Brandon Quinn is an MBA2 specializing in Strategy and Business Analytics. Prior to Stern, Brandon worked in financial regulation where he examined some of the largest US-based brokerage firms. At Stern, Brandon serves as a Graduate Ambassador, Career Fellow, VP of Admissions for the Management Consulting Association (MCA) and VP of Marketing for the Business Analytics Club (BAC). Upon graduation, he will be pursuing a role as a Consultant at EY-Parthenon.
Why did you choose Stern over other MBA programs?
I knew I wanted to stay in the NYC area long-term, so the location of Stern played a huge role in my decision to attend. Additionally, I found NYU Stern’s focus on IQ+EQ in the application process really rings true in the culture at the school. Speaking with current students when I applied, I really got the sense that Stern would offer the perfect collaborative environment for me to reach my full potential.
What surprised you the most about Stern?
I think the strong sense of community in the large city is something that surprised me most about Stern. Given NYC is such a big city, I assumed going into Stern that many of my peers would have networks of friends in the city already. While many of my classmates and professors do have networks already built in New York, the community at Stern is exceptional. This summer I will be attending many of my Stern classmates’ weddings–I think this just shows how strong the relationships are that you will build at an MBA program like Stern.
Is it a challenge to get the classes that you want, and which specializations should I choose for my career?
NYU does a great job of making sure that everyone gets the classes they want to take. There is a lottery system where you fill out your ideal schedule and then you add up to 2 backup classes for each class in your ideal schedule. I have always gotten my ideal schedule each semester at Stern. Overall, I would say it’s not much of a challenge at all to take the classes that you want to take.
Stern has many specializations, but the specializations are not mandatory. I ended up taking the classes that interested me most rather than the classes that fit into a certain specialization. I would encourage incoming students to do the same and to not worry about which specialization might look best for their future employer.
What career related support did you get from the school throughout the program?
I got a tremendous amount of support from two primary resources on campus: the Office of Career Development and the Management Consulting Association. The Office of Career Development provided career coaches that helped me develop a recruiting strategy and revised my resume and cover letters. The Office of Career Development also facilitates a lot of the coffee chats with alumni and facilitates the on-campus interviews. The Management Consulting Association (MCA) provided support to make sure I was ready for interview days. The case interview is a very important part of the consulting recruiting process, so MCA brings in external parties to teach students how to tackle the case interview. There are also study groups led by MBA2s who were successful in the interview process the prior year. Other professional clubs on campus are structured similarly, but focus on the specific type of interviews that are unique to that professional club (i.e. Graduate Finance Association with technical finance interviews).