Anchored Ambrose: Gradin's Grad Story

Gradin Schroeder ‘20, MBA '22 takes his enthusiastic support of St. Ambrose quite literally - he has been a member of the Fighting Bees Cheer team since his senior year as an undergraduate business student.

Gradin's vocal support of St. Ambrose shines throughout his academic career. Outside the classroom, he has used his time to immerse himself in the personalized education, ethics, and academic extracurriculars St. Ambrose is proud to offer.

"Throughout my time at St. Ambrose, I have been a member of Habitat for Humanity and the Finance Club, as well as president of the Graduate Student Government Association (GSGA). I pursued my MBA here because it allowed me to continue to cheer and stay close to friends.

"I also chose the MBA program at St. Ambrose because I knew it was a high-quality program that offered the smaller class sizes and personal instruction that I had grown accustomed to during my undergrad."

While Gradin's initial reasons for staying seem simple, he became cognizant of additional lessons that affirmed his choice to stay over time.

"Throughout my experience in the MBA program, I received several essential takeaways that I found to be highly applicable in the business world. Professors highlighted the importance of social justice and that we can no longer neglect a business's ethical obligations to its customers, stakeholders, and the environment.

"Business performance indicators and the concept that 'bad companies make good money' are amongst my most important takeaways, and I intend to use these to ethically manage financial portfolios and any of my future business endeavors."

Undertaking the commitment to pursue an MBA can be daunting, especially for someone like Gradin, who juggles the positions of a full-time data analyst, officer candidate in the Iowa National Guard, and cheerleader - all while completing the MBA program.

"Despite my heavy course load and busy life, the St. Ambrose MBA program easily accommodated and fit into my schedule, thanks to the relaxed class schedule and highly influential faculty."

We wish Gradin luck as he applies to law school and continues his pursuit of ethical justice with the hopes of practicing criminal law as a prosecutor or public defender.