Q&A with Isabelle Shumate, MBA Student Making an Impact in Public Health
Isabelle Shumate came to Drexel with a background in science and a desire to pursue both business and public health. She’s distinguished herself in both of those areas: pursuing public health solutions through her work with CareSource as a quality improvement intern, contributing to two case competition-winning teams at LeBow and applying new insights at a high level as a Lawrie Advanced Global Leadership Fellow.
Name: Isabelle Shumate
Hometown: Hershey, PA
Degree, Minors and Certificates: MPH, Healthcare Management and MBA, Finance
Graduating Year: 2022
DL: What is your advice for others who are considering the Drexel LeBow MBA? IS: Don’t be scared to try courses in areas you don’t have background in! My undergrad degree was in biology, so I was nervous to take more technical, skill-based classes in areas like finance and accounting. However, the professors were very accommodating and realized that many of us don’t have a business background. Additionally, many of my fellow students and I formed study groups to help master the curriculum. As the MBA cohort had a wide variety of backgrounds, we were all able to help teach each other to make sure everyone could succeed.
DL: What has been your favorite memory from your graduate experience thus far? IS: My favorite memory so far was when my team and I won the Drexel Marketing Crisis Competition. Drexel and Saxbys partnered together to allow teams of graduate students to create a crisis plan for a fictional corporate data breach. The teams had one day to create plans aimed at mending customer relationships and improving trust in the company. These plans were then presented to a team of judges from Drexel and Saxbys. Although it was an extremely hectic day, it was a great experience that combined a lot of skills we learned in different classes into one project.
DL: Tell us about your experience participating in the Lawrie Advanced Global Leadership program. IS: The Lawrie program allowed me to learn and refine a problem-solving method that was new to me and can be applied to multiple types of problems. Additionally, the exposure we all had to Mr. Lawrie and his team of C-suite-level leaders was fantastic. Our meetings were invaluable in learning how executives define, think about and solve various business problems.
DL: What words come to mind when you think of a Drexel student? IS: Ambitious, determined, leaders, tenacious, team-oriented.
