Graduated in 2018 with a major in Professional Music. Principal instrument: guitar.
Position: Rotational Training Associate (Project Manager) at Renewable Energy Systems, a large, Dutch-based company that designs, builds, and engineers utility-scale solar, wind, and battery projects. As a recently-hired MBA grad, Sam is rotated through a number of teams during his first two years before ultimately choosing what to focus on, which is likely to be project management, though at the moment he’s doing financial modeling.
Overview: As he wrapped up Berklee, Sam wasn’t sure which direction his career should go. He wasn’t feeling the level of dedication to music that those who succeed in music usually have. He worked in restaurants and did other odd jobs while researching careers. Sam ultimately decided that he wanted to work in renewable energy. A lot of reasearch later convinced him that he best way into that sector was through earning an MBA. He applied to various MBA programs in 2021, and was accepted into Boston College’s MBA Program, which he started in the fall of 2021. He did an internship with a local company that evaluated energy efficiency programs, which wasn’t exactly what he wanted to do, but it was close. Sam continued work work there part-time during his second year of his MBA, and very briefly afterward.
As grad school was wrapping up in the spring of 2023, Sam used LinkedIn to apply for hundreds of renewable energy positions across the country, ready to move to wherever he could find a good job. One of those applications led to his current position.
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You can see Sam’s LinkedIn profile here.
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Choice Quotes:
“I enjoy working with numbers and analysis. Building out renewable energy can help address climate change. I’m an environmentalist and conservationist at heart. It’s good to feel like what I do has a positive impact at the end of the day.”
“Many folks who get MBAs have humanities degrees. Being a musician teaches you discipline. And that it takes time to learn something and sometimes learning is supposed to feel uncomfortable. Knowing how it required spending long hours in the practice room prepared me to spend a lot of time learning this new stuff.”
“Don’t let impostor syndrome prevent you from pursuing your goals. Related to this, when I’d talk to folks at grad school and would describe my goals, I was met with skepticism and was often asked, ‘How do you expect to deliver on these goals?’ That was a valuable part of the experience–it caused me to think more critically about what I was doing and wanted to do. Let pushback/skepticism be something you can learn from.”
“If you want a career as a project manager, don’t be afraid to ask questions that make it seem like you don’t know what you’re talking about or are wrong. Those uncomfortable situations are where you learn and gather the most information. That’s where I found the motivation to learn what I needed to learn to get to where I am.”
“Going to Berklee was such a privilege. Even though it was hard to find a job after, I’m glad I went and it’s my goal to continue to grow muscially.”
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See the full index of successful Berklee alumni.