Anvesha Rai, The Ohio State Fisher MBA ’24, transformed her business school experience into a platform for personal growth, professional diversification, and long-term impact. A Columbus native and Buckeye through and through, Anvesha returned to her alma mater through Fisher’s unique +2 Program, bringing two years of fashion and retail supply chain experience from Abercrombie & Fitch. At Fisher, she strategically pursued four MBA concentrations and immersed herself in real-world applications—from teaching assistantships to case competitions and operations internships. Today, she serves as an Assistant Vice President in Bank of America’s Global Operations Program, a role she selected to further broaden her industry exposure and prepare for her ultimate goal: a career in supply chain consulting. Follow her journey in this Real Humans: Alumni.
Anvesha Rai, OSU Fisher MBA ’24, Assistant VP Global Operations Program, Bank of America
Age: 26
Hometown: Columbus, OH
Undergraduate Institution and Major: The Ohio State University Class of 2020, BSBA in Finance and Economics
Graduate Business School, Graduation Year and Concentration (if applicable): The Ohio State University Class of 2024, Quadruple-Major: Supply Chain Management, Logistics Management, Strategy and Consulting, and STEM
Pre-MBA Work Experience: Assistant Merchandise Planner, Abercrombie and Fitch Co., 2 years, Fashion & Retail
Post-MBA Work Experience: Assistant Vice President – Global Operations Program, Bank of America, 1 year, Financial Institutions and Banking
Why did you choose to attend business school?
I initially chose to attend business school because I wanted a fast track to upper management, more job opportunities, and better pay. As I began business school, I realized it was more about the journey than the destination, thus my reasoning for pursuing business school changed. I made my journey about self-development, understanding how to be more effective as a passionate and strong-willed female and minority leader, and determining the legacy I want to create for myself in the coming years.
Why OSU Fisher? What factors figured most prominently into your decision of where to attend?
I gained admission to OSU Fisher’s MBA program through a unique offering at the time, called the +2 Program. OSU undergraduate students in their senior year were eligible to apply and the program was designed that, if admitted, you work for two years after undergrad graduation and gain real-world experience, to then bring back to the classroom after the two years, to the MBA cohort. I was fortunate to have completed my undergraduate business degree also at Fisher, so I knew the rigor of the curriculum, caliber of the teaching faculty and the overall value a name like Ohio State adds to your candidate profile. I grew up in Columbus and knew many that attended Ohio State, and saw what types of professionals the school creates. I knew I wanted to attend a big school that has access to a plethora of resources, deep community network and influential human capital. So, I knew Ohio State’s MBA program was the right choice for me.
What about your Fisher MBA experience prepared you for your current career?
I chose my electives during my time in the program very strategically, especially since my undergraduate degree was also in business, so I knew much of the core content being taught in the first semester and year. In the second semester and onwards, I wanted to ensure I was interested in the content, but also gaining wide exposure to topics and real-world applications, and I made it a point to be cognizant of the value it would add to my candidate profile as a job applicant, and ultimately, as an asset to my future firm. While I do plan to continue making an impact in the corporate world, I made clear to the Admissions and teaching faculty that I also have higher education teaching aspirations. So since the content of the classes came easier to me, I practiced real-world application by helping teach it to my fellow peers and first-year students. Often professors would also ask me to assist in their courses and help run review sessions.
Plus, I earned the opportunity to be a Graduate Teaching Assistant, facilitating undergraduate business classes and practicing my instructional skills in real time.
Finally, Ohio State’s vast network of employers meant lots of career fairs and networking events. Entering the program, I knew networking was something I didn’t particularly look forward to because I didn’t feel confident in those specific abilities. So this was one of the tougher challenges I put myself through, and fortunately, had no shortage of opportunities to practice and apply my learnings. Finally, while I learned much in the classroom about business, I focused a lot on case interviewing for consulting, as I had significant case interviewing experience, but for Fashion/Retail/CPG-related roles. Given my aspirations to pursue Supply Chain Consulting, I honed in on case interview preparation through clubs, case competitions, and peer practice. So while I’m not working in Supply Chain Consulting yet, I’m confident in my ability to seek a dream role in an industry I’m most passionate about in the near future.
What was your internship during business school? How did that inform your post-MBA career choice?
I interned with Chewy, Inc. in their Dallas, TX fulfillment center, as a Graduate Operations Management Consultant Intern. I orchestrated 250-person teams to help resourcefully fulfill orders, and ran a project aiming to eliminate waste of resources and more efficiently perform VAS (value-added services) tasks, thus increasing output. I earned a full-time offer from this role, and while it was in an industry and function I am passionate about, I was fortunate to have three other offers on the table as well. Ultimately, it came down to which role would best set me up for success for the following role, so my second job post-MBA (amazing advice I received from one of our first professors in the program curriculum).
Why did you choose your current company? What factors figured most prominently into your decision of where to work?
Given my significant past experience in Supply Chain in the Fashion & Retail industry, and now Operations in the CPG industry, I recognized the need to diversify my exposure further. In order to be well-rounded and versed in roles and industries, with the goal of being in Supply Chain Consulting, I decided to accept the rotational Global Operations Program offer at Bank of America. I was also offered the position in my pick of four cities, so I chose Charlotte, as it is the headquarter city and a center of many financial institutions.
Advice to current Fisher MBA students:
–One thing you would absolutely do again as part of the job search?
Apply to as many jobs, companies and industries as possible, even the ones I wasn’t sure I’m a top qualifier for. Blasting my resume to thousands of touchpoints is what ultimately earned me the luxury of having multiple offers to choose from and being able to be selfish about what I want for and from my future career.
–One thing you would change or do differently as part of the job search?
I would’ve attended more MBA career conferences. While I was fortunate to have many interviews and job offers come from the one career conference I attended, I would’ve attended more of them to allow my resume even more exposure. I am grateful Ohio State helped me learn about these massive career and networking opportunities that happen nationally and provided supportive funding to attend this; however, looking back, I would’ve attended multiple of them, on my own dime, to get repeated exposure to firms that don’t pipeline directly from Ohio State.
–Were there any surprises regarding your current employer’s recruiting process?
I recruited with Bank of America at the National Black Career Conference; one of my cohort colleagues interned with them and gave the Lead Recruiter a heads-up about my attendance. She knew what caliber of students came from my program, thanks to my colleague. After briefly discussing my resume and showing her how I can add value to the company, she offered me a final interview on the spot. So while I hadn’t walked into the career fair with any specific expectations, I now had a final interview to prepare for in just two short hours. I had often found myself in situations like this since freshman year of undergrad, given my monthly rounds at career fairs, networking opportunities, and exposure to career professionals through Ohio State. I gave it my all and in just two weeks found out I secured the offer; so I was one of the first students in my cohort to have landed a full-time job offer only one month into the second year, which I can only attribute to my persevering efforts, tremendous support from family, friends, cohort peers, and faculty, and the invaluable resources Ohio State had to offer.
–What piece of advice do you wish you had been given during your MBA?
To not treat the MBA as a transaction but rather an investment in myself and my future. Many hesitate to apply to such programs due to the cost of attendance, many apply to get the diploma, title boost and paycheck increase (which, as mentioned, was my initial driver as well) and/or three letters on the end of their name. Once I started treating the MBA as an intrinsic and extrinsic journey, I created more value for me than just a post-grad job, bigger paycheck and change in name. I stepped off on a legacy voyage, to become the best version of myself, striving to add maximum value to whatever endeavor I pursue, and create lasting impact on the people and world around me.
