Experience Darden

Experience Darden #207: Section Rep Spotlight | Shannon McNatt

Over the coming weeks, we will continue sharing conversations with the section reps for Darden’s First Year sections – Section A, B, C, D and E. Up next is Shannon McNatt, section rep for Section C. During this conversation, we talk with Shannon about her background, applying to Darden through the Future Year Scholars Program, how she decided to serve as a section rep and more. We would also like to wish Section C a very big congratulations on their recent Darden Cup victory!

Experience Darden #206: Section Rep Spotlight | Sebastian Nabatoff

Over the coming weeks, we will continue sharing conversations with the section reps for Darden’s First Year sections – Section A, B, C, D and E. Up next is Sebastian Nabatoff, section rep for Section B. During this conversation, we talk with Sebastian about his background, what led him to Darden, what attracted him to the section rep role, his favorite Section B norms, highlights from his first year and more.

Experience Darden #205: Office Hours Spotlight | In Conversation with Dean Emeritus Bob Bruner

In this very special edition of the Darden Admissions podcast, we share a recent installment in our ongoing ‘Office Hours’ faculty spotlight series, a conversation with dean emeritus Bob Bruner. As a financial economist, Bruner is best known for his research on mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance and financial panics. He served as dean of the Darden School from 2005 to 2015, and, this May, he will be retiring after 41 years of service and leadership at Darden.
In this conversation, we talk with Bruner about what led him to Darden, his passion for the case method, his interest in financial crises, what the panic of 1907 can tell us about financial crises generally, his thoughts on the recent Silicon Valley Bank collapse and more.  

Experience Darden #204: Office Hours Spotlight | In Conversation with Professor Anthony Palomba

In this special edition of the Darden Admissions podcast, we share a recent installment in our ongoing ‘Office Hours’ faculty spotlight series, a conversation with Professor Anthony Palomba. Palomba is a member of the Communication faculty at the University of Virginia Darden School of Business, and his teaching interests are focused on how business professionals can present data results and actionable insights to key stakeholders through storytelling. In this conversation, we talk with Palomba about his interest in communication and media, his Storytelling Through Data elective, current challenges and opportunities in the streaming video on demand marketplace, what it takes to lead an entertainment company today and more.

Experience Darden #203: Meet Darden’s Consortium Liaisons | Mark Williams-Sierra & Fabiana Diaz

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Mark Williams-Sierra and Fabiana Diaz. Mark and Fabiana are first year students in UVA Darden’s Full-Time MBA Class of 2024, and they are also Darden’s newest Consortium Liaisons. In this conversation, Mark and Fabiana reflect upon their MBA journeys, their shared background as educators, what attracted them to the Consortium liaison role, the Consortium community at Darden, their plans for the months ahead and more. Learn more about the Consortium.

Experience Darden #202: Earnest Pettway, Vice President for Darden Cup

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Earnest Pettway. Earnest is a second year student in our Full-Time MBA Class of 2023, and he is also the Vice President for Darden Cup. In this conversation, Earnest reflects upon his decision to pursue an MBA, what led him to Darden, how he decided to serve as VP for Darden Cup, highlights from this year’s competition and more. Darden Cup is a series of extracurricular, athletic and artistic events that take place throughout the academic year. Darden’s five sections compete against each other for the Cup, and the purpose of the event is really two-fold: 1) To foster camaraderie between First Years, Second Years and Faculty and 2) To create good-natured competition across the sections.

Experience Darden #201: Gerry Yemen, Senior Researcher and Executive Director, Darden Case Writing Research Group

Have you ever wondered how a Darden case comes together? In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Gerry Yemen. Gerry is Senior Research and Executive Director of the Darden Case Writing Research Group at the Darden School of Business, and she has interviewed protagonists and written or co-authored over 400 cases, teaching notes and technical notes featuring leading business executives nationally and internationally since joining Darden in 1998. In this wide-ranging conversation, Gerry discusses her background, what led her to Darden, how a case is developed, what it’s like to see a case you’ve written discussed in class and more.

Experience Darden #200: Student Spotlight | Natalie Barberesi

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Natalie Barbaresi. Natalie is a second year student in UVA Darden’s Full-Time MBA Class of 2023, and she recently studied abroad at HEC Paris. We talk – Natalie about her background, what led her to Darden, how she decided to study abroad, her favorite memories from her time at HEC Paris and more. Natalie also reflects upon her passion for public speaking and her participation in Darden Stories.

Experience Darden #199: Highlighting UVA Darden’s PhD Program

In this episode of the podcast, we’re excited to share the audio from a recent webinar all about UVA Darden’s relaunched PhD program. During this conversation, Professor Michael Lenox, Senior Associate Dean and Chief Strategy Officer, and Christian West, Senior Director of Global Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Recruiting explore the structure and design of the PhD program. Additional topics include research resources for PhD students, admissions insights, and more.

Experience Darden #198: Section Rep Spotlight | Anika Kempe

Over the next five weeks, we will share interviews with the section reps for Darden’s First Year sections – Section A, B, C, D and E. First up is Anika Kempe, section rep for Section A. During this conversation, we talk with Anika about her decision to pursue an MBA, what led her to Darden, what drew her to the section rep role, what she loves about Section A and more.

Experience Darden #197: Student Spotlight | Taiwo and Kehinde Abiodun

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Taiwo and Kehinde Abiodun. Taiwo and Kehinde are second year students in UVA Darden’s Full-Time MBA Class of 2023, and, fun fact, they are twins! We talk with Taiwo and Kehinde about their decision to pursue an MBA, what led them to Darden, how Darden helped prepare them for investment banking recruitment, their advice for prospective students and more.

Experience Darden #196: Student Spotlight | Fernando Casarotti

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Fernando Casarotti. Fernando is a first year student in our Full-Time MBA Class of 2024, and he moved to Charlottesville from Sao Paolo. Fernando is a lawyer by training, and he reflects upon his decision to pursue an MBA, what led him to Darden, what he loves about Charlottesville, what he’s looking forward to in the months ahead and more.

Experience Darden #195: Skinzy Solutions | Ronil Diyora

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Ronil Diyora. Ronil is a first year student in our Full-Time MBA Class of 2024, and in this wide-ranging conversation Ronil talks about his MBA journey, what led him to Darden, how his first year has gone as well as his experience participating in the Concept stage of the UVA Entrepreneurship Cup. In the E-Cup, Ronil represented Skinzy, a tool for preliminary diagnosis of skin diseases where the reach and the availability of the traditional dermatologist is limited.

Experience Darden #194: Tuckamore Development Partners | Jake Eichengreen and Nick Farmer

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Jake Eichengreen and Nick Farmer. Jake and Nick are both second years in the Full-Time MBA Class of 2023, and they have co-founded Tuckamore Development Partners, a venture focused on decarbonizing the built environment by building a network of fabrication facilities close to major North American markets to accelerate the adoption of mass timber building materials as a replacement for high-carbon concrete and steel. Jake and Nick reflect upon their respective MBA journeys, the entrepreneurial ecosystem at Darden, what they gained by participating in UVA’s Entrepreneurship Cup (E-Cup) and more.

Experience Darden #193: Office Hours Spotlight | In Conversation with Professor Peter Debaere

In this special edition of the Darden Admissions podcast, we share a recent installment in our ongoing ‘Office Hours’ faculty spotlight series, a conversation with Professor Peter Debaere. Debaere is a member of the Global Economies and Markets faculty at the University of Virginia Darden School of Business, and he is an international economist with a focus on international trade, multinationals and trade policy. He is also a water expert. In this conversation, we talk with Debaere about his interest in Economics, what led him to Darden as well as his elective courses – The Economics of Water and Managing International Trade and Investment. He also discusses, To America and Back Again¸ the new book he co-wrote his brother about their grandmother’s exceptional life.

Experience Darden #192: Meet George Uehling, President, Darden Outdoors Club

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with George Uehling. George is a second year student in Darden’s Full-Time MBA Class of 2023, and he is also the President of the Darden Outdoors Club (DOC). We talk with George about his background, his decision to pursue an MBA, what led him to Darden, his passion for the outdoors, his goals for the DOC and more.

Experience Darden #191: Part-Time MBA Spotlight | Parker Lapeyre and Max Godwin

Big news! Welcome to our first podcast interview with two students from Darden’s newest MBA format – the Part-Time MBA. In this conversation we catch up with Parker Lapeyre and Max Godwin, first year students in UVA Darden’s Part-Time MBA Class of 2025 and co-Presidents of the Part-Time MBA Student Association (PSA). We talk with Parker and Max about their backgrounds, what led them to Darden, how things are going for their class, their goals for the PSA, their advice for prospective students and more. Essential listening!

Experience Darden #190: Office Hours Spotlight | In Conversation with Professor Luca Cian

In this special edition of the Darden Admissions podcast, we share a recent installment in our ongoing ‘Office Hours’ faculty spotlight series, a conversation with Professor Luca Cian. Cian is a member of the Marketing faculty at the University of Virginia Darden School of Business, and his research area is consumer behavior, with a focus on sensory marketing, aesthetics, and human-machine interaction. In this conversation, we talk with Cian about his background, his passion for teaching, his research in artificial intelligence, “word of machine” recommendations and more.

Experience Darden #189: Women@Darden Spotlight | Professor Mary Margaret Frank

In this special edition of the podcast, we are excited to share another installment from our ongoing Women@Darden event series featuring Professor Mary Margaret Frank. Frank is the Senior Associate Dean for Faculty Development, the John Tyler Professor of Business Administration and the Institute for Business in Society Academic Director at the Darden School of Business. Her expertise is in the integration of business and public policy, including cross-sector collaborations. She is a former board member of Veru Inc., (formerly known as the Female Health Company), which works with public-private partnerships that empower women to fight HIV globally, especially in Africa. She is also an expert in regulated disclosure focusing on tax, financial accounting and patent reporting. During this conversation moderated by Senior Assistant Dean of Admissions Dawna Clarke, Frank reflects upon her background, how she helps prepare faculty to teach at Darden, her passion for her students, her experience leading Darden Worldwide Courses in Africa and more.

Experience Darden #188: Office Hours Spotlight | In Conversation with Professor Pedro Matos

In this special edition of the Darden Admissions podcast, we share a recent installment in our ongoing ‘Office Hours’ faculty spotlight series, a conversation with Professor Pedro Matos. Matos is the academic director of the Richard A. Mayo Center for Asset Management and a member of the Finance faculty at the University of Virginia Darden School of Business. His research focuses on the growing importance of institutional investors in financial markets worldwide, and in this conversation, we talk with Matos about his background, his work with the Mayo Center, his role as advisor to Darden Capital Management, his passion for ESG (Environmental Social Governance) investing and more.

Experience Darden #187: Office Hours Spotlight | In Conversation with Professor Yo-Jud Cheng

In this special edition of the Darden Admissions podcast, we share a recent installment in our ongoing ‘Office Hours’ faculty spotlight series, a conversation with Professor Yo-Jud Cheng. Cheng teaches in the Strategy, Ethics and Entrepreneurship area at Darden, and her research focuses on corporate governance and top executives in public companies. In this wide-ranging conversation, we talk with Cheng about her background, what led her to Darden, and what she enjoys about teaching Strategy in the first year core curriculum. She also shares insights about several recent corporate governance scandals as well as the important role corporate boards play in shaping a company’s strategic direction.

Experience Darden #186: Meet Alyssa Gonzalez, President, Graduate Women in Business Student Organization

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Alyssa Gonzalez. Alyssa is a second year student in Darden’s Full-Time MBA Class of 2023, and she is also the President of the Graduate Women in Business (GWIB) student organization. In this wide-ranging conversation, we talk with Alyssa about her decision to pursue an MBA, what led her to Darden, and the important role community and mentors have played during her MBA journey. She also shares insights about GWIB and the organization’s plans for the months ahead.

Experience Darden #185: In Conversation | Scott Beardsley, Dean of the Darden School of Business

In this special edition of the podcast, we are excited to share a recent conversation between the Dean of the Darden School of Business Scott Beardsley and Senior Assistant Dean of Admissions Dawna Clarke about why it has never been a better time to be at Darden. Beardsley and Clarke share insights on a number of topics including the importance of financial accessibility and scholarships, Darden’s unique academic environment, updates on School priorities and how students can take a Darden MBA ‘from here to anywhere.’ This conversation was recorded on 2 November.

Experience Darden #184: Women@Darden Spotlight | Professor Melissa Thomas-Hunt

In this special edition of the podcast, we are excited to share another installment from our ongoing Women@Darden event series featuring Professor Melissa Thomas-Hunt. Thomas-Hunt is the John Forbes Distinguished Professor of Business Administration at the Darden School of Business and Professor of Public Policy at the Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, and she is also the former Head of Global Diversity and Belonging at Airbnb where she led the strategy and execution of our global internal diversity, inclusion, equity and belonging programs. For 25 years, she has taught MBAs and executives leadership, team dynamics, and negotiations and conducted research on the factors that unleash, leverage, and amplify the contributions made by individuals, particularly women, underrepresented individuals, and numerical minorities. During this wide-ranging conversation moderated by Senior Assistant Dean of Admissions Dawna Clarke, Thomas-Hunt touches upon her professional journey, what led her to Darden, her experience at Airbnb and more.

Experience Darden #183: Meet Devon Page, President, Parents of Darden

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Devon Page. Devon is a second year student in the Full-Time MBA Class of 2023, and he is also the President of the Parents at Darden student organization. We talk with Devon about his decision to pursue an MBA, what led him to Darden, how he navigated his first year, and how he has balanced the demands of an MBA program and family. Devon also shares his goals for the Parents at Darden student organization in the months ahead.