Did you know that once you complete the CliftonStrengths assessment, you can download your customized report – the Strengths Insight Guide – that not only provides a brief Shared Theme description for each of your top five talents, but also your Personalized Strengths Insights uniquely generated based on how you answered the questions? Developed over decades spent studying millions of CliftonStrengths assessment results, these statements explain exactly how each of your talents makes you stand out from others with the same theme in their Top Five.

If you haven’t yet taken the assessment, make sure to do so before orientation or your first coaching appointment – whichever comes first – and spend time reading through your Strengths Insight Guide. We recommend that you highlight or circle words and underline phrases that resonate with you and best describe you, as well reflect on ways in which you may have used these natural talents throughout your life.

Don’t have an access code or instructions on how to complete the assessment? Please email Career Services at career.services@rotman.utoronto.ca.

Becoming more self-aware of your interests, motivations, and strengths may enable you to have a clearer understanding of the steps you need to take as you plan and prepare for a meaningful career. To help build upon your self-awareness, Career Services requires you to complete the CliftonStrengths and CareerLeader self-assessments before you meet with your Career Coach.

The CliftonStrengths assessment uncovers which talents you rely on to build relationships, think strategically, execute plans, and influence others, to accomplish goals. Knowing your unique set of talents, you’re empowered to succeed by doing what you naturally do best.

The CareerLeader assessment was created at Harvard Business School and designed specifically for business students and professionals. This valuable tool will provide you with insight into your skills, motivators and interests, and will measure how similarly you answer a set of questions, compared to professionals who are happily employed in their fields.

Please refer to the email sent to you from Career Services with assessment instructions. If you did not receive one, email Career Services directly at career.services@rotman.utoronto.ca. 

Your career journey is an integral part of your MBA, and one of the many perks of choosing to join Rotman’s MBA program is having a dedicated Career Coach who will partner with you as you develop your career management skills to prepare you for a meaningful career. Introductory career coaching appointments are available over the summer before the MBA program officially begins – please refer to the welcome email sent from your Career Coach that provided instructions on how to book your first appointment or email your Career Coach directly. Note that you must have completed the following items before your first appointment, as per the Career Readiness Checklist: 

• CliftonStrengths assessment
• CareerLeader assessment
• Personal Career Map
• Job Search Strategy Wheel

Welcome Full Time MBA Class of 2026!

We’re excited to have you join us this fall. As the Registrar and Director, Academic Services, my office (Registrar’s Office or RO for short) is responsible for ensuring your operationally smooth progression through your program and we are the stewards of your academic information. We partner with all Rotman programs to provide you with quality service during your journey with us. The RO front desk team can answer any questions you may have about fees, scholarships and awards, course enrolment, exams, grades, policy information and any other academic aspect of your program. Our website has up to date information on all of these topics. If you haven’t done so already I encourage you to visit us online.

We look forward to seeing you at Program Kick-off!

Caroline Pye
Registrar and Director, Academic Services

On behalf of Career Services, we are excited to welcome you to the Rotman Community and look forward to working with you on your career journey.

We recognize that your career outcomes will be an integral part of your Rotman degree. In Career Services, we promise to deliver a high-touch model in which we support students with their career needs through personalized and holistic career planning, employer engagement initiatives to promote hiring of Rotman talent, and year-round career management curricula tailored around your career stage and goals.

We also highly encourage you to attend our Career Discovery Series (CDS) throughout the summer months, with the first session of three taking place virtually on June 5th. This will allow you to get a head start on meeting your Career Coach and engage in sessions where you will learn about key career deliverables to prepare you for your career exploration and search before entering the program.

Sincerely,

Lyla Korhani
Director, Career Services

On behalf of the Office of Student Engagement (OSE), I would like to extend a warm welcome to the MBA class of 2026!

The OSE team is dedicated to your academic and personal success. From navigating elective course selection, to connecting you with international study opportunities, club events, and championing diversity, inclusion and belonging at Rotman, we offer the guidance and support needed to enhance your experience within this community.

In the coming weeks you’ll meet our Official Welcome Committee, the Rotman Squad! This group of committed upper year MBA students will offer webinars and activities over the summer to connect you with other incoming students, current students and alumni. Before you begin your studies, you can participate in Career Discovery sessions to explore your career aspirations, Self-Development Lab sessions to support your personal development and foundation and intensive courses in Pre-Program and Orientation that will help prepare you for your first year. I encourage you to take some time to review the Go-To Guide for more details on these other activities.

If you have any questions that are not answered therein, please reach out to the team at ose@rotman.utoronto.ca, we are more than happy to help you find the answer. We are all excited you are joining the community and look forward to meeting you in the coming months.

Welcome to Rotman!

Renice Jones
Director, Office of Student Engagement

When students first join Rotman, the suspense of meeting their classmates, preparing finances and reviewing housing options can definitely feel overwhelming. To help you during these challenging times, we would like to introduce you to the 6ix Squad.

The 6ix Squad is made up of second year students who can provide you with advice and encouragement as you transition to life as an MBA student. Learn more about each team member!

Meridith Chung
Favourite Class: Managerial Negotiations
Favourite Restaurant: Randy’s Roti & Doubles
Quick Tip: Remember to be kind and encouraging to yourself. Don’t underestimate the value of self-care!

Alexandra Rojas Rossel
Favourite Class: Managerial Negotiations
Favourite Restaurant: Korean Grill House
Quick Tip: Define what you want to improve during this journey and remember to relax!

Jinhee Park
Favourite Class:Building Businesses for Sustainability
Favourite Restaurant: Daldongnae
Quick Tip: Do not stress over results too much and do focus on learning and networking!

Souha El Jisr
Favourite Class: Managerial Negotiations
Favourite Restaurant: Planta Yorkville
Quick Tip: Remember that what works for others won’t necessarily work for you – Don’t compare yourself with anyone!

Oluwafemi Odu
Favourite Class: Managing Customer Value 2.0
Favourite Restaurant: None – I’m pro home made meal! I spend a lot of time in the kitchen.
Quick Tip: Never ever ever ever ever ever lose your identity! There’ll always be FOMO and the temptation to follow the crowd – don’t!

Katherine Reilly
Favourite Class: Finance II: Corporate Finance
Favourite Restaurant: Brickworks Ciderhouse
Quick Tip: At the beginning of the term put the assignment deadlines in your calendar so you can plan accordingly.

Vish Gahlot
Favourite Class: Strategy in Emerging Markets
Favourite Restaurant: Chiang Mai, Everest Hakka House
Quick Tip: There is always too much to do, try to balance things out. Its not a competition and everyone is on their own personal journey.

Rohan Thomas
Favourite Class: Finance I
Favourite Restaurant: Té
Quick Tip: It’s easy to get lost when things get intense – remember to take a moment and focus on the big picture!

Rishi Sinha
Favourite Class: Foundations of Strategic Management
Favourite Restaurant: Planta
Quick Tip: As cliché as it might sound: Be yourself and write your own story! Soon there will be an information overload, a rat race, and a lot of FOMO coming your way. Being yourself will help set your priorities straight!

Mauricio Sanchez Ramirez
Favourite Class: Managerial Accounting
Favourite Restaurant: PAI Northern Thai Kitchen
Quick Tip: Find a healthy balance between study and fun. The MBA experience is not just about academic growth. It’s also about connecting with your peers, making friends from other cultures, hanging out with people who don’t speak your language, and trying new food. Don’t let one bad day ruin your whole week.

Eshita Juneja
Favourite Class: Foundations of Strategic Management
Favourite Restaurant: Famoso
Quick Tip: Develop a habit to take small breaks.

Sukriti Verma
Favourite Class: International Strategy
Favourite Restaurant: Butter Chicken Factory, Korean Grill House
Quick Tip:Things have a way of working out.

Snehangshi Bose
Favourite Class: International Strategy
Favourite Restaurant: Imm Thai Chicken
Quick Tip:Prioritize! As tempting as it may be to sign up for everything Rotman has to offer, commit to activities that align with your goals and interests.

Kate Congyi Li
Favourite Class: Managerial Negotiations
Favourite Restaurant: Saving Grace
Quick Tip: Leave some buffer time on your calendar to relax and catch up with friends.

Chandan Sejekan
Favourite Class: Managerial Negotiations
Favourite Restaurant: Storm Crow Manor
Quick Tip: Hone your time and project management skills!

Swati Chawla
Favourite Class: Managerial Negotiations
Favourite Restaurant: Richmond Station
Quick Tip: Focus on building your cultural quotient over the next two years. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for most of us.

As you wrap up your Program Kick Off this week, we trust that you are excited about next week’s launch of Term 1. We hope that the skills you’ve been learning in LDT are setting each of you up to be an effective team member in the courses ahead.

As you heard from Scott earlier last week, three of your four Term 1 courses (Economics, Models & Data, and Accounting) will be in-person, dual-delivery. The fourth course, Leading People in Organizations, will be delivered fully online. For those of you in Toronto, you’ll be expected to attend Economics, Models & Data, and Accounting in-person. For those of you not yet in country, you’ll be able to attend these Term 1 courses online.

By the end of this week, you will receive instructions from the Registrar’s Office as to how to access your Term 1 course schedules. The Registrar’s Office is working on getting as many students as can be in the classroom into the classroom for our in-person, dual-delivery courses within the social distancing and capacity limits under the current provincial guidance.

Currently, the University is operating under the Step 3 of the reopening roadmap of the Province. This means that there are physical distancing requirements that limit the number of seats available in our classrooms and that for a couple of your courses (Models & Data and Accounting) there will not be enough space for all students who are enrolled in class to attend simultaneously. In these courses, the Registrar’s Office will assign students to subgroups and rotate which subgroups attend any given course meeting. The list of subgroup membership will be placed on the course Quercus page. As the provincial guidance on social distancing and room capacities changes, we will adjust the rotation as quickly as we can.

We are happy to report that many international students are joining us each week in Toronto! We encourage all students with study permits to arrive in Toronto as soon as they can safely. For those of you still awaiting study permits, please make sure you are working closely with your Section AD so that they can support you in achieving a successful Term 1 experience.

Finally, this September, all members of the University community coming to campus—including students, staff, faculty, and librarians—will be required to provide proof of full vaccination or register in the University’s rapid screening program, where results will need to be uploaded regularly. You can read more about UCheck (the university’s self-assessment tool) here.

We look forward to seeing you on campus soon!
Maria and Scott

Program kickoff is around the corner and you’re likely feeling a combination of excitement and nerves. Remember that you are not alone in this journey. The Rotman commUNITY is here to help set you up for success. Below are three tips for you on the eve of program launch:

• Dive into Pre-Program next week. For those of you who are registered for the Academic Pre-Courses, Quantitative Boot Camp, Communications Boot Camp, Self-Development Lab Sessions, and Co-Curricular Workshops, the next two weeks are your chance to get comfortable with the academic concepts you’ll be tackling in the first year of the Rotman MBA. Our world-class faculty have designed these sessions to help you build a solid foundation for a successful program launch so jump right into the work and start getting to know them!

• Be on track to Complete Career Readiness Checklist Phases 1 & 2 by September 27th. For those of you who attended Career Discovery Week (CDW) this week, we hope the sessions provided you with a chance to explore the many career pathways after the Rotman MBA and gave you a glimpse of our powerful Rotman alumni network. Rotman Career Services has a full year of programming planned in the year ahead to set you up for professional success and continue to connect you with industry. Do your part to be career-ready by completing your career readiness checklist.

• Prioritize your health and wellness. The year ahead will be both exciting and challenging so make sure you know about the many health and wellness resources available to you as a Rotman student. You’ll soon be learning which Section you are in for year one of your Rotman MBA. Your Office of Student Engagement Section Assistant Director is your first point of contact for any questions related to student services. Freeda, Stephanie, Margaret, and Susan can connect you with Academic Support Services (Rotman Scholars, Learning Strategist, Rotman Write Now), Accessibility Services (Accommodations and Supports), and health and wellness supports (Peer Mentorship Program, Rotman-dedicated mental health counselor).

We’re looking forward to seeing you on campus soon!

Maria Jimena Rivera