Sophia Gallart: A Look at Ross School of Business

Background

Sophia Gallart is approaching the conclusion of her first year attending the prestigious Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. In her recent interview, she sheds light on the process of U.S oriented applications as an international student and how other prospective candidates for similar business programs can gain more insight in what they face in the coming years.

Application To U of M

University of Michigan requires 2-3 essays depending on the program being applied for, but in Gallart’s case, she was required to write three essays as well as attach an “artifact” which represents a personal achievement of the applicant, in her case being her extensive and in depth Quizlet collection that had helped her sufficiently study and prepare throughout her time in high school. However, Gallart heavily emphasises letting your passion shine through in the application process and in essays to show interest and dedication to the school and subject being applied for. She also feels that through writing truly authentic essays, it compensated for a somewhat less focused business high school background. Despite having a somewhat small background in business when applying, Gallart still boasted an impressive six AP courses including AP calculus, AP macroeconomics, and AP microeconomics. Her AP calculus and AP Spanish credits were considered transferable, allowing her to receive college credits, however while her macro and microeconomics AP courses did not qualify for AP credits, the content covered aligned closely with Econ 101, helping her excel in the class. Gallart also complemented her strong academics with a variety of extracurriculars such as being president of the Legacy Project community organization, participating in sports including volleyball, swimming, cross country, and track, participating in band for over five years, playing a key role on the spanish magazine, and boasting three years of volunteer service at local recreation centers and libraries. Gallart’s combination of excelling academically and a wide extracurricular portfolio provided her with a stalwart application.

First Year Of Ross School of Business

The first year course load consists of two business related classes as well as three non-business related classes. She feels the learning environment of the program places an emphasis on extracurriculars, coffee chats, and networking alongside academics to truly flourish in the program. Gallart especially enjoyed her economics class which helped reinforce her plan to remain in the program in future years. The school has a powerful community where students and alumni are open and eager to share their insight into the various industries, giving plenty of opportunities to acquire a deeper understanding of specific fields. The school also provides numerous case competitions, project teams, and industry events which give students the chance to truly apply the skills learnt in the classroom in real world situations. The environment also allows students to aid one another with a variety of topics such as resumes, cover letters, and interview preparation.

Essential Skills

Gallart emphasises the importance of self advocacy. She highlights the need to take advantage of office hours and treat them as an extension and continuation to the learning done in the classroom. She also found the importance of time management, such as accounting for campus walking time and similar factors throughout the day. The transition from high school also required her to manage a detailed calendar to keep track and stay on top of her responsibilities. While the transition to large lectures may be jarring at first, and Gallart expresses needing to overcome the discomfort of raising her hand in such large crowds. She also discusses how prevalent opportunities for internships are common and should be actively pursued, with the school supporting applicants with a wide range of resources for applications and interview preparation. While there is no clear pipeline for students to take in their career, there is a high visibility of opportunities, many of which can be explored in the fall when company representatives visit the school. Gallart recommends that business students who hope to make similar programs continue to follow their passions which can help them greatly in their applications by providing them with something honest and self fulfilling to write about. She also feels that students must embrace the versatility which comes with the major, giving various industries to pivot across and a highly transferable degree. With such versatility may come career uncertainty, but Gallart suggests simply being patient, as business can accommodate a wide range of interests.

Overview

Gallart has learnt over her first year at the University of Michigan the importance of networking and connecting with others, which has helped her excel in her courses and enjoy her time at the school. Despite not having extensive depth in the field coming out of highschool, Gallart still feels that due to business’s versatility, it can be a good fit for many people with a wide range of interests, and prevents pigeonholing, allowing for a career shift later on. She also recognizes the importance of treating out of school hours as an extension of class time and utilizing time effectively to fit a busy schedule in. Overall Gallart has enjoyed her first year at U of M and recommends degrees such as hers to anyone looking for a degree that allows applicants to explore passions and have mobility with countless career opportunities.