New graduates are heading into a surging job market鈥攖he National Association of Colleges and Employers is reporting that听鈥攁nd business school graduates continue to be in especially high demand. But it's not just skills that Carroll School of Management graduates are carrying into the workforce; they鈥檙e bringing their values and perspectives along as well.听
It鈥檚 an essential part of the Carroll School鈥檚 mission that beyond business principles, students are also encouraged to develop their critical thinking skills and foster ethical leadership values. For these six brand new Carroll School graduates, those lessons are top of mind as they spread their wings and begin the next chapter.
Bozhena Kulchyckyj
On top of her numerous academic and co-curricular responsibilities, Bozhena Kulchyckyj has spent plenty of time this semester reading the news. That鈥檚 because headlines about Russia鈥檚 invasion of Ukraine hit particularly close to home鈥攈er mother is a Ukrainian immigrant and many family members, including Kulchyckyj鈥檚 maternal grandparents, are still living there. 鈥淢y perspective on everything has completely shifted,鈥� she says, adding that the difficult things she has been dealing with have changed her priorities. When she got a job offer earlier this year, it just didn鈥檛 feel right. Instead, she鈥檒l be heading to Poland after graduation to assist with Ukrainian refugee efforts through the听.听
Kulchyckyj, who completed Information Systems and Marketing concentrations, and a Studio Art major, remembers the first time she got excited about business while growing up in Maryland. As part of her 5th grade class, students were tasked with virtually selling corn in an online simulator. Realizing she had sold the most, she felt a rush of satisfaction. From there, she ran with her budding business instincts, from teaching herself enough coding to design her own Tumblr blog, to participating in youth business programs at the University of Maryland, MIT, and Wharton.听
鈥淓verything I have worked for the past four years will be there when I come back. But right now, I know having this experience will be something that I talk about for the rest of my life.鈥�
鈥淓verything I have worked for the past four years will be there when I come back. But right now, I know having this experience will be something that I talk about for the rest of my life.鈥�
Not one to shy away from a busy schedule, Kulchyckyj did a little bit of everything during her time at Boston College. She was a听听student executive board co-chair for the听Edmund H. Shea Jr. Center for Entrepreneurship听and a regular participant in business case competitions, like the international Collegiate Ethics Case Competition where听she and teammate Bijoy Shah 鈥�22 placed second. She also participated in听Kairos听retreats, joined a dance team, and planned fundraisers for causes like Black Lives Matter, and more recently, Ukrainian refugees, all while working part-time.听
Off campus, she was constantly seeking new opportunities to put her skills to the test, interning for venture capital firms True Ventures and General Catalyst, as well as conducting user experience research for MIT鈥檚 Center for Brains, Minds and Machines. She also led web and app design efforts for the startup Fisherman, co-founded by Carroll School alum听Ameet Kallarackal 鈥�18.听
Whatever she does after her time in Poland, Kulchyckyj wants to make sure it鈥檚 as meaningful as her choice to go to Poland. "I saw my life going towards venture capital鈥攁nd I still think it will,鈥� she says. 鈥淓verything I have worked for the past four years will be there when I come back. But right now, I know having this experience will be something that I talk about for the rest of my life.鈥�
Nick Guerriero
With a family full of medical professionals, going to business school might have felt like the path less traveled, but Nick Guerriero quickly became passionate about sharing his Boston College and Carroll School of Management experience with others. The Massachusetts native is a familiar face for prospective students, doing panels and campus tours, and serving as an听听host. He also participated in听Freshman League听all four years, evolving from mentee to group captain.听
At the Carroll School, Guerriero spent his early semesters exploring the concentrations before finding accounting. 鈥淚鈥檝e always been a math person and it felt like a puzzle to me,鈥� he says. In addition to accounting, he also picked up a Business Analytics concentration and an Applied Psychology minor, as a way to appeal to both the quantitative and qualitative sides of his brain. That foundation in psychology was especially helpful when it came to topics like strategic management, where the subject matter is 鈥渕ore focused on human behavior,鈥� he adds.
"It's rewarding to look for a job that aligns with your values. That way you can really enjoy what you do."
Part of his enthusiasm for Boston College revolves around the sheer amount of resources available to students, including the vast network of alumni happy to offer guidance. After graduation, Guerriero will stay in Boston and join accounting organization听KPMG听full time as a deal advisory and strategy associate. He interned with the group last summer and met deal advisory partner Janessa Howarth 鈥�03,听MSA听鈥�04, a fellow Carroll School alum whose path, Guerriero felt, mirrored some of his own goals. 鈥淚t was really inspiring to see,鈥� he says, noting that it made him feel that what he wanted, including work/life balance, was possible.听
Guerriero has also been very involved with听, a summer camp and community for children with parents impacted by cancer. When he began his work with KPMG, Guerriero met with his manager and was encouraged to take time off each summer to go work with Camp Kesem. 鈥淭hey want you to have that experience and then come to work fulfilled, refreshed and ready to bring that perspective to your role,鈥� he says. That was a good sign to Guerriero, who was seeking a workplace that shared his service ideals because of the ethical perspectives introduced to him in Carroll School courses like听Portico. It鈥檚 rewarding 鈥渢o look for a job that aligns with your values,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hat way you can really enjoy what you do.鈥�
Meeraf Alemayehu
Meeraf Alemayehu wasn鈥檛 sure that she wanted to move away from the West Coast, but she applied to Boston College at the urging of her cousin, who had already graduated from the Carroll School. When her acceptance letter arrived, she knew it was too good of an opportunity to pass up. She had also gotten into the听Thea Bowman AHANA and Intercultural Center鈥檚 Options Through Education program鈥攕he arrived on campus seven weeks early and spent her time socializing with fellow students, earning her first few college credits, and getting to know the area.听
Growing up in Seattle, Alemayehu had participated in the听听program at the University of Washington, a crash course in what a business school could offer. A visual learner, she was also intrigued by how people can be lured in by different kinds of communication鈥攁 natural fit for her Marketing and Information Systems concentrations. She furthered that visual fascination by taking studio art classes her senior year and leaning into a newfound interest in film photography. 鈥淪tepping outside of Fulton [Hall] has allowed me to see that business is so broad,鈥� she says. 鈥淵ou can apply just about anything you learn outside of it.鈥澨�
She鈥檒l bring those skills to her new consulting role in the People Advisory Services department of professional services network听, where she has also interned for the past three years. Alemayehu is looking forward to the opportunity to assist with some of the big-picture workplace issues she sees popping up across industries. 鈥淧eople aren鈥檛 just working machines,鈥� she says. 鈥淎n empathetic workplace is beneficial for everyone.鈥�
鈥淪tepping outside of Fulton [Hall] has allowed me to see that business is so broad. You can apply just about anything you learn outside of it.鈥�
That empathetic element is a big reason she decided to join the EY team full-time. When she lost her father between junior and senior year of college, she was just weeks away from starting her third summer internship with EY. The team jumped into action, offering time off and emotional support. 鈥淭hat made me feel good, like this company actually cares,鈥� she says. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what I value and will continue to value in my career.鈥澨�
That sense of community is also something she found as part of the African Student Organization, which she has been involved with for the past four years鈥攖his school year, she served as a senior liaison. 鈥淚 was able to mentor freshmen and show them the value of this community,鈥� she says.
Another community she鈥檚 grateful for is the one she forged working in the Carroll School undergraduate office. She gives credit to her fellow student workers, as well as deans听Amy LaCombe听and Erica Graf, for motivating her. 鈥淏eing a Black woman in Fulton, it has taken me a long time to understand that my diversity is an asset. I do belong in these classrooms,鈥� she says. 鈥淢y voice does matter.鈥澨�
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Jennifer Heath听
Charting a course forward had never been difficult for Jennifer Heath until she made the trip from New Jersey to the Boston College campus for admitted students day. She wasn鈥檛 convinced it was the school for her, but, she says, 鈥渋t was a warm, sunny day and Gasson was shining,鈥� and as she learned more about what the school had to offer, she was won over.
One of the things that ultimately drew her in was learning more about the听PULSE听program and the way it blended community service, and lessons on social injustice and theology.听
Inspired by her grandmother鈥檚 community service efforts, Heath joined PULSE during her sophomore year and interned with the听, helping incarcerated people with life skills like financial literacy twice a week. During this time, she gained understanding on complex social topics like intersectionality and systemic racism. 鈥淭hese are huge moments in my personal development,鈥� she says, adding that the classes she took as part of her Managing for Social Impact and the Public Good minor also contributed. 鈥淭his showed me that I wanted to work with communities.鈥�
鈥淏oston College was a great place to put myself out there. There鈥檚 always going to be a group of people who are also interested in what you鈥檙e doing and that鈥檚 really special.鈥�
When