Being at Haas connected me with entrepreneurs who want to change how underrepresented people are empowered in the finance and investment sectors.
Internships with firms founded by Berkeley Haas graduates Jordan Sale, MBA 19, at 81cents and Vrinda Gupta, MBA 20, at Sequin, gave me the chance to work on issues I am passionate about, like pay equity and access for women to credit, which are the missions of their enterprises. These Haas founders showed me how the entrepreneurship ecosystem could change for the better.
These internships were instrumental in my career pivot to venture capital. They gave me relevant experience to land internships with Concrete Rose Capital, which invests in racially underrepresented founders and Cowboy Ventures, a woman-led VC firm.
At Deloitte, I was thrilled to see how intellectually stimulating and meaningful it was to do pro bono consulting work with nonprofits. I came to Berkeley Haas to find out if I could have a for-profit career that also had social impact. My MBA studies and internships gave me the space to explore and experience different career paths.
Learning and practicing the tools to drive change
The VC world is all about connections, and the teachers in our Venture Capital class—Terry Oppendyk, Sean Foote, and Kevan Desai—shared their connections generously. We had amazing speakers and plenty of time to have real conversations with them.
Startup-Sales, taught by Joe Watkins, gave me a look at the birth of a start-up through the sales lens. This is practical information I can share with founders in my investment portfolio as a VC. I plan to keep all of the assigned readings from this class.
Having worked in a non-quantitative career, I needed to bolster my financial modeling knowledge. Designing Financial Models that Work, Valuation Models, and Financial Statement Modeling – all taught by Jennifer Herbert-Creek – were practical and hands-on courses that taught me hard skills and grew my confidence.
Leading into inclusiveness
Leadership isn’t about being the loudest or talking the most, or about taking on all of the work. It is about being the person who makes sure everyone can contribute and making sure those efforts feed into the broader goal.
I learned that much of leadership is learning how to communicate in a way that is authentic to you. The Storytelling for Leadership class taught me how to share my story, from joyous to sad occasions. I learned the power of my stories, and how to use them wisely. At the same time, I learned how to appreciate and savor my classmates’ stories.
Caring, smart, humble community
My classmates are intelligent, kind, and driven, yet humble. I’m so grateful I found a community that reflects my values and the kind of person I want to be.
I saw how the community cared for me on my birthday in 2021. It was President’s Day weekend in the middle of the pandemic, and I sent out a very late invitation to celebrate in a park. Despite all this, so many people showed up! I was touched by that display of community and knew I had made the right choice in schools.
I’ve grateful for the incredible friends I’ve made here. Andrée Heller shares my interest in art and literature, and we discuss how they intersect with business. I am in awe of Emily Orr’s leadership skills as our class president and learn from her every day. My phenomenal roommates Christina Dunbar, Rosa Huang, and Irene Vieth are deeply supportive friends, as are my study group mates, Aga Gugala and Dan Djannesari.
Jennifer Richard, MBA 19, has been my biggest supporter and cheerleader. As a venture capitalist, she’s given me phenomenal advice, helped me avoid mistakes, and coached me through challenges.
