

“What Does it Mean to be a Collaborative Leader?”
Culminating retreat in Monterey brings MBAs and top executives together
Bay Area MBA Kevin Leung recaps our three-day Advanced Collaborative Leadership Program retreat in Monterey, Calif., where students learned from top executives and presented their legacy statements.

Work Where You Want to Live: My Move to Western Wyoming
How my UC Davis MBA helped shape my career and life
MBA alumnus Grant Williams shares the big risks he and his family took to follow their dreams to move to rural Wyoming, putting what he learned into play to launch and operate The Block, a growing meat processing plant.

Jayce Smalley Earns National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete Honor
MBA grad and MPAc student recognized for performance, academic achievement and leadership
A leader in the classroom and on the field, UC Davis football student-athlete Jayce Smalley, a MBA alumnus and MPAc student, was named a 2022 National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame Scholar-Athlete by the Sacramento Valley Chapter.

MBA Graduate Michael Hurlston Named CAAA Outstanding Alumnus
UC Davis alumni award winners to be celebrated at 50th anniversary Gala
The Cal Aggie Alumni Association this spring will recognize three-time UC Davis alum Michael Hurlston 88, MBA 90, MS 91 with the 2023 Outstanding Alumnus Award. Hurlston is the CEO of Synaptics, a leader in the Internet of Things market.

Moo-ved into Action: Bridging Small Farmers and Big Food Companies
My MBA journey leading to the sustainability team at Blue Diamond Growers
Full-Time MBA alumna Kate Capurso reflects on how her MBA journey, including the Food & Ag Industry Immersions experience, led to the sustainability team at Blue Diamond Growers.

Nobody Leads Alone
What co-writing a book on leadership taught me about leadership
Alumnus Daniel Student MBA 20 gives a behind-the-scenes look into co-authoring with fellow GSM alumnus Cleveland Justis their book Nobody Leads Alone which publishes Feb. 27, 2023.

Jamie Butler Named Alumni Association's 2023 Outstanding Service Award Recipient
Amazon executive acknowledged for commitment to community
Butler, director of solutions architecture for Amazon Web Services, said he is honored to be recognized by a community that is near and dear to his heart.
Daniel Student MBA 20
Senior Consultant, Potrero Group
Why did you choose UC Davis?
I chose UC Davis because one of the student hosts said "nobody is from Davis" (which is, of course, a small exaggeration). It felt like a full-time MBA program where people would come from around the world and want to join together and form a community. And that was absolutely my experience. I was in a moment in life where I wanted to explore and find a new career, so having that supportive environment was crucial.
Previous Work Experience
- Co-authored Don’t Lead Alone: Think Like a System Act Like a Network, and Lead Like a Movement, published by Fast

Sonic Prabhudesai Named Alumni Association's 2023 Rising Star
Marketing and analytics strategist at Meta wins award for early career and volunteerism impact
A member of the inaugural Masters of Science in Business Analytics class, Prabhudesai recognized for his early career success and volunteerism.

Aaron Carpenter Recognized with Alumni Association's 2023 Distinguished Achievement Award
Global marketing expert honored for his leadership, work ethic and impact
Two-time UC Davis alumnus Aaron Carpenter MBA 98 has built multi-billion-dollar brands for companies such as Levi Strauss and The North Face. Today, he is founder and CEO of ACV Consulting, which specializes in supporting global lifestyle brands and startup ventures.

MSBA Alums: Advice on Paying Off Student Loans
UC Davis MSBA consistently ranks in the top 10 for “Value for Money”
More than half of all graduate students take out loans to fund their education—and face repaying that debt. Alice Shen interviewed three MSBA alumni about their experiences.

MSBA Alumnus at Google: “Prioritize Your Time”
UC Davis MSBA offers opportunities to learn, have fun, expand your thinking
MSBA alum Naga “Yashas” Bhaskara Venkata, now at Apple, asked fellow alum Siva Arulkumar, now at Google, about his student experience and advice for prospective students.

“An MBA Lets You Be Bold”: How I Changed Careers and Started a Business
Taking calculated risks to discover my passion
“Thanks to the many lessons I took from my MBA experience, I found my passion for helping students reach their potential,” says alum Justin Chen MBA 17.

Jayce Smalley Named to Poets&Quants' 2022 MBAs to Watch
After playing Division I football for UCLA, recent Full-Time MBA alum Jayce Smalley transferred to UC Davis to compete on the field and earn his MBA. Smalley was recently recognized among Poets&Quants' MBAs to Watch: Class of 2022.

Over the EDGE: Reinventing Myself by Stepping Out of My Comfort Zone
Lessons learned in networking as an extroverted introvert and UC Davis MBA student
Esther Muriithi shares her experience juggling being a Sacramento MBA student, nurse and parent, and how she’s spreading her wings to become a better networking professional.

MPAc Alumna Brianna Dean-Sysum Readies to Join EY
2022 Master of Professional Accountancy grad shares her path to Big 4 firm
Recent MPAc alumna Brianna Dean-Sysum shares the value of UC Davis’ accounting program and her tips and advice for prospective students.

Unlocking the Value of Our Alumni Community
Our new Director of Alumni Relations and Network Strategy Christopher Marshall details his journey to the School, exciting new opportunities for alumni and more.

How I Joined the MPAc Program as an International Student
“A tremendous launch pad” toward a rewarding accounting career
International student and 2022 Master of Professional Accountancy graduate Ziyan Xu shares tips for pursuing a graduate accounting degree.

Bootcamp Basics: Getting Up to Speed in the MSBA Program
From Amazon to PayPal to UC Davis Master of Science in Business Analytics
After working globally for Amazon and PayPal for seven years, Laksh Suryanarayanan’s path led to the UC Davis MSBA program.

Synaptics CEO and Alumnus Michael Hurlston Shares Value of MBA with Full-Time Class of 2024
Sharing lessons from his time in the program and the value of his MBA, Synaptics CEO Michael Hurlston kicked off the onboarding events for the Full-Time MBA class of 2024.