UC Berkeley Haas welcomed more than 700 new full- and part-time MBA students to campus in recent weeks with a whirlwind of orientations before the start of fall classes.
A total of 280 new full-time MBA students arrived last week—hailing from 52 countries outside of the U.S.—for a four-day introduction to life at Haas. The full-time orientation followed the July welcome of a record 357 incoming evening & weekend MBA students, along with the arrival of 74 new Executive MBA students.
Full-time Class of 2027
Full-time orientation kicked off Aug. 6 when the international students, who represent about 46% of the class, arrived on campus. All first-year students came together on Aug. 11 for WeLaunch, a big-picture overview of the school, the academic program, and how to jump-start career plans with the career management team. Students were also assigned a cohort, the study team they will spend the next two years working with at Haas.
“As you begin your MBA journey, remember you’re not just here to learn business frameworks—that’s important—but you’re also here to develop into leaders who will shape the future with purpose and humanity,” Dean Jenny Chatman, BA 81, PhD 88, told the FTMBA class gathered in Andersen Auditorium. “Have a wonderful start to your year. I hope to meet each and every one of you over the coming days and months.” Chatman signed off by leading students in a “Go Bears” cheer.
Throughout orientation, students learned about how important leadership, working on teams, and communication will be throughout their MBA journeys. They heard from Haas alumni and leaders in sustainability and diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, and belonging. And they learned more about the school’s Defining Leadership Principles—or DLPs—which Chatman defined and evolved in her role as a researcher, leader, and culture champion at Haas.
About 11% of the new FTMBA students are enrolled in a dual degree program—MBA/MPH, MBA/MEng, MBA/JD, and MBA/MCS (climate solutions). Half the class are U.S. minorities; 15% are first in their families to attend college; 19% identify as LGBTQ+, and 7% are veterans.
In a keynote speech to the full-time class, alumna April Underwood, MBA 07, shared lessons learned working at top tech companies in Silicon Valley—from her role as an MBA intern at Apple, to senior partner/tech manager at Google, to director of product at Twitter, to chief product officer at Slack. Now managing director/co-founder of Adverb Ventures, Underwood said she entered Haas believing she knew more than she did and was further along in her career journey than she truly was.
“You’re embarking on what is likely the biggest personal investment you will make in yourself in a very long time,” she said. “Every day counts … you don’t know what days are going to count the most. So have some fun along the way, enjoy the company you will keep over the next couple of years, and go make your mark.”
Making friends for life
Orientation offered plenty of opportunities to have lunch in the courtyard, join a happy hour, or take a walk through a campus tree-lined path.
Chris Arreola and Guillermo Rodriguez, both MBA 27, who met through mutual friends before coming to Haas, ran into each other during a break on the first day of orientation. Arreola, a DJ and professional musician from Long Beach, worked for education nonprofits before pursuing an MBA.
“I’m trying to broaden my impact on a bigger scale or pivot into more of a creative space,” he said. “It would be nice to find something that allows me to be more creative, possibly in the music space, and make an impact in a positive way.”
Rodriguez, who grew up in Caracas, Venezuela, worked in management consulting before coming to Haas. “I want to pivot long term to education, and Haas is very strong in tech and ed tech,” he said. “Being close to the startups in tech in education is one of the things that drew me to the program.”
Evening & Weekend MBA Class of 2028
Haas EWMBA students attend either a weekend or evening MBA program—or the school’s newest offering, Flex, a fully online experience or a hybrid of online and in-person classes. The Berkeley Haas EWMBA Program is ranked No. 1 among part-time programs in the country by U.S. News.
The class is professionally and academically accomplished. A third of the incoming class already has at least one advanced degree, with 24 students holding PhDs. Four class members are doctors, and two hold law degrees. About 27% of the class are the first in their families to attend college.
The diverse class includes a volunteer medic in Africa; a special advisor to the governor of Hawaii; a detective on the Palo Alto Police force; a research scientist using microbial products to reduce the impact of methane emissions on rice fields; the former artist manager for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Billy Idol; and a cofounder of an AI manufacturing start-up that was acquired by Apple.
Executive MBA Class of 2027
A class of 74 new students in the MBA for Executives Program arrived on campus July 18. The class, composed of 41% women, includes 11 Cal alumni.
Elizabeth Stanners, executive director of the EMBA program, said she was thrilled to welcome such an accomplished and dynamic group.
“These students reflect the very best of what it means to be lifelong learners—curious, driven, and deeply committed to growth,” she said. “I can’t wait to see how they embrace the challenges and opportunities ahead, engage with our world-class faculty, and contribute to the immersive experiences that make this program truly transformative.”
Twenty-five percent of the EMBA curriculum is hands-on, with five field immersions scheduled throughout the program, including a new immersion planned in Japan. Immersions—one per term—cover leadership, innovation, entrepreneurship, international business, and public policy.
About half of the new class has at least one advanced degree. About a third of the class are the first in their families to go to college. Fourteen class members are serving or have served in the U.S. military. A global group, 37% of the class is bilingual, and nearly a quarter of the students speak more than two languages.
The students in the 22-month program includes a veteran honored with the Bronze Star Medal for acts of valor during combat who runs the Boston Marathon Tough Ruck, 26.2 miles carrying the names of the fallen; an engineering team leader behind the Velodrome Stadium for the 2012 London Olympics; a climber of Mount Kilimanjaro, Pikes Peak, and Mount Rainier; a builder of Robin the robot, an emotionally intelligent, AI-powered social companion robot designed to provide therapeutic support to pediatric and geriatric patients; and a franchisee of 57 McDonald’s restaurants.
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