Sally Jaeger

Penny Paquette

Dean's Office

MBA Program Office

Forté Foundation

Consortium for Graduate Study in Management

Sally Jaeger
Assistant Dean and Director of the MBA Program

"It's the students that bring me back here every day."

"My work is incredibly varied. I never know what to expect," says Dean Sally Jaeger, who, in the fall of 2002, took up a newly created role as assistant dean of the MBA program in Tuck's MBA Program Office.

Creating a one-stop-shop team of staff looking after Tuck students' academic and community lives was the brainchild of James Danko, the associate dean of strategy and operations at Tuck. Jaeger was brought over to the MBA Program Office by Danko, who felt that her nine years of experience as Tuck's director of admissions was invaluable to the team.

Over the years Jaeger has traveled far and wide recruiting for Tuck both nationally and internationally. She has interviewed and vetted thousands of MBA students and has an in-depth knowledge of exactly what kind of person is suited to the Tuck program and will benefit most from it. This kind of insight is priceless in her current position, where she has the chance to be part of the students' progress and development during their two years at Tuck.

Jaeger is full of admiration for students who choose to take on an MBA program. "I appreciate what they're going through, what they've given up to go back to school. It's amazing," she says. With that admiration, she is aware of the issues students have to deal with: adjusting to student life as an adult, juggling an exceptionally full schedule, perhaps relocating a spouse and children, and the financial strain of taking two unpaid years away from a career. Jaeger is keen to make life at Tuck as comfortable as possible for students.

Part of helping students feel comfortable is recognizing the issues they face as they settle into life at Tuck—something that can be especially challenging for international students who must also negotiate life in a new country. Having met many students in their home countries, Jaeger has a breadth of experience in intercultural issues. Drawing on that expertise, she plans to make the week-long orientation for overseas students a comprehensive introduction to Tuck, which will include intercultural training. During this orientation, Jaeger will address how to manage differences among the students in such areas as food preferences, language skills, ways of contributing in the classroom, career guidance needs, and the time needed to adjust to life in Hanover.

Jaeger has been meeting with Tuck's international students, country by country, in focus groups to discuss cultural issues and career concerns "The issues students face are often the same across groups, but each group has a different point of view. For example, the Argentine students' concern is 'we are focused on finding jobs here or in Europe, because the same opportunities are not available in Argentina right now.' Brazilian students want to go back to Brazil, but they need good contacts with the major companies there." Jaeger's plans to use what she learns from this focused communication to help Tuck build the best services and resources for international students.

Academic advising is also one of Jaeger's areas of responsibility. She listens to the challenges students face and helps them to decide if they need a tutor, then facilitates that access. However, she stresses that students can go to any member of the MBA team to discuss their worries: "The main issue is that they come to someone and express their concerns and their need for help." Jaeger praises the role that faculty play at Tuck, both academically and personally with students: "I've worked in many academic environments but I've never worked in one where the faculty care as much as they do here."

Jaeger is further occupied with creating agendas for Tuck's MBA advisory board, which includes over 20 alumni who are successful leaders in their organizations and who oversee Tuck's MBA program and services. She plans to continue to travel, spreading the word about Tuck to the uninitiated. Jaeger's work also extends to organizations beyond Tuck—she is involved with the Forté Foundation, which works to support and inspire women business leaders, and she is part of the Consortium for Graduate Study in Management, an alliance of the leading American business schools in partnership with the corporate community, which enables African American, Hispanic American, and Native American college graduates to pursue successful careers in management.

Dean Jaeger is at ease with the variety inherent in her new role as academic counselor, student counselor, international specialist, and point person for various external groups. It's a role that's tough to sum up, she admits, but one thing is crystal clear: "It's the students that bring me back here every day," she says.