Student Spotlight
Read what BYU Marriott students are doing and how their experiences help them be successful
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Working Toward a Better Workday
Human resources management senior Alania Bryce Pauga has always enjoyed working, and her goal is to help others do the same.
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Running into Unexpected Opportunities
After sending out dozens of internship applications and hearing nothing back, Thomas Smith decided to focus on creating connections and networking, eventually finding opportunities in unexpected places.
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Blending Creativity and Building Confidence Through an MBA
Alexis Belliston wasn’t planning on graduate school—but two years ago, when she was inspired to pursue an MBA at the BYU Marriott School of Business, she felt God pave the way for her to go back to school, building her faith and confidence along the way.
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Local Needs, Global Organization
Ellie Romans Draper knew from a young age that she was interested in global development and philanthropy, and her desire to make a difference led her to the Ballard Center for Social Impact at the BYU Marriott School of Business.
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Student Leaders
The following are students who were highlighted in BYU Marriott's 2024 Annual Report on page 9.
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Adaptation, Ambition, and Accounting
When Masahiro Hokazono decided to attend college in the US, he couldn’t speak English at all. Now he has a full-time position at a Big Four firm in Chicago.
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The Roundabout Way to Get There
Kate Blaine started her military journey by joining BYU’s Army ROTC but later felt inspired to join the Air Force ROTC. Blaine knew the switch would be a big change, but she followed through with her prompting, hoping to understand her path more as she served.
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Seeing Connections at Every Point in the Chain
Maile Berg dedicated years of her youth to preprofessional ballet—but a career-ending injury changed her plans.
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Diving into Experience Design
Aleia Allen returned home from a field study in the Caribbean with more than just memories—the study spurred her into her first semester in the experience design and management program.
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Competition On and Off the Soccer Field
How does a student balance playing collegiate soccer with studying in the MBA program at the BYU Marriott School of Business? For Annabella Folino, it meant doing the program backward.
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Ambitions up in the Air
A life-threatening car crash was just one of many mental and physical feats that Erin Cole, a senior in Brigham Young University’s Army ROTC, believes has shaped who she is today.
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Excited to Fail, Excited to Serve
Jose and Adela Montoya Brañez—a sibling duo studying entrepreneurial management at the BYU Marriott School of Business—are passionate about entrepreneurship and the chance it gives them to serve others.
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Speaking the Language of Compassion
MPA student Rahel Meyer is preparing herself to help refugees and make the difference she wants to see in the world.
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Greater Joy in a Greater Plan
If Michael McLennan had followed his own plan, he would still be in Scotland. Instead, he followed the Lord's promptings and found greater joy and purpose.
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3 Countries, 3 Languages, and a Soccer Game: The Power of Taking Chances
During an internship in Berlin made possible by the Whitmore Global Business Center, Finance senior Emilio Ramos Barrios has learned that determination will take you places—literally.
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Signing Up to Be Challenged
As the president of the Strategy Society, Adam Boswell hopes to help students thrive by encouraging them to adopt an optimistic attitude about the rigor of the junior core.
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Collaboration, Not Competition
As a former collegiate gymnast, Elaina Greco knows a thing or two about competition, but when she joined the finance program at the BYU Marriott School of Business, she found an environment that instead emphasized collaboration and mutual support.
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Using Feedback as a Fuel for Growth
When an academic advisor counseled her to consider a different major, Perla Valdovinos reworked her schedule, prioritized her studies, and stayed persistent in doing all she could to get into the information systems program at BYU Marriott.
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