MBA News 

The BYU Marriott School of Business honored selected faculty and staff at its April 2026 awards ceremony for their impact in exemplifying BYU Marriott's mission, vision, and values in both classroom and administrative work.

The MBA program at the BYU Marriott School of Business awarded six MBA students the 2026 Gary P. Williams Leadership Award. Students are nominated by peers as exemplary role models of leadership and receive a cash award of $10,000 in recognition of their efforts.

Nine MBA students from the BYU Marriott School of Business received the 2026 Hawes Scholars Award. The award, which includes a $10,000 cash prize, is one of the highest distinctions given to graduating MBA students at BYU Marriott.

Each year, the George E. Stoddard Prize is awarded to MBA students at the BYU Marriott School of Business who are pursuing careers in finance and have displayed leadership and academic excellence.

Ten first-year MBA students at the BYU Marriott School of Business with a strong interest and commitment to international business were recognized as the 2026 Eccles Scholars by the Whitmore Global Business Center (GBC). Through the generosity of the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation, Eccles Scholars are awarded a paid international business experience and up to $2,000.

MBA students walked out of the Marketing Futures Summit, hosted by the BYU Marriott School of Business, with a PVC pipe and a branded hoodie in hand. Aside from providing participants with some BYU Marriott swag, the event offered students the opportunity to both network with recent MBA alumni and develop professional skills.

Twenty-four university professors from across the United States filed into the Wilkinson Student Center Skyroom in February for a special interest group summit devoted to faith and entrepreneurship. As they admired the snow-covered mountains in their view, they heard from a panel of three Brigham Young University students who discussed how they’ve combined faith with entrepreneurship, leading to a greater purpose behind their pursuits.

Graciela Massey watched her dream go up in flames—literally. For a high school class assignment, she and her classmates all wrote their dreams in lanterns and sent them up into the sky. Massey's lantern, with a card that simply said “BYU” inside, hit the school roof and caught fire. When Massey went elsewhere for her undergraduate degree, she thought the burning lantern must have been a sign. But now, she’s living her dream as an MBA student at the BYU Marriott School of Business, and she’s working to take advantage of her opportunities and help others do the same.

As a senior in high school, Christian Dahneke realized that the younger members of his church congregation looked up to him. So, before he graduated, he and his friends decided to be better examples, and Dahneke says he’s carried a passion for building people up ever since: “I learned in that really small example that I can be a leader, and that I can help people feel the love of the Savior and grow closer to Him.”

Since the Wilford A. Cardon International Sponsorship was initiated in 1986, the program has enabled more than 400 students from more than 50 countries to earn graduate-level education from the BYU Marriott School of Business. As they enter to learn gospel-centered business principles, they prepare to go forth and serve in their home countries.

After working for almost ten years in technology development and engineering, Fabian Serradell knew it was time to take his business skills to the next level. So he quit his job and moved his young family more than 5,000 miles to a foreign country to join the MBA program at the BYU Marriott School of Business.

BYU Marriott School of Business MBA alumna Cydni Tetro describes standing in a Parisian mansion as Post Malone debuted his new fashion line. Her children, who were with her at the event, had one question for her: “How did you get into this room?” Tetro answered that question at the 2025 Honored Alumni Lecture.

Before many of them start their first internship, BYU Marriott School of Business MBA students who take MBA 657: Brand Management Strategy already have hands-on experience solving problems for brands. Whether students are brainstorming sweet solutions for Hershey’s, venturing into challenges facing Indian Motorcycle, or analyzing dilemmas other companies face depends on the semester; what’s constant is the chance to act as a brand manager in real-world situations.

From performing arts to chemistry to business to family, Mandy Crane, an alumna of the BYU Marriott School of Business, has forged a variety of paths. “In some ways,” she says, “when you follow a path that no one else is following, you’re creating a better experience for yourself and for your family.”

When Rebekah Koster took her first finance midterm in the MBA program, she felt like she had no idea what she was doing. The test scared her, so she decided to switch her track—not away from finance, but to it. “Part of who I am is choosing and going after really hard things,” says Koster, a second-year MBA student from Mesa, Arizona. “I love doing things that stretch me.”

Four professors from the BYU Marriott School of Business received awards at BYU’s 2025 University Conference. John Bingham, Michael Drake, Melissa Larson, and David Wood received awards in recognition of their contributions to BYU.

Since the pandemic, Zoom classes—often filled with muted participants and blank screens—have been a new part of the classroom experience. But for students at the BYU Marriott School of Business who are part of the Silver Fund class, a Zoom discussion featuring 65 BYU–Pathway Worldwide students in 18 different countries provided inspiration and connection.

Every year the Whitmore Global Business Center at the BYU Marriott School of Business honors first-year MBA students with the Eccles Scholars Award, which includes $9,000 to support students with a strong interest in and commitment to international business. With hometowns ranging from Orem, Utah, to Paraná, Brazil, and speaking languages like Tagalog and Italian, this year’s recipients were chosen for their academic performance, prior international experience, second-language fluency, and focus on developing an international career in business.

In April the 2025 George E. Stoddard Prize was awarded to 11 second-year MBA students at the BYU Marriott School of Business. These students are committed to pursuing a career in finance and have displayed leadership and academic excellence.

Nine BYU Marriott School of Business MBA students received the 2025 Hawes Scholars Award. The award, which includes a $10,000 cash prize, is one of the highest distinctions given to graduating MBA students at BYU Marriott.