Why Columbia Business School?
New York was an important part of it. We wanted to be in a city, as opposed to a smaller town. In addition, when we visited Columbia, we met a former colleague from Cornerstone who was a second-year student. She sat down with us for 45 minutes and talked about Columbia in an open, candid, not-pulling-any-punches kind of way. We got a sense for how down to earth the community is. Also, my wife is interested in healthcare, and the healthcare program here is very good. I am interested in focusing on tech/entrepreneurship in the future, so for me, New York has a great startup culture.

What is it like to go to business school in New York City?
Because it is New York, anytime a world leader or someone else influential comes to the U.S., they always end up stopping in New York. Columbia is well connected, internationally speaking, so these leaders will often end up coming to speak at Columbia. We also get to take advantage of some great adjunct professors from the city.

What class are you most excited about, or what class has been your favorite?
I think it is the professor, more than the topic, that makes a class a favorite. Professor Angela Lee, who taught me leadership communication, is one of my favorite people at CBS in terms of being a great mentor and being somebody who cares about her students. There is also Professor Medini Singh; he teaches all of the operations classes. I have taken all three of his classes — he is very knowledgeable, and he tells it like it is. Adjunct Professor Michael Mauboussin, who teaches security and analysis, is absolutely excellent. I come out of that class every Wednesday feeling like my mind has expanded.

What does it mean to you to be part of the Columbia Business School community?
I think there is a focus at Columbia on contributing to the community. As a first-year, I had a ton of support from my peers and a couple of career fellows that I worked with, as I prepared for recruiting and business school life in general. Now, as a second year, I get a lot of joy from mentoring first-years as a Peer Advisor and Career Fellow. At CBS, I have also made some really close friends along the way. Having interesting conversations with them and going deep on issues and arguing back and forth about stuff. It’s a great learning environment.

How does the School’s entrepreneurial approach help you with your career goals?
There is a general scrappiness at Columbia. There's a sense that if you want to go and do something, you can. You just have to try to get the resources together to convince people — and you'll often be able to go and do it. For example, the L.E.A.D Club recently planned an inaugural trip to the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland and we received a lot of support from the School administration and faculty in making it happen.

Once you have your CBS degree, how will you conquer the world?
The truth is, I don't want to conquer the world. It’s more important for me to focus on my own character development and on growing as a person. I would also like to have a meaningful impact on the lives of others/society, along the way. I recently heard a talk by Warren Buffet where he discussed the importance of integrity. For example, when you are hiring people, the last thing you want is to hire somebody who is very smart, has a lot of energy, but doesn't have a lot of integrity. That person will do really well at all the wrong things. I want to spend time building my capabilities and defining my values, which I think will ultimately lead me to success in whatever I end up doing.

What is it like to go to business school in New York City?
In Italy, a lot of people commute to school and live at home. When I went to Georgetown as an undergraduate, I was basically always living on campus. I feel like being in New York City allows us to get the best of both worlds [at Columbia]. There are events that are independent of Columbia that offer us a chance to be inspired. On the same note, Columbia does still feel like a campus when I’m there.

What's been the most surprising thing about being at CBS?
There is a very strong sense of community. People go out of their way to help each other in a variety of ways—such as on personal issues, work, career, anything. When I arrived, I was a little bit worried, wondering, “Is it going to be very much a commuter school? Are the New Yorkers going to be very much living their own lives, away from school?” It’s funny because [what actually happens is that] people who live in New York operate as guides for those of us who are less familiar with the city. It’s just how collaborative everyone has been, generally—it’s an amazing culture. 

What class are you most excited about, or what class has been your favorite?
One of the classes I’ve taken that was very, very interesting and aesthetically amazing was called Leadership Through Fiction taught by Professor Bruce Craven. It’s not necessarily the first class you think about when you think about an MBA, but it was a great class that combined some more soft-skills elements with trying to develop as a person and as a leader.

How does being in New York City help you with your career goals?
I got three internships when I was at Columbia that I think were just a result of the fact that I was in New York. Being in New York allows you to do a semester’s work experience that other schools may not have access to just because of their location. [For example], I was able to take an internship at a tech startup and I’m working in a private equity fund [now]. The other thing is, New York City is a great place to network and get to know people. It’s one of the hearts of the world, and that’s a big plus at both a personal and a career level.

Once you have your CBS degree, how will you conquer the world?
I don’t think I would want to conquer the world, but I would want the world to conquer me. Meaning, I would love to be able to keep learning, opening my mind, and seeing all the diversity and the richness that there is in the world. At Columbia you live in a temporary microcosm that allows you to get to see a mix of many different people; I hope that going into the future, in my career, I will have the chance to keep learning about what’s around me: the different people, different experiences, different perspectives. That has been probably one of the biggest drivers of why I love Columbia.

"Everyone here is passionate about something and will find their niche."

The community is one of the best features of Columbia, and I did not know that coming in. I was pleasantly surprised to find such an engaged group of students. Everyone here is passionate about something and will find their niche. A good community member is somebody who steps up, raises their hand and says, "I want to get involved in this thing that I'm passionate about."

Students can get involved in leadership positions almost as soon as they arrive on campus. At the end of Orientation, there are elections for cluster leadership roles that have a huge impact on how your cluster functions over time and how you bond with people. As soon as clubs start having meetings, they elect assistant vice president positions, so within a month of school you can get involved in a leadership position that really does make a difference.