How I Changed Careers With My Kellstadt MBA

By Jessica Vazquez

It was always a goal of mine to obtain an advanced degree, but when I graduated with my bachelor’s from DePaul in 2007, I wasn’t sure what advanced degree I wanted to pursue, so I decided to join the workforce until I could figure it out. I started working in property management/real estate in both the private and public sectors, and I continued down that path for about seven years. While I moved up in my career and transitioned into mid-level management roles, I didn’t see many opportunities for upward mobility and I wasn’t finding my work fulfilling. I wanted a career change and I knew that going back to school to pursue an advanced degree was going to be a great way to jump start that change.

I decided that an MBA would refine my leadership skills, increase my earning potential and allow me to make a stronger impact on the world. I started researching programs in the Chicagoland area and was immediately drawn to DePaul’s Kellstadt Graduate School of Business.

I’ve always had an affinity to DePaul for several reasons: the alumni network is incredibly strong, the learning experiences are unique and hands-on, the resources available to students are abundant, and the university’s Vincentian values align with my personal values, which was important to me. In addition, I knew that Kellstadt offered a program that could fit my lifestyle as a full-time working professional and gave me the flexibility to plan my curriculum around what I was interested in. I applied and shortly thereafter, I was accepted into the evening MBA program.

Upon starting my MBA, I wanted to make meaningful connections with my peers, faculty/staff, and alumni and expand my personal and professional network. To do this, I got involved with the MBA Association, serving two terms on the board as vice president of events (2014 – 2015) and then president (2015 – 2016). In addition, I participated in two short-term study abroad trips to China and Cuba, both of which enriched my education in international business and fulfilled my passion for traveling and exploring other cultures and economies.

As I continued through my MBA journey, I needed help shifting to a new career path, so I visited the Kellstadt Career Management Center. They connected me with alumni who were working in careers I was interested in. These connections gave me the opportunity to learn more about those careers and solicit advice for my own path. I found these connections invaluable and instrumental to how I decided to pursue my new career in management consulting.

I completed my MBA in March of 2016 and shortly after, I started my job search for consulting roles.

Job searching as a career changer is challenging because you often have to justify your need or want for a change to employers, especially if it’s in a field you don’t have experience in. Having my MBA gave me a way to talk about why I was changing careers and enabled me to identify and articulate valuable transferable skills that I could bring to a new role.

In December of 2016, I started working at a boutique consulting firm in Chicago called The Shelby Group. As a consulting manager, I help clients transform their procurement programs domestically and globally by providing functional and technical leadership and expertise in procurement optimization projects and initiatives. This role has provided me with many opportunities to not only work with large global clients, but also travel to some really cool places in Latin America, Europe and Africa.

As I embarked on this new career, I found that my Kellstadt MBA prepared me well by teaching me how to be a critical thinker and effective problem solver, and how to lead and manage with meaning and purpose. Moreover, it provided me with the business acumen I needed to be successful in my career.

For anyone who is looking to make a career change, my advice to you is “just do it,” as Michael Jordan would say. Pursuing an MBA is a great way to jumpstart that change. It offers you the opportunity to learn new skills, refine existing skills and explore different career paths that align with your goals. The decision to pursue my MBA at Kellstadt was one of the best decisions I could’ve made for myself financially, personally and professionally.

Jessica Vazquez is a manager at The Shelby Group, a boutique consulting firm in Chicago that focuses on procurement transformation through platform implementation and program optimization. She graduated from DePaul’s Driehaus College of Business with a bachelor of science in marketing in 2007 and earned her MBA in international business & marketing from the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business in 2014. When she’s not traveling for work, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading, singing karaoke and traveling with her fiancé for fun.