Career-Switcher: MBA Student Meghan Laffin
Blog

Career-Switcher: MBA Student Meghan Laffin

Part-Time MBA student Megan Laffin made the jump from the high-pressure CBS newsroom to her new business of buying, training and selling horses.

Megan Laffin quickly moved up the ranks to associate producer at CBS News, handling the high-pressure

4 Questions with MSBA Alum Dane Hamlett
Dane Hamlett
Blog

4 Questions with MSBA Alum Dane Hamlett

We ask MSBA alumnus Dane Hamlett about work, school, tips for students and more.

"Storytelling is the most important skill."

I recently caught up with Dane Hamlett, a Master of Science in Business Analytics (MSBA) alumnus of the charter class in 2018 and a senior business analytics leader at Adobe.

His transition from a full

True Grit: New Passion Leads to Accounting Career
Woman swimming
Blog

True Grit: New Passion Leads to Accounting Career

"At 12, I declared I would one-day be an NCAA D1 swimmer"

As a child I was single minded. My parents often tell stories about my childhood, when I would make a “decision” to do something and would never back down. Fear or failure were not options. I attacked my goals and never backed down.

When I was

Michelle Leyden Li JD 93 MBA 95
News

Michelle Leyden Li JD 93 MBA 95

2019 GSM Alumni Association Distinguished Achievement Award

A Silicon Valley semiconductor industry marketing executive for more than 20 years, Michelle Leyden Li JD 93 MBA 95 shares how her UC Davis MBA prepared her for a successful career at Intel, Qualcomm and GlobalFoundaries and the growth in tech

Louis Biggers MBA 08
Blog

Louis Biggers MBA 08

Intel Corporation

Louis Biggers MBA 08 reflects on industry challenges and collaborative solutions. As a senior application engineer at Intel Corp., UC Davis MBA alumnus Biggers is helping the chip giant move into a data-centric world. He's working on enabling sensor

Alfonso Patiño Nava MPAc 13
Alfonso skydiving
Blog

Alfonso Patiño Nava MPAc 13

Deloitte

Now thriving at Deloitte, Alfonso Patiño Nava, alumnus of our Master of Professional Accountancy program, shares the biggest challenges in the industry, his most valuable course at UC Davis and his advice for new business students.

Briefly
Student Entrepreneur Wins Startup Pitch Competition at National Conference
Professor Tony Simon launches tech startup with business student
Blog

Student Entrepreneur Wins Startup Pitch Competition at National Conference

Sara Howard MBA 19 accelerating digital therapeutics startup

Digital therapeutics startup Cognivive, based on UC Davis research, is on a roll with seed funding.

Sara Howard MBA 19 recently won a national pitch competition with "digital medicines you want to take," the mission of a medtech startup she helps

Jesse Rosales Climbs K2 Like It’s His Job
Jesse Rosales MBA 17 Climbs K2 Like It’s His Job
Blog

Jesse Rosales Climbs K2 Like It’s His Job

MBA Alum: It takes management skills, process-oriented goals and a strategic vision

Jesse Rosales didn’t climb a mountain in a day.

Summiting the second highest peak in the world—a feat more consuming and dangerous than scaling Mt. Everest—took years of preparation, perseverance and every project management skill in his toolbox.

UC Davis MBA Grad Pledges to Support Economic Growth in Liberia
Blog

UC Davis MBA Grad Pledges to Support Economic Growth in Liberia

Amazon manager dedicates education and network to supporting the rebuild of his homeland

Siah Gaye MBA 18 chose the Bay Area Part-Time MBA program for its reputation—and to stay close to his mother. The last time they were separated, he was just learning to walk, his country was at war, and his mother was hiding him from the men who

Marie Chaisson MBA 04
Portrait of Marie Chaisson
Blog

Marie Chaisson MBA 04

Director of Portfolio Management, PayPal Holdings, Inc.

Marie Chaisson earned her undergraduate degree at the University of Washington in speech communication after she realized it would take more than four years to graduate with a forestry degree, her first major. She stayed in Seattle, combining her

UC Davis MBA student Kelly Gillett Shares Her Experience
Blog

UC Davis MBA student Kelly Gillett Shares Her Experience

Newberry Leadership Fellow

“I found my stride and voice as a leader . . . and what makes UC Davis different is definitely the community. From the day you walk in the door every one knows your name and you know everybody,” says Full-Time MBA student Kelly Gillett. Kelly is the

Jesse Rodriguez MBA 19
Jesse Rodriguez
Blog

Jesse Rodriguez MBA 19

Latino Affairs, California State Senate

The UC Davis Cal Aggie Alumni Association has recognized Sacramento MBA student and Aggie alum Rodriguez with its annual Young Alumnus Award.

Jesse Rodriguez B.S. 13, MBA 19 has dedicated his time to working for the community and empowering youth

Melinda Ornburg MBA 16
Blog

Melinda Ornburg MBA 16

Former Forensic Anthropologist Now Studies Customer Clues

Giving back is at the top of Melinda Ornburg’s priority list. In her previous career studying to be a forensic anthropologist, Ornburg MBA 16 spent her working hours dissecting human skeletons during an internship at the Los Angeles County Coroner’s

Vickie Sherman MBA 13
Vickie Sherman, MBA 13
Blog

Vickie Sherman MBA 13

Senior Marketing Manager, Golden 1 Credit Union

Vickie Sherman’s office is steps away from the landmark sports and entertainment arena her company named and is a centerpiece of the renaissance of downtown Sacramento: Golden 1 Center, home of the Sacramento Kings NBA franchise.

Vickie Sherman’s

Adam Gouveia MBA 13
Bitcoin powers the Bitpesa fin-tech platform
Blog

Adam Gouveia MBA 13

BitPesa

It was an investment opportunity like no other—compelling enough to quit his San Francisco finance job to join his client, a fintech startup in Africa. 

It was an investment opportunity like no other. For Adam Gouveia MBA 13, BitPesa was compelling

Daniel Covrig MPAc 17
Daniel Covrig, MPAc 17
Blog

Daniel Covrig MPAc 17

PricewaterhouseCoopers

Realizing that his professional success required a deeper immersion in finance, Covrig entered the UC Davis Master of Professional Accountancy (MPAc) program in fall 2016.

Thirty-five cents for a stem, ten dollars for a bouquet. Daniel Covrig had

From Energy to Education, Lavender Whitaker Leads with Empathy and Insight
Lavender Whitaker
Blog

From Energy to Education, Lavender Whitaker Leads with Empathy and Insight

Bay Area MBA Student Focuses on Innovation at PG&E

Growing up in a communal community, Lavender Whitaker’s parents stressed “the importance of thinking about the effects of your actions on others and the environment.”

Those words of advice stuck with her. Although she dabbled in several majors as

Grace Guo MBA 17
Grace Guo
Blog

Grace Guo MBA 17

Going Global: Grace Guo Combines Chinese and American Backgrounds

Pursuing a business career in the U.S. is the riskiest decision Grace Guo MBA 17 has ever made. She gave up her career and home, leaving behind her husband and daughter in China, to come to the UC Davis Full-Time MBA program.

Summer Internship
Brian Gage MPAc 15 Finds Renewal at UC Davis
Portrait of Brian Gage
Blog

Brian Gage MPAc 15 Finds Renewal at UC Davis

Perseverance Propels Him Toward Long-held Career Dream

By Joanna Corman

The word “no” doesn’t resonate with Brian Gage MPAc 15. In high school, he dreamed of graduating from UC Davis.

As an undergraduate biochemistry major at Davis, he enrolled in pre-pharmacy while working at his family’s initially