Sarah Dent

Sarah Dent enjoyed the sense of community she felt at her small-town East Coast college, but as she considered graduate schools, she realized she was ready for something a little different. She still wanted that close-knit network of her peers, but she was hoping to find it in a larger city.

She found that, and much more, in Kellogg’s MS in Management Studies (MSMS) Russell Fellows program.

With classes held in the heart of downtown Chicago — the third largest city in the United States — Dent and her classmates can take advantage of everything a major metropolitan market has to offer.

“I felt that provided the perfect opportunity to experience life in the city more independently, while at the same time still having a home base at school, and that has certainly been true in my experience,” Dent said. “I appreciate that I can get outside the bubble of school very easily but don’t necessarily feel I am completely on my own.”

Dent majored in international studies with minors in business and economics. She took the courses for her minors as an upperclassman and soon realized how interested she was in learning more.

“I was looking at business school as a way to supplement what I was initially exposed to in undergrad,” she said.

Dent’s MSMS experience started with Leadership in Organizations, a course that got her thinking about how she presents herself and how she can use her communication skills to become a better leader.

Each of her classes has led Dent to think about things in new ways; so, too, have her classmates, each of whom brings a different background and different perspective to the classroom.

“There is a lot of teamwork that happens in the program,” Dent said. “I don’t feel like I’m on my own through this process. It’s very much a program about giving and helping each other.”

Dent was looking for a change in scenery, which she found. Along the way, she discovered a transformational experience that she feels sets her up for success in the future.

“It’s a challenging program, but it also is a very rewarding program,” Dent said. “It’s going to be the biggest stepping stone to getting you wherever you want to go.”