Thursday, July 14, 2011

Introduction / Why LGO

Hi! My name is Ashleigh Range and I'm a student at MIT in the Leaders for Global Operations (LGO) program. I recently moved from Dallas, Texas where for four years I worked as a management consultant at Alvarez & Marsal (better known for their restructuring work at Lehman Bros). I enjoyed my time working at A&M (especially the people with whom I had the opportunity to work) but did not want to be a career consultant. I applied to LGO hoping to transition out of consulting and into an 'industry' job (as they call it in the consulting world). 


I remember first learning about LGO a year and a half ago and *literally* jumping for joy. I was so excited that such a perfect program existed. It combined both my engineering background and desire for an MBA with a focus on manufacturing and operations (where I wanted my career to head). The program's close relationship with partner companies gives students a fabulous network for recruiting when graduating, meaningful internship projects, and a significant fellowship ($$$). I originally thought I would want to look at Harvard/Stanford (sent my GMAT scores there), but after learning more and more about LGO, I realized this was the absolute perfect program for me. 


I told you- *literally* jumping for joy over LGO!


When applying last fall, my husband (Brad) and I really didn't think I had a chance based on the acceptance rates and the fact that it was MIT engineering, Sloan (the #3 b-school), and pretty much free. We decided to take the application process one step at time- 1) take the gmat, see if I get over a certain score, 2) visit LGO for Ambassador Day and see if we were still interested, 3) apply and see if I get an interview, 4) interview and see if I get accepted, 5) if I got accepted, pray like CRAZY for guidance. 


Miraculously all the hurdles were crossed but that surprisingly was only half the battle. Once I was accepted, deciding to come was a ridiculously hard decision. For the majority of accepted students, coming to LGO is a no-brainer. For the two most indecisive people in the world (brad&me), this was a very tough choice. Our life in Dallas was going SO very well. Brad and I were excelling at our jobs and had built up our reputations/equity at our awesome companies. We had just finished decorating our beautiful home that we had only lived in for two years. My parents were in the process of moving from Florida to Dallas. We had developed close relationships with our sunday school class at church, our co-workers, the GT area alumni, and neighbors. Essentially staying in Dallas would have been wonderful. 
My dad and I in front of Brad's and my 1928 tudor home in the M-streets

So 24 hours before the deposit was due we were still completely 50/50 about the decision! We had been praying 24/7 and seeking God's will throughout the whole process and ultimately we felt like He was calling us to go to Boston. I think everyone thought we were nuts. Why would we quit our two amazing jobs, leave our friends, all our personal belongings and move 1800 miles away? It took a ton of faith to put the deposit down and tell our employers, family, and friends that we were leaving. Now, after being in Boston for 8 weeks, I can already say that it was one of the best decisions of our lives. Brad and I could not be happier and God has provided in every way imaginable. Praise the Lord!


"Let them praise the LORD for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them!" - Psalm 107:31

2 comments:

  1. So excited for you! Sometimes the biggest changes have the biggest payoffs.
    (-Allison's sister)

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  2. Hi Ashleigh. I just applied to MIT LGO as well. I'm glad to hear you enjoyed your time at MIT LGO. This only further solidifies my decision to enroll is accepted. Cheers!

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