I know success, good business, entrepreneurship is out there. And I know that an MBA is going to be the first step toward getting it. An MBA will help me realize the success I need. My relevant background consists of two influential, formative experiences: the attainment of my bachelor's degree in accounting at the University of Sharjhah in United Arab Emirates and my three years spent working as a retail manager at T-Mobile. These experiences have created a business-oriented foundation on which I plan to build in the future, and more immediately, during my pursuit of a MBA.

I couldn't have hoped for a better, more enriching exposure to a diverse set of intelligent peers than the one I had at University of Sharjhah. During the course of my experience at this university -- the majority of students at University of Sharjhah are international -- I developed a broad understanding of an array of cultures. The pursuit of my degree at such an internationally-oriented school helped me identify the barriers to communication across cultural boundaries. Conversely, it afforded me with a number of strategies for breaking down cultural barriers and establishing a functioning, efficient line of communication that could be utilized in the efforts of problem solving, team building and goal attainment. Working under pressure to fulfill targets in diverse group settings, almost on a weekly basis -- for periods of time -- I developed, at University of Sharjhah, many skills that I know will benefit my peers and I throughout the course of our MBA programs.

It was at University of Sharjhah that I also successfully worked to acquire the fundamentals of doing business in the international finance sector. At such an institution, one gains valuable insight as the result of working within and among international contexts, rather than national contexts. I believe that, were it not for the diverse, internationally-oriented character of University of Sharjhah, I would be missing much of my international...

At least -- not for me and where I want to go. I believe that my experience as an international student will enhance and broaden my learning at graduate program's MBA program. It has afforded me with a set of capabilities and experiences that have readied me for a future in international team building, problem solving, and professional collaboration. It has framed my business senses within a wholly international and multi-cultural context, and made me a great MBA candidate capable of leveraging diversity to my advantage, rather than stumbling over it in inefficiency.
All this isn't theory, either. After university, I had the chance to put my experience in diversity to the test at T-Mobile, where I worked as a retail manager for three years. Over the course of my employment, I interacted with thousands of customers -- from an array of cultures -- and managed a team of employees that came from diverse cultural backgrounds. Through team building activities, almost constant deadlines, benchmarking exercises, and collaborative meetings, my team and I were able to consistently perform above and beyond corporate expectations. My employment at T-Mobile enabled me to grow, both as an individual and as an international professional.

My experiences at T-Mobile -- managing a diverse team, responding to diverse clientele, on a daily basis -- gave me real-world knowledge of business expectations and functioning. This knowledge, coupled with my cross-cultural experience as an international student at University of Sharjhah, will surely act as a foundation upon which I can build further technical knowledge, skills, and business intuition in graduate program's MBA program. My background will help me turn diversity into an asset, rather than an issue, and I hope to impart this skill to others in my program.