Lenore Wing King

The past three months at Ivey have completely changed my perspective on business and life in general. I’ve been given the opportunity to connect with some brilliant individuals, develop a strong foundation in business basics, and learn about myself in the process.

Like many other science majors, I originally considered a career in medicine. I spent most of my undergraduate degree volunteering and preparing for the start of my career, and I discovered a passion for working closely with people to improve their communities.  

Upon graduation, I started working with a non-profit organization supporting adults with developmental disabilities. My position in a mid-sized non-profit also gave me the opportunity to be involved in various levels of management, allowing me to participate in major project decisions, budgeting, training development, program development, and mentorship programs. The non-profit sector also offered unique challenges and opportunities to build empathetic interpersonal and strategic problem-solving skills.

To continue building my skills and pivot back into the healthcare sector, I decided to pursue an MBA with the goal of developing a strong business foundation to complement my professional skills. One of the key things that drew me to Ivey was its emphasis on building a diverse community amongst current and past students. Our current class has a variety of students from all over the world, bringing their unique professional and personal experiences to the table. Such diversity has greatly enriched our learning environment and improved our overall global perspective. Ivey greatly values the unique perspective each student brings to the classroom and encourages diversity as a reflection of real-world business situations.

Additionally, Ivey’s alumni have an amazing ‘pay-it-forward’ attitude and actively participate in creating a welcoming and supportive community. Ivey truly embraces the mentality that each student succeeds when the whole community succeeds and invests much of its energy into encouraging a great network moving forward.

Attending one of the First Class on the Road events further emphasized Ivey’s attitude towards collaboration through introducing me to the case-learning method, which hinges heavily on the personal insights and contribution of others to push group learning forward.

While the past three months have been hard work, it has been a thrilling adventure that has already taught me so much about people, business, and myself. I look forward to the continued learning, growth, and challenges that await us as a community.