Eileen Ng

What were you doing before business school?

Prior to business school, I was in hospitality. I worked in revenue management for a luxury hotel firm in New York City. I've also traveled the world and worked for Expedia in Hawaii as well as in Japan.

What made you decide to come to business school?

I’d spent my career in hospitality, and I wanted to broaden my knowledge of different industries and learn about more businesses. Because of this, I recently accepted a summer internship outside of hospitality, working for a consumer packaged goods company.

Can you talk more about your internship?

I will work in brand management. It's really exciting for me because I will work with consumer goods, which I never expected to do. I would not have had this opportunity without Columbia.

What else has Columbia Business School offered you?

I think there's something for everyone. I've been lucky enough to be able to be part of clubs, like Columbia Women in Business and the Christian Business Fellowship. I've been able to find really strong communities around these interests.

You are from New York. What’s it like being a student in your home city?

As a native New Yorker, I thought I knew everything about New York. But I’m learning about so much more through my classmates. Just the other week, I went to an event sponsored by the Gourmet Club at a new restaurant in Morningside Heights. I've discovered so much from my classmates that I never expected to.

Have there been other surprises in your experience?

I didn't realize how many resources were at the tips of my fingers. It seems like every week there's a talk from a CEO from a different industry. A few weeks ago I went to a talk from the CEO of MSK. I never expected to be able to meet people of such high caliber so easily, and all of them are in New York.