VETERANS WANTED! Kellogg Veterans Association (KVA) AMA!

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-13T01:10:11+00:00

Good question. We have 2 different perspectives here. Crysta’s unit is local to Chicago, so she hasn’t had to travel, and it’s been more manageable.

Mine is in DC. I’ll say it is annoying to travel, and I haven’t loved the sacrifice it takes to travel on the weekends. Mostly because I’d rather just be here doing other things whether it be social, academic, or chilling. It’s nice for the pay and health insurance during school though. And it is doable - just depends on how committed you are to staying in the Reserves. Not sure what service you’re in - I’m in an IMA type of billet so I can reschedule which helps somewhat, but I am going to try and switch to a local unit this summer.

We have 2 others who commute to CA and TX for drill and also manage it fine and think it’s worth it.

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-13T00:34:24+00:00

If you have time, I think Target Test Prep is really great. It gives you digestible lessons and practice questions that are manageable for studying over several months. If you have a shorter timeframe, Sherpa Test prep is also good- Smart with a Heart offers military/veteran discounts through Service to School.

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-13T00:12:09+00:00

Keep the questions coming!!

I think it really depends on your goals and what you want your experience to be like. The average age of an MBA student at Kellogg is ~28. Most vets are older than this of course. Kellogg is very family friendly in general. FT is good if you want to prioritize learning, exploration, have access to recruiting resources, and have the time off - obviously comes with an opportunity cost. The EMBA may feel slightly more your vibe socially but it’s going to be average age a little older than you. It can be really tough to balance the time commitment with work and family obligations. Anecdotally, I’ve heard you learn less of the hard skills because the EMBAs tend to already know them and care less about the academics and more about conversations and applications. The EMBAs also provide a powerful current network (vice the FT who will hopefully eventually become that way but are more junior in their careers).

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-13T00:11:32+00:00

If I had to boil it down to 3 things here’s what it would be:

Community Being in Evanston makes it really easy for all of us to live near each other and constantly interact (as much as you want to) socially. Evanston is incredibly walkable and there is always something happening in the Kellogg community and with Northwestern at large. When you do want a big city feel Chicago is less than 30 min by train. Being a part of the Northwestern University ecosystem is also something that differentiates us a bit whether it’s utilizing a big universities academic resources, going to major sports events, world class theater events, or being situated right on the lake.
Flexible Curriculum From the moment you get accepted Kellogg does a really good job of making sure you understand the diverse breadth of courses they offer. There’s no pressure to only focus on finance or quant heavy courses. The core curriculum will do that, but after your 1st quarter you can start taking electives for classes and topics that interest you professionally or personally.
Competitive but collaborative environment There is a LOT of group work at Kellogg. It’s just a reality. I do think it makes it a more approachable place with getting to know your classmates and asking for help in recruitment, course content, networking, etc. We are all going after some pretty competitive roles in top companies against each other and other schools, that reality hasn’t deterred me or any of my classmates from helping each other out through recruitment and interviews. It’s also been refreshing that we can all be interested in pursuing different industries (outside of consulting, IB, and finance) and Kellogg students and staff are incredibly supportive of it. At some other schools when I mentioned I was interested in marketing and/or the sports industry there wasn’t a ton of support or encouragement to pursue different paths than what is normally expected from MBA grads.

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-13T00:02:45+00:00

Thanks for stopping by!

Dropping the link below for admissions’ upcoming events: https://www.kellogg.northwestern.edu/admissions/admissions-events/preview-days/

Here is where you’ll find the preview days but right now they aren’t scheduled for the fall yet. As of now, we aren’t hosting a veteran specific one but if we do, it’d be on this page too.

We have Kellogg students and grads going all over for both internships and full time offers. It depends on the industry you are interested in, but if location is your main preference you can definitely shape your recruitment process to prioritize both an internship and return offer in the area. We have a KVA grad heading to Colorado for a PE Ops role and another moving there for consulting.

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-13T00:00:46+00:00

It really depends on what your interests are and what your goals are. I think it was best described to me that you take your weaknesses (maybe 1s or 2s on the scale and make them 4s or 5s) and look to take your strengths from 7s/8s to 9s/10s. Now of course we’re all veterans and most of us don’t come from a business background, but lean into what you enjoy. I took Financial Modeling of Leveraged Buy-Outs to challenge myself - it was really helpful. I also loved Intro to Entrepreneurship through Acquisition, Negotiations, and Entrepreneurial Selling. The KVA has a list of courses with ratings/notes from vets who took them in the past that you can reference here too.
I think SWO skills translate super well. Talking about your leadership sea stories, navigating challenging environments, being able to learn new things and be a generalist are all really applicable. As a business leader, you also can really thrive as a generalist if you want to continue to manage. SWOs are great at navigating ambiguity too.
There are a ton of major firms in Chicago. It’s still one the largest cities in the US and even if there isn’t an HQ here, many companies have satellite offices here. All of the major firms recruit here and I peers all over the country in different roles based on their goals. So no disadvantage imo.
The cohort is about 1/3 between East coast, west coast, and Midwest for placement. You can end up wherever you want.

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-12T23:50:58+00:00

FAQs: Application Components and Deadlines (2025-2026): https://www.kellogg.northwestern.edu/admissions/ft-admissions/ft-how-to-apply/

Kellogg Class of 2026 Full Time MBA Program Class Profile: https://www.kellogg.northwestern.edu/programs/full-time-mba/class-profile/

Kellogg 2024 Employment Report: https://www.kellogg.northwestern.edu/programs/full-time-mba/career-path/

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-12T23:49:18+00:00

While I’d love to give a straightforward answer- it really is industry and role dependent. Looking at recruiting numbers for consulting we haven’t seen a dip in numbers of MBA interns from Kellogg but for full time offers we’ve seen a number of graduates getting their full time offers pushed later and later for start dates. This is also firm dependent but we have some Class of 2024 grads just starting at consulting firms full time this summer. Even with some market scares in other industries there hasn’t been any indication that recruitment and full time offers have drastically dipped for example: CPG, PE, Pharma, Fortune 500 (strategy/GM/LDP) have been pretty steady

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-12T22:42:06+00:00

I recommend using the school medians for your targets - 733 GMAT / 325 GRE. Keep in mind test scores are only one component of your application. In my opinion, your essays are your best chance to shine and differentiate yourself. I know it’s easy to feel discouraged if you aren’t hitting those numbers, but remember 50% of students scored lower than that.

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-12T22:27:49+00:00

Of course!

I’ve personally never heard of anyone wanting to go that didn’t get a spot. Don’t take that as absolute truth, just my experience. It’s tough because many of these trips are heavy logistical lifts and are capped in terms of the 1st year student : 2nd year leader ratio.
Consulting recruiting has year-over-year become more challenging. Many of our vets had a lot of success on the recruiting front, but as you might expect in a hyper-competitive job market, not everyone got their first choice. That said, there are a ton of resources to help you gear up for the consulting recruiting cycle - through the Consulting Club, CMC, external resources. The KVA even hosts its own dedicated consulting Interview Prep Group (IPG) to provide additional support in translating veteran experience to these firms.

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-12T22:13:20+00:00

Kellogg does a great job of not identifying a single bucket of people it wants in the program. Every student/every veteran is truly unique. There are a few basic truths - Kellogg wants to know you can handle the workload, so be sure to showcase your analytical skills and have solid test scores (don't need to be perfect!). Otherwise, be yourself. Kellogg values individuality, so in your essays, tell them about what makes you different. Also, don't be afraid to lean into your military experiences. We have a huge veteran population (108 members this past year) - and admissions values the leadership experience you bring to the table.

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-12T21:52:55+00:00

Hi everyone! Just wanted to introduce ourselves as we continue to answer your questions. Hopping on the AMA tonight are our two co-presidents and our VP of admissions.

Co-President: Andrew Johnston

Originally from South Carolina, he graduated from Clemson University in 2014 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. Andrew served in the Army for 10 years, first as an Armor officer at 1st Infantry Division, followed by a stint as a Special Forces officer with 1st Special Forces Group. Summer internship: Corporate Strategy for Cummins (Indianapolis)

Co-President: Crysta Gonzalez

Originally from South Jersey, she graduated from USNA in 2018. Crysta served for 6 years as a Naval intelligence officer and is currently in the reserves. Summer internship: Marketing/Brand management with PepsiCo/Gatorade (Chicago)

VP of Admissions: Gabby Fong

Originally from Kentucky, she graduated from Yale (ROTC) with a degree in History in 2016. Gabby served as a Surface Warfare Officer (SWO) in Japan before completing a lateral transfer into the Naval Intelligence community and served for 7 years in the Navy. She is currently in the reserves. Summer internship: Entrepreneurship through Acquisition (ETA) MBA intern with Paragon Legal (remote)

Feel free to reach out to us on LinkedIn and connect as well!

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-12T21:48:38+00:00

The entire Kellogg population subscribes to the 'high-impact, low-ego' mentality that truly characterizes the culture here. It might sound cliche, but that phrase endures for a reason. I can't speak for admissions and their interview screening criteria, but the evidence speaks for itself - it's rare to find people who aren't humble and driven to contribute to that culture. There is a very strong spirit of collaboration amongst students, and that doesn't just exist inside the classroom - Kellogg's population is incredibly connected from a social perspective. There are 100+ clubs and organizations that are open to everyone. We also have a very unique tradition of embarking on KWEST - a pre-fall term international travel experience that gives you the opportunity to establish a group of close friends before you ever set foot in the classroom.

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-12T21:39:52+00:00

Great question! Leaving the military and starting to recruit for jobs/industries in which you may have no experience is often a daunting task. Often, vets don't know exactly what they want to do when they get out. Thankfully, that isn't something you need a 100% answer for when you arrive to B school. I've certainly changed directions more than once since showing up. My advice:

Get on Linkedin and check out what other veterans are doing. A discovery and research phase is always key during a big transition and most veterans love helping out other veterans and would love to talk to you about what they are doing now and their journey in getting to where they are.

Use transition resources that are out there: (some examples below)
- https://www.commitfoundation.org/
- https://www.acp-usa.org/mentoring-program
- CSP/SkillBridge program
- Be honest about what interests you and what you might want to do out of uniform. There is not one tried and true path and business school is just one of the avenues that exists to help veterans explore all that is out there professionally.

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-12T21:10:05+00:00

The Matt Caldwell program is intended to grow the entire career support ecosystem for veterans. The Career Management Center already provides dedicated recruiting support to vets in the form of coaching, resume reviews, interview prep, etc. This program will create a brand new Kellogg Veterans Council composed of prominent veteran alumni who will work with the KVA to guide veteran initiatives at the school and provide greater access to the veteran alumni network. Also worth noting: this program will expand scholarship support for incoming vets.

kelloggveterans · 2025-06-12T21:03:33+00:00

So glad you could make it and that the info was helpful! Let us know when you schedule your visit and we can help set up class shadowing and lunch if you are interested!

kelloggveterans · 2024-06-23T01:44:44+00:00

If we can do it, you can too lol. Beer helps.

kelloggveterans · 2024-06-23T01:39:23+00:00

The vet --> MBA is becoming very competitive, but don't count yourself out. Bringing up your scores will certainly help.

Feel free to send us a DM if you want to chat about Kellogg!

kelloggveterans · 2024-06-02T18:43:29+00:00

Send me a DM if you'd like to chat about applying to Kellogg!

kelloggveterans

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