Ko on the Go  

Stillman Graduate's Success Story.

Spring 2020 M.B.A. graduate, Claudia Ko, beams when she talks about her experiences during graduate school. She enthuses, "Stillman has truly prepared me to build a better world. Experiences inside and outside the classroom provided me with challenge while our community provided the support I sought to hazard zet forward ('go forward, in spite of the hazards')."

As a graduate student, and now as an official alumnus, Ko is a True-Blue Pirate on the go. Her emails typically sign off with "Go Pirates!" and she greets her colleagues and everyone she meets with a welcoming smile. Since graduating with her M.B.A in Marketing in Spring 2020, Ko is delighted to be able to continue her career at Getinge, a global provider of medical devices.

"I am pleased to share that thanks to the mentorship of our Stillman faculty and staff — exemplary servant leaders — I have been able to showcase what great minds can do to business partners and future employers," says Ko.

Future Employment
Currently, as an intern, Ko is working in the Cardiac Assist product area at Getinge in upstream marketing. She will be transitioning into a full-time role with Getinge, beginning in June 2020, at one of their three locations in New Jersey, where she will transform concepts to practice, supporting the Cardiopulmonary team.

When asked how she obtained her internship with this passion-oriented company, Ko says, "My journey at Getinge actually started on campus at Seton Hall University's Career Fair 2019, where I first connected to the company's talent acquisition partners. I completed the 10-week Summer 2019 Getinge Internship Experience."

Career Center Assistance
While attending the MBA Launch Experience in September 2018, Ko met Robert Franco, Associate Director of the Career Center, who introduced her to some of the Center's workshops and networking opportunities.

"Claudia Ko is the model for how a young professional should prepare for a successful career," emphasized Franco. "She is open to opportunities and possibilities and a highly engaged networker, involving herself in many career-related events." Additionally, he says, "She is a natural leader who energizes those around her."

Student Leadership
Franco's observations about Ko are manifested in her recent nomination to the Seton Hall Leadership Fellows Program, a new campus-wide program developed to "prepare Seton Hall junior, senior and graduate leaders for a highly successful transition in the next steps of their professional career journey."

It allowed Ko and her Leadership Fellows cohorts to learn from, and interact with, prominent guest speakers and deepen their understanding of leadership responsibilities.

Trusted Team Member
In addition to career involvements, Ko served as a Graduate Assistant in the Stillman Student Information Office since summer 2018. She was also engaged as a team member in the 2019-2020 Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Institute's Research Challenge.

Stillman's CFA Research team, which included Ko, and three additional members, team captain Timothy Kolesaire (M.B.A., Finance), Anders Optiz (graduating senior, Economics and Finance), and Steven Pomponio (M.B.A., Finance and IT Management), advanced over a period of three months from local competition ("Final Five") to the Americas Regional, becoming the only U.S. university team to reach the Global Finals, out of over 1,150 universities competing worldwide.

Ko was an outstanding member of this year's team, according to Professor Tony Loviscek (Chair, Department of Finance), who has coached the CFA Research Challenge teams for the past 15 years.

"While the Seton Hall CFA Research Challenge Team had a great leader in Tim Kolesaire," Loviscek stated, "Claudia added a personal touch that wedded the team. Plus, her opening and closing pitches during each of the five rounds were the best I have witnessed in the 15 years in which I have participated in the NYSSA/CFA Research Challenge. [Ko's pitches] propelled the team into the numero uno position in the Western Hemisphere north of the equator."

True-Blue Alumnus
Ko speaks highly about her friendships, colleagues, and professors at the Stillman School of Business. Seton Hall is a place where she plans to bring her effervescent personality and versatile talents to alumni gatherings and future Stillman events.

"I look forward to always carrying the knowledge and values from my time at Seton Hall University forward in my heart. Our MBA program has connected me to a community of servant leaders, and I am thankful for each person, every lesson and all the experiences we've shared. I'm eager to stay involved with our Stillman community as an alumnus. Go Pirates!"

Categories: Business