From A to Z
A New Crop of MBAs
ABEREOJE AND ZOTOVA: Two of the new faces (and new friends) of the Class of 2009.
Photo by Susan Young
Class of 2009
- Class Size 901
- Yield 89%
- Women 36%
- Minorities 24%
- International 33%
- Total Countries 67
Undergraduate Majors
- Humanities and Social Sciences 36%
- Engineering 28%
- Business 25%
- Natural Sciences 6%
- Unspecified Major 4%
As in Septembers past, first-year students arrived at Soldiers Field with great expectations and a broad diversity of experiences. To put a face on the statistics that follow, we cold-called two members of the Class of 2009 to get a snapshot — from A to Z — of this year’s incoming MBAs.
Temitope Abereoje
Hometown: Ilesha, Nigeria
Education: B.A., Economics, B.S., Information Systems, University of Maryland, College Park
Languages: English, Yoruba
Last Job: Associate, Goldman Sachs, New York
Age: 25
Why HBS? “I was looking for a strong international brand, because in the long term, whatever I do is going to involve some kind of business in Nigeria. I was also drawn to the case method as a way to learn, and to the campus facilities. I knew this was a place where I would enjoy spending two years.”
Nigerian traits? “You can’t generalize for an entire country, but I would say that people are brash, for the most part. They don’t sugarcoat because they don’t know how to!”
Anastasia Zotova
Hometown: Saint Petersburg, Russia
Education: M.Sc., London School of Economics and Political Science; diploma, Economics, Saint Petersburg State University
Languages: English, Russian, German, French
Last Job: Business Analyst, McKinsey & Company, Moscow
Age: 26
Why HBS? “My degree is in economics, which was exciting but strictly mathematical and theoretical. I wanted to become a more well-rounded individual and gain a wider perspective on business issues, so I thought the case method was what I needed.”
Interests? “I’d like to become involved in the Volunteer Consulting Organization. On the one hand, I’ll be able to contribute my skills; on the other, I’ll have the opportunity to see how nonprofit organizations work in the States. I also plan to join the Eastern European Association and am interested in ballroom dance and outdoor sports.”
