On my 29th birthday, the 14th of August 2024, I arrived in East Lansing, Michigan.
I had accepted my offer to pursue an MBA at Michigan State University—stepping into a system I didn’t fully understand, but was ready to navigate. What followed was a year of unlearning, rebuilding, and rising. From choosing my concentration to securing a role with Microsoft Xbox, the past year of my life captures what it meant to step into the unknown—and begin again. In this post, I share what I believe every (aspiring) MBA student should know.
On the 15th of April, 2024, I returned to Malawi.
I had just completed my contract with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in New York—a chapter that shaped me profoundly. I had also just received an offer to pursue my MBA at Michigan State University, where I’d been awarded a partial scholarship. I had decisions to make, and closure to find. So I went home.
Today, I was invited as one of the speakers in IAH 205: Africa and the World at Michigan State University. It felt like a full-circle moment: being asked to reflect not just academically, but personally, about these very tensions and possibilities.
Choosing an MBA program is one of the biggest decisions of your career, and for many people, it comes down to rankings, reputation, and career opportunities. For me, the decision to join the Broad College of Business at Michigan State University (MSU) was about so much more—it was about culture, authenticity, and fit.