The Walton MBA programs are excited to welcome Julie Storing as the new associate director of recruitment. Storing will direct recruitment efforts, manage relationships with corporate partners and play a critical role in the marketing and communications efforts of the MBA programs.
Storing has a rich background in student affairs and first discovered her passion for helping students as a volunteer tour guide for the admission office at the University of Central Arkansas. Storing said she “loved working with students and families to help them figure out what they were looking for in a prospective school.” She said she “enjoyed being the bridge between the student and the university and helping students decide where they needed to go.”
After working at the University of Central Arkansas, Storing moved to California to “try something new.” Storing worked in admissions and advising for the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of California, Los Angeles, before joining the University of California, San Diego as a student affairs adviser in the Department of Structural Engineering where she advised, recruited and aided in admission processes.
Storing brings her rich background of working with different degree tracks to the MBA programs. MBA applicants often have a wide range of undergraduate backgrounds, and the Walton MBA programs encourage non-business undergraduate majors to apply. Vikas Anand, director of the Walton MBA programs, emphasized the significance of Storing’s diverse experiences. “Working with a variety of students, like engineers, is a valuable skill to the MBA program as it continues to grow.”
These attributes are incredibly important in Storing’s new position as the associate director of recruitment. Storing not only aims to increase enrollment in the MBA and Executive MBA programs, but also focused on finding high quality students. Storing emphasized the need to be creative when finding new applicants and the importance of sparking interest in the MBA program. It is crucial to communicate the ways an MBA can enhance skill sets and incite excitement about what Northwest Arkansas has to offer. Storing said increasing diversity among students can help increase the quality of future MBA cohorts:
“The program becomes stronger when you have a group of students with a wide range of ideas. A large component of the MBA programs is networking. When you’re networking with people who have the same ideas, that’s not really networking–you aren’t learning anything new. Having people from different backgrounds who are interested in pursuing different things can open students’ minds to possibilities they didn’t even know existed.”
To assemble a quality cohort, Storing emphasized the need for a strong recruitment team, which includes program directors, enrolled students and alumni. The Walton MBA program’s extensive alumni network is an invaluable recruitment tool–encouraging colleagues to pursue their Walton MBA has brought invaluable talent to the program. Storing said “A big difference from my previous jobs is that the alumni network here is very connected to us. We continue to reach out to our graduates, and they reach out to us. They look for interns through the program or often speak to classes. I like that we maintain strong relationships after graduation, and it’s great from a recruitment perspective as well. Students know that once they graduate, they are still part of the Walton MBA family.”
Storing is also expected to maintain and strengthen bonds with the Walton MBA’s corporate partners. Storing frequently meets with firm representatives to understand what skills they look for in new hires. This information allows the MBA program to provide competitive internships for students and help them gain relevant skills and establish connections with potential hiring companies. Storing said the sheer number and quality of corporate partners and relationships is the most interesting thing she has seen since starting work at the University of Arkansas. The management and care of these crucial connections with potential students, alumni and corporate partners will help strengthen the value of the Walton MBA programs. Anand said he has noticed Storing’s ability to connect with people and the passion she has for her role in the short time she has been here. Anand said “Julie has already built strong relationships with our potential students. The future of Walton MBA recruitment is bright."
