A recent post on the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business website highlights the achievement of alum Michael Friedrich (MBA ’95). Friedrich is one example of a graduate who has benefited from the business school’s relationship with the business community.
Friedrich was able to land an internship with locally-based McDonald’s Corp. His internship soon turned into a full-time job in the global food retailer’s finance department and eventually led to a series of executive positions with McDonald’s in Europe. Today, Friedrich owns multiple franchise locations, including the biggest McDonald’s restaurants in and around Prague.
Friedrich still stays connected to DePaul, and shares his knowledge with current DePaul business students visiting Europe on study abroad trips. He also recently sat down with DePaul’s communications department to discusses his experiences in DePaul’s MBA program and explain how it helped launch his career. A few excerpts from that interview are below:
Friedrich was asked how his DePaul business education helped in his career:
“DePaul and Chicago are very influential in my life. In the MBA program, I chose a finance major with an additional emphasis on marketing, which provided me with a sound knowledge of finance, marketing, economics and accounting. A big advantage was the fact that DePaul’s business school classrooms are located in downtown Chicago, at the heart of real business. Many of my fellow students worked a few blocks from our school. It brought a very hands-on approach to our classroom, as often we discussed business cases and situations that where happening just across the street.”
He was also asked what advice he had for other international students who may be considering enrolling at DePaul:
“DePaul University is a very reliable and knowledgeable partner for your studies. It has a great faculty with a lot of experience, and it has a unique location in one of the most beautiful cities in the U.S. It is a strong, large university, but at the same time very personal. I have created a life-long relationship with the university and its faculty and also with many of my fellow students. I made friends in Chicago and also from different parts of the world while at DePaul.”
You can read more from the interview here.