Meet the Class of 2026: Vanessa Wang 26MBA
As commencement approaches, we’re celebrating the incredible achievements of Goizueta Business School’s Class of 2026. Follow along as we highlight the outstanding graduates from each program who have made their mark during their time at Goizueta. Meet One-Year MBA Vanessa Wang as she shares her memorable experiences, advice she has for incoming students, career goals, and more.
- Hometown: Hong Kong
- Previous Education: Pepperdine University
- Previous Employment: Nike
- Clubs/Activities: Marketing Fellow
- Student Leadership: GBA VP Off-Campus Activities
What drew you to Goizueta Business School initially? What unique aspects of Goizueta’s culture, curriculum, or community made it stand out from other business schools you considered?
I went to a small private university for undergrad, where I learned that I thrive in intimate classroom environments and close-knit communities. This is where Emory really stood out to me – to be known by your name in this community was something so special, especially being an ocean away from home.
Besides the community aspect, Goizueta was also one of the few Top 20 Business Schools that offered a One-Year MBA program, something that appealed to me as someone with 8 years of work experience under my belt and didn’t want to take a significant time off work. Unlike some other top One-Year programs that I looked at, Goizueta’s One-Year program is comprehensive and more like an accelerated two-year program, rather than a specialty MBA, which means I’m getting the same curriculum in a condensed time frame.
What has been your most memorable experience during your time at Goizueta?
So many memories come to mind, but a moment in time I look back on particularly fondly is our summer semester, aka Core. That’s when I got to spend every waking moment at school with my 36 One Year classmates. We had the whole building to ourselves because the Two Years were away for their internships and the BBAs were on summer vacation, and it felt like we were in high school again – poking each other to stay awake in our 8:30am class, roaming the hallways for snacks, organizing our own mini social gatherings in the absence of KEGS. And that summer culminated with a GEM trip to Copenhagen, where we learned about the Happiness Blueprint with Professor Marina Cooley – the perfect way to celebrate the community we had built over those three months.
How has your Goizueta education prepared you for your next career step?
Goizueta prepared me for my next career step in two meaningful ways: it made me significantly more comfortable with data, and it sharpened how I approach problem-solving.
Before Goizueta, my marketing work lived largely in the creative space – aesthetics, intuition, and qualitative insights drove most of my decisions. Over the past eight months, I deliberately pushed myself into a more analytical territory, taking courses like Agentic AI and Business Data Analytics. I now approach strategic decisions with a layer of rigor I didn’t have before – and it’s not about replacing intuition but grounding it in data.
The second shift has been in structured problem-solving. Through IMPACT, where we worked on real client challenges, I discovered a framework for breaking down complex, ambiguous problems into manageable pieces. That skill has now transcended beyond the classroom into everything I do in my life, and I know it will be invaluable when I’m navigating large, cross-functional challenges in my next role.
What advice would you give to incoming students in your program?
Challenge yourself to make the uncomfortable choice. When I decided to load up my schedule with data and analytics courses, I was scared – scared I wouldn’t be able to follow along and scared that it would be irrelevant to my career, but the truth is I am much more capable than what I give myself credit for. You can come to Goizueta and take the comfortable path, but the real upgrade comes from honing skills that you didn’t have before. You may struggle along the way, but there’s no safer place to do it.
What’s one piece of advice you received at Goizueta that you’ll carry with you throughout your career?
There’s a saying that Dean Brian Mitchell often says: “The days are long, but the year is short.” Standing here at the end of the program, this statement has never felt truer. What I take from it is a sense of perspective – when things get tough, remembering that these are the days we’ll look back on proudly. And when it feels like time is flying by, it’s about appreciating the consistent efforts that brought us to where we are today. This is the mindset I plan to carry with me throughout my career – to appreciate the day-to-day grind without losing perspective of the bigger journey.
How do you plan to stay connected with the Goizueta community after graduation?
Beyond keeping up with my cohort through FaceTimes and reunion trips, I plan to pay forward the warmth and generosity I have experienced from the Goizueta alumni community when I officially join their ranks. Recently, I had the opportunity to return to my undergraduate alma mater to judge an advertising project for a former professor, and it brought me so much joy to give back to a community that had given so much to me, and I look forward to doing the same for Goizueta – mentoring future marketers and supporting recruiting efforts.
What are your long-term career goals, and how do you see yourself making an impact in your chosen field?
My long-term career aspiration is to become a global marketer who sits at the intersection of consumers and culture, using the power of brand narratives to bring people together and make them feel valued. Growing up between worlds has given me a unique vantage point that helps me create work that transcends borders, and I aspire to become a leader who welcomes every idea to the table.
For a lot of people in business, their academic journey ends with an MBA – but don’t be surprised if you catch me returning to academia at some point, on the other side of the podium. I have always dreamt of becoming a professor and educating the next generation of leaders, and Atlanta seems like a pretty great place for professors to thrive.
Interested in exploring Full-Time MBA opportunities? Learn more about Goizueta’s Full-Time MBA program.
