“What HAS to happen, while I’m in graduate school, for it to feel worth it?” Today’s woman dreamer, Saniya Waghray, a current MBA student at the Wharton School, shares her insights on all things graduate school, including essential admission tips for all women, the decisions that everyone should consider before applying, and special advice for women from “non-traditional” backgrounds. Prior to Wharton, Saniya led global marketing strategy efforts at The Walt Disney Studios and served on the leadership team of Women@Disney and currently sits on the board of BalletX. A young woman of many talents, enjoy her story below!

1) You studied at Babson undergraduate and are finishing your MBA at Wharton at U Penn, one of the premiere graduate programs. What is your advice for the grad school application process, especially for women? 

 This one is so tough - for grad school, it truly is such a personal decision. One place I would consider starting the journey of even considering grad school is asking yourself this question:

“What HAS to happen, while I’m in graduate school, for it to feel worth it?”

The considerations here can, and should, range  - from purely professionally focused (‘I want to explore these 3 career paths” or “I want to navigate one specific track and land a senior leadership role post-grad”) to more abstract (“I want to learn how to build a sustainable balance across my personal and professional life goals” or “I want to better understand who I am as a people leader”). Going through the exercise will help you assess whether you can achieve these goals more easily through a graduate degree, and better define what “success” in this degree looks like for you. 

Too many candidates look at business school as the end goal, and I would really encourage anyone reading this and debating applying to think of it as a stepping stone to your broader ambitions. 

If or when you’ve made the decision to apply to grad school, I would also suggest the following: 

1. Focus on one step at a time - starting with the GMAT or GRE

2. Make sure to leave enough time to edit your essays - even as a self-perceived strong writer, it took me longer than I expected!

3. Have a small but strong network of support around you. You may not want to tell everyone of your plans to apply / attend business school, but as you navigate test taking, telling your authentic story, applying, and all the associated ups and downs, it’s important to have a trusted circle of people to turn to. 

2) What is your advice for women applying to top MBA programs from non-traditional backgrounds? How can they best tell their stories and share their journeys in the application process, as it becomes more and more competitive? 

I’ll define ‘non-traditional’ as this Poets & Quants piece does - any experience that deviates from the statistical norm of a finance/consulting background. While applying from a nontraditional background may seem daunting at first, remember that an MBA classroom is only as valuable as the diversity of its students. How boring would it be if you only heard one type of story, or studied one subject in isolation? Along those lines, MBA programs want diversity in their candidates. While strong quant skills are certainly a requirement, those can be earned in many contexts. As admissions coach and former acting head of Wharton’s admissions team Judith Hodara states, “an applicant’s greatest indicator of success is a track record of commitment and leadership — meaning you don’t need to have studied statistics or economics as an undergrad, nor taken a job with a consulting firm or investment bank after college.”

As someone who also considered herself a nontraditional applicant, I relate to the imposter syndrome that can stem from an MBA application process. The best thing you can do in these situations is be as introspective as possible. Why do YOU specifically want an MBA, and why at that particular school? How have your career experiences to date shaped who you are as a leader? How can spending 1-2 years at school - and with all the opportunities this provides - be uniquely additive to your journey? These exercises in self reflection and articulating your leadership trajectory will help you articulate why an MBA, as opposed to any other path, is an essential next step - and, help you believe it, in moments of doubt. 

While this advice applies to both men and women, I do think women especially tend to sell themselves short (the stats don’t lie). My biggest piece of advice there is to find your ‘sweet spot’ in balancing humility with confidence, lean into your strengths, and be fearless in claiming them. 

3) You are also very passionate about side hustles and entrepreneurship and design. What is a project you worked on that you found the most exciting? What are your top tips for those looking to pursue side hustles during school and in addition to their full time? 

It’s so hard to choose! Most recently, I’ve joined the board of BalletX, a contemporary ballet company that’s helped blend my passion for dance (as a classical dancer since age 3!) with my professional expertise in a whole new way.

In general, I’ve been able to balance the different ‘side hustles’ I’ve taken on because there is a clear “why” I have for each. Overall, I am also not trying to replace my ‘day job’ with any of these side hustles, which helps me keep a limit on how much time I spend in any one area.

For those looking to start or balance side hustles with school and/or full time day jobs, I would say make sure you’re honest with yourself about what your goals are with each side hustle. It can be easy to get swept away in a side project. If your goal is to make it your main income stream, then that’s great, but if not, know that this is okay too - a side hustle doesn’t need to generate a profit to be valuable!

4) As #Dreamcatchers, we have to ask, what is your next big dream? 

Pre-MBA, I would have articulated this so differently - with a specific title, a dream company, or at that point, maybe even my dream business school!

Recently, I came across a thought that said, in striving for our next role or opportunity, we often forget to enjoy where we’re at right now. So, my next big dream along those lines is to truly stay present and absorb as much as I can - both professionally and personally - from post-MBA opportunities. 

Bio: Saniya Waghray is currently an MBA Candidate at The Wharton School, focused on entrepreneurship and innovation, and was most recently a product manager at Capital One. Prior to Wharton, Saniya led global marketing strategy efforts at The Walt Disney Studios and served on the leadership team of Women@Disney, the company's largest employee resource group empowering women in the workplace. In addition, Saniya holds a board position at BalletX, Philadelphia’s premiere contemporary ballet, and consults for Career Contessa, a platform catalyzing career growth for women across industries. She is a proud Babson College alum, graduating magna cum laude with a focus in business analytics. In her spare time, Saniya enjoys teaching dance classes via her brand BollySoul Dance.

Thank You Saniya for Sharing Your Tips with Us! We are excited to have you in our empowered women’s network!

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