Life After B-School: 5 Very Different Chicago Booth Grads

by Knewton, May 20, 2011

There are countless career possibilities for MBAs. In this article, check out five Chicago Booth alums who set out on very different paths. (Also be sure to take a look at our article about 5 different HBS grads!)

The Governor:

Jon Corzine, MBA 73

Corzine, a Democrat, served as the 54th Governor of New Jersey from 2006 - 2010 and as a U.S. Senator representing New Jersey from 2001- 2006. Before getting involved in politics, Corzine had a long financial career. After getting his MBA, he began to work for Goldman Sachs; he eventually became Chairman and CEO of the firm and led the companys transition to a publicly traded corporation. He left Goldman Sachs in 1999 and went on to his successful Senate run.

The Coach:

Craig Robinson, MBA 92

Robinson, the head mens basketball coach at Oregon State University, might be best known as the brother of Michelle Obama -- but he also holds a coveted MBA from Chicago Booth. After getting his MBA, Robinson, who played basketball at Princeton University, worked as a VP at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter and a managing director and partner at a boutique investment banking firm. Eventually, though, Robinson decided that the financial world wasnt for him, and went back to his first love--basketball. Hes been a coach for Northwestern, Brown, and Oregon State, and is proof that getting an MBA doesnt have to lock you into a so-called traditional career path.

The Journalist:

Megan McArdle, MBA 01

McArdle currently works as a blogger and the business and economics editor for The Atlantic. After getting her MBA at Booth, McArdle, who also holds a B.A. in English from UPenn, started blogging about political issues on her personal blog. Before joining The Atlantic as a full-time blogger, she wrote for The Economist. McArdle undoubtedly uses the business lessons she picked up at Booth everyday in her writings about economics, finance, and government policy.

The Entrepreneur and Venture Investor:

Andy Narayanan, MBA 05

Narayanan is the cofounder of dealigee.com, a secondary marketplace to buy and resell deal vouchers from popular sites like Groupon and LivingSocial. He is also a venture investor at an angel investing group based in Chicago. Immediately after getting his MBA, he worked as an engagement manager at Booz & Company in Chicago. He has said that, ever since he attended college in India, he wanted to be an entrepreneur. His years at business school doubtless helped give him the skills he needed to turn his dream into a reality.

The Private Equity Partner:

William E. Conway, MBA 74

Conway is a co-founder of The Carlyle Group, one of the worlds largest private equity firms. He founded the firm in 1987 and currently serves as a partner, managing director, and chairman of the investment committee. Immediately after getting his MBA, Conway worked at First National Bank, working his way up to a loan group head. He then moved on to be a VP and treasurer at MCI Communications Corporation, before starting The Carlyle Group, which now employs more than 400 investment professionals and has offices in 16 countries.

This article was written by Meghan Daniels.