Vice President, Career Development Candidates
Shyam Madhavan
Email address: shyam.madhavan@gmail.com
Why are you running for the VP – Career Development?
I am running for VP – Career Development because I believe that career placement is an integral, if not primary, factor contributing to GW’s rise in MBA rankings. The significance of career placement post-MBA is in its value to prospective MBA students. As such, I believe it is imperative to facilitate an aggressive pursuit of career education opportunities for first-years with an equally aggressive pursuit with regards to career placement for second-years. Bearing the significance of rankings from the very beginning of the process is necessary and the basis of my interest in this role.
Qualifications to be VP – Career Development:
Given the significant overlap this role has with Career Trek, I feel that my experience there and my role as Executive Vice President for the upcoming year give me some qualification of note. I have been interacting with the Career Center for the last several months in that role and accordingly have developed several productive relationships with staff that the VP of Career Development would be working with.
Goals and plans if elected VP – Career Development:
My goal, as in singular, for this role is simple. I want to see an increase in high profile jobs and salaries for our class. My desire for this is three-fold. First, doing this successfully will serve GW well in attracting potential MBA students. Second, an increase in rankings will increase the cache of the GW brand for alumni, and ideally lead to greater donations and an increase in our endowment. Lastly, and most certainly not least, achieving this goal will benefit each and everyone of the current students, both through an increase in rankings, as well as in increased access to career opportunities.
Erica Juliano
Email address: erica.m.juliano@gmail.com
Why are you running for the VP – Career Development?
Career Development is a crucial portion to receiving a MBA. Some students are looking to advance within their own companies but many are looking to change careers or industries and a solid relationship with the Career Development office will help secure the assistance they need in finding these positions.
Qualifications to be VP – Career Development:
Strong communicator and go getter.
Goals and plans if elected VP – Career Development:
I would like to strengthen the relationship between the students and the Career Development office. I believe that many students are unaware of the services and assistance that can be provided and these ties need to be strengthened.
Kari Welch
Email address: kwelch@gwmail.gwu.edu
Why are you running for the VP – Career Development?
The MBA Association plays a critical role in enhancing the experience of prospective and current students at GW. During Pre-MBA Institute, the current MBAA officers impressed me with their level of commitment to the incoming class of students. It was clear that the MBAA is striving to continuously improve the current environment at GW and to develop new programs and initiatives that will further enhance the university for future students. My motivation to run for the VP of Career Development is to: (1) be part of the MBA Association; (2) provide the same level of commitment to our current students; and (3) continue to improve our learning environment for future students. In particular, I am running for the VP of Career Development position so that I can work with the administration, faculty, and my peers to further develop the resources students have available for their career search, mentoring, and accessibility to alumni.
Qualifications to be VP – Career Development:
Prior to attending GW, I spent most of my career working in sales and business development roles. Most of my responsibilities required systematic outreach to various prospective and current clients. I believe this experience can be applied to the role of VP of Career Development where I envision reaching out to alumni and potential employers.
In addition to my sales experience, I also have a great deal of project-management knowledge and experience initiating new programs. This skill enables me to identify and utilize available resources, develop a strong project management team, and help drive the team to meet our goals. As VP of Career Development, I believe project management will be a large portion of my responsibility.
Goals and plans if elected VP – Career Development:
If elected into the position of VP for Career Development, I have three main initiatives for my year in service. The first is to help students conduct a more effective career and internship search. In addition to the Peer Advisor program, I would like to enlist more 2nd year students and alumni to help 1st years in their career search. I would also like to plan more career development panels featuring successful alumni and current students to provide best practices and tips on how students can be successful in their search.
I also want to develop more relationships with students in the other MBA programs. I see the AMBA, EMBA, and PMBA students as excellent resources for career development and I would like to work more closely with these groups to not only meet their needs for career development, but to also tap into their expertise as resources for current GMBA students.
Finally, I want to collaborate with all MBAA clubs and organizations as well as the GW Alumni Office to expand the relationships with GWSB alumni and provide more resources for current students. By joining forces with the many clubs and organizations on campus, I believe not only can we truly enhance the career search experience for the students, but I also think we can enrich the current programs on campus and develop more relationships with successful alumni.