collaborative. People are always up to spend time together.

What is your favorite business book? The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. I enjoyed learning about how leadership style and team culture affect performance. One of the biggest takeaways for me was how environments driven by fear tend to shut people down, while teams built on trust allow people to speak openly, challenge ideas, and collaborate more effectively. When people feel comfortable sharing their perspectives, teams tend to produce stronger results. The book really changed how I think about working with others and what it takes to build a strong team.

What is some MBA advice you may have given a younger self? Identify your opportunities early and pay attention to who is investing time in you. Don’t take those moments for granted. Be intentional about the opportunities that are right in front of you. There were times during the program when I was uncertain about what type of company I wanted to work for, and that hesitation caused me to pass on some great opportunities that were presented to me through the school. Looking back, I would encourage my younger self to be more decisive and proactive.

How about those who are just beginning the application process? Identify your priorities. Keep them in mind. Look at placement numbers, do your research. Recognize what you’d like in a school.

Joseph Wolfe

Joseph’s LinkedIn | Joseph’s email

Where is your hometown? Orlando, Florida.

What are some of your interests, personal or professional? I like going to the gym. I do improv comedy, I’ve been taking classes in it. I also play Dungeons & Dragons. I’m a Dungeon Master. I’m also into metal music.

Do you participate in any Warrington clubs/affiliations? No for me it’s just been focusing on my studies.

What is your favorite class? I really enjoyed Quantitative Business Decision Making.

Who is your favorite professor? Dr. Takeda or Dr. Munson.

What were your plans, pre-MBA? So I didn’t really have the quintessential college experience. I wanted to finish my undergrad as soon as possible. So I went to UCF. I had Bright Futures and was a commuter student. The community you feel in a more traditional college experience was missing so I hoped to find that here. Academically I wanted to learn more about SQL, Python, and Tableau. I’m in that Business Analytics concentration and nearing the end of it, it was definitely the right decision for me.

What are your plans post-MBA? I am going to go back to Orlando. I have been networking and I want to get a job at the theme parks.

What is your favorite thing about Gainesville? The walkability. I can walk to class, I can walk downtown, it’s convenient to be part of the community.

What is your favorite business book? Lunch Money by Andrew Clements. It is about a kid in middle school that draws and sells his own comic books. It was very formative in my childhood for thinking about business concepts. I’d say its below the reading level of an MBA, but I loved it as a kid.

What is some MBA advice you may have given a younger self? Prioritizing networking. It’s always important. And I am lucky to have the dominoes fall in place. I am aiming for a job at Disney and Universal. I participated in a case competition at the school and five members of their global development team were present. It’s been good to start early and build authentic connections.

How about those who are just beginning the application process? I got a tutor online for the math portion of the GMAT. I’m analyst, I like math, did well in it in college. The tutor helped me improve my score consistency. Take a GMAT practice exam immediately.

• Carolyn Baley
  Traditional MS-ISOM master’s student
  Information Technology
  Carolyn’s LinkedIn
• Sanjana Chittlur
  MS-ISOM Combination degree student
  Data Science
  Sanjana C.’s LinkedIn
• Priya Hanuman
  MS-ISOM Combination degree student
  Data Science
  Priya’s LinkedIn
• Nelson Hernandez
  Online MSBA master’s student
  Online Business Analytics
  Nelson’s LinkedIn
• Saadat Yar Khan
  Traditional MS-ISOM master’s student
  Data Science
  Saadat’s LinkedIn
• Cameron Le
  Traditional MS-ISOM master’s student
  Data Science
  Cameron’s LinkedIn
• Prith Pakala
  Traditional MS-ISOM master’s student
  Data Science
  Prith’s LinkedIn
• Sanjana Patel
  MS-ISOM Combination degree student
  Data Science
  Sanjana P.’s LinkedIn
• Eric Reed
  Campus MSBA master’s student
  Business Analytics
  Eric’s LinkedIn
• Austin Smith
  Traditional MS-ISOM master’s student/ Previous Combination degree student
  Supply Chain
  Austin’s LinkedIn
• Yagmur Unal
  Traditional MS-ISOM master’s student
  Data Science
  Yagmur’s LinkedIn
• Sikai Yang
  Campus MSBA master’s student
  Business Analytics
  Sikai’s LinkedIn
• Wanyang Zhang
  Campus MSBA master’s student
  Business Analytics
  Wanyang’s LinkedIn

• London Harper
  London’s LinkedIn
  MSRE Lead Ambassador
  Location: Florida, New York, Texas, Boston
  Interests: Commercial Development, Brokerage, Acquisitions 
• Collin Lee
  Collin’s LinkedIn
  MSRE Lead Ambassador
  Location: Tampa Bay, Florida 
  Interests: Commercial Brokerage, Development 

• Preston Calder
  MSE Lead Ambassador
  Preston’s LinkedIn | Email
• Victoria Michalski
  MSE Ambassador
  Victoria’s LinkedIn | Email
• Holly Deutsch
  MSE Ambassador
  Holly’s LinkedIn | Email