The Real Humans of the Chicago Booth Master in Management (MiM) Class of 2026 showcase the program’s signature blend of intellectual rigor, curiosity, and ambition. A handful of new students share their journeys to the MiM program, their advice on admissions and more in the following pages.
To start, Bettye Rose Igbenebor earned her B.A. in economics at the University of Chicago and honed in on her long-standing passion for fashion. Realizing she was most energized by the strategy, branding, and management that power creative industries, she chose Booth for an MiM to deepen her analytical toolkit and pursue hands-on opportunities. Then, Ian Tierney brings a distinctive blend of military leadership and campus insight, having served in the U.S. Marine Corps in aviation maintenance roles before working in finance and then supporting Chicago admissions. He pursued the MiM to combine real-world experience with top-tier business training and valued the chance to complete a Booth degree in one intensive year. We also meet Alen Chan, who came to Booth to pair deep analytical training with leadership and strategy capabilities, building on experience in empirical economic research in Japan and ESG strategy work at EY. Then, Kwabena Kwakwa shares that he viewed the MiM as a true “bootcamp in business,” a way to round out a political science background from Stanford after devoting significant time to Division I soccer. With internships spanning brand marketing at Nike and alternative asset management, he chose Booth for rigorous preparation and strong career outcomes, plus the chance to explore a new city. Finally, Suttyn Simon represents the program’s creative-to-capital pipeline, transitioning from a world steeped in ballet and art history into finance after discovering the financial architecture behind the art market during an internship experience at Sotheby’s. She chose Booth to build a foundation in finance and pursue interests like private wealth management, investor relations, and art lending.
Together, these Real Humans underline what makes the Booth MiM compelling: a community of doers and thinkers who embrace intensity, support one another, and use business training to translate wildly different passions into clear, career-ready direction. Read on for their stories.
