There are a multitude of leadership opportunities for EWMBA students within the EWMBA program and beyond.
Cohort Reps (First Year)
Function: Key points of contact for the cohort, faculty, and EWMBA Program Office regarding academics and student experience.
Selection Process: Academic and Social cohort representatives will be chosen by the EWMBA Program Office with input from the student VPs of Academics and former cohort reps. Interviews will take place in late July.
Duration: Fall and Spring semester of the first year
Program Office Contact: Olivia Coffman, Associate Director ([email protected])
How to apply: See application process below.
Why apply? Build or hone your leadership skills, develop negotiation and advocacy capabilities, be the voice of your classmates, and build community.
Student involvement, especially around providing feedback on our academic learning culture, is critical to making Haas a great place to learn.
We’ve created the ACR and SCR positions (two of each role for each of the six cohorts) to lead this effort. The cohort reps will be the key points of contact for their cohort, faculty, and the EWMBA Program Office around academics and student experience.
We are seeking individuals who are willing to go beyond themselves to serve as cohort reps. Specific responsibilities and commitments include:
- Serving in the role for the first two semesters of your program;
- Attending an initial training session;
- Attending monthly meetings;
- Being timely and responsive to academic issues raised by professors, classmates, and the Program Office;
- Administering the mid-semester evaluations and final course evaluation (ACRs);
- Acting as the liaison between your classmates and your professors;
- Being dedicated to continuously improving the Haas experience for your classmates and future cohorts.
Academic Cohort Representatives (ACRs) serve as liaisons between their cohort and faculty and the Program Office. ACRs steward Haas’s academic culture, facilitate feedback, and provide academic support in their respective cohorts.
Academic Culture: ACRs work to uphold the academic norms, as well as the Haas Defining Principles. They facilitate formal and informal process checks for academic culture norms. When improvements are needed, they engage and influence both students and professors.
Feedback: ACRs facilitate feedback from students to faculty, from faculty to students, and from students to the Program Office, ensuring that the academic experience at Haas is constantly improving and evolving to meet the needs of the Berkeley Leader.
Academic Support: ACRs are a source of expertise and support to their cohort-mates on all issues relating to academics, from class schedules and updating cohort Google calendars to questions about the elective bidding process. They share resources, reminders and links with their cohort-mates in order to ensure a smooth academic experience. They communicate as necessary with important information, updates and reminders.
ACRs are selected by the Program Office and former student leaders. They serve for one academic year (Fall and Spring semesters).
- Enthusiasm
- Commitment to helping others and promoting a positive culture
- Willingness to be visible to your classmates
- Desire to build community
- Ability to present problems in a clear and non-judgmental way
- Follow through
Testimonials from past cohort reps:
Academic Reps
“You can actually have an impact if you have feedback on how certain courses are going or how instruction is being held… at Haas throughout the semester. You can provide all that feedback and the Program Office will actually listen to it and adapt the program accordingly. But in terms of what about being an ACR was most meaningful to me, I think it was just honestly being someone to talk to for the other students.” – Cat Ziac, Axe 2022 ACR
“A great opportunity to connect across cohorts and more directly connect with your peers!” – Jessica Ullrich, Lux 2027 ACR
Advice from a past ACR: “Make sure the cohort Google calendar is up to date with not just classes but also due dates for assignments, cohort/program wide events, etc. The calendar has been our best friend to keep everyone on the same page. Set notifications for assignments and over communicate reminders (within reason, don’t spam!) to your cohort. Your classmates will appreciate you for it.” – Kon Huta, Gold 2027 ACR
Social Reps
“I was really hesitant to join a full-time online MBA program because I worried I wouldn’t feel any sense of belonging or deeper camaraderie with my cohort. I chose to become an SCR to force myself to create the experiences and relationships I desired out of this experience and I can’t recommend it enough. You will get out exactly what you put into this position and trust me, it will pay dividends if you’re willing to put in the effort and care for your classmates. Planning trips to New York City, Palm Springs, San Francisco, and Japan has been the highlight of my year and 10000% worth it.” – Ashley Howe, Nexus 2027 SCR
“Stepping up as a Social Cohort Rep as a Flex student shaped my entire first year. It was an incredible opportunity to be right in the heart of Flex social life.” – Jeremy Weisz, Lux 2027 SCR
“Becoming an SCR is a fantastic opportunity to connect with your classmates and build a stronger community! You’ll have the flexibility to plan events that truly reflect the interests and spirit of your cohort—just remember to keep them inclusive and welcoming. Planning and encouraging participation can sometimes be challenging, so don’t hesitate to form a small team to help with organizing and promoting events—it really makes a difference. Most importantly, enjoy the process! And remember, you’re not alone—reach out to fellow SCRs if you ever need advice or inspiration. No need to reinvent the wheel!” – Sailakshmi Venkataramani, Gold 2027 SCR
Have questions about this experience? Email Olivia Coffman at [email protected] to be connected to a past cohort rep.
Given the visibility and leadership associated with this role, we’d like for you to fill out a brief application. Applications are due in late July.
Cohort representatives will be chosen by the EWMBA Program Office with input from the student VPs of Academics and former cohort reps. Interviews will take place in late July.
All selected candidates — ACRs and SCRs — will be notified via email shortly thereafter.
Questions? Contact Olivia Coffman, Associate Director, at [email protected].
Thank you for going beyond yourself!
Class Reps (Second Year)
Function: Liaison between the class, professors, and the Program Office via the EWMBAA VPs of Academics.
Selection Process: Volunteer, selected by the professor
Duration: One Semester (Fall, Spring, or Summer)
Program Office Contact: Justine Roades, Director of Academics
How to apply: Professors will ask for volunteers at the start of the semester.
Class representatives are the foundation of student representation. They serve as an important conduit of student opinion between the classroom and the professor as well as the classroom and the program office (via the VPs of Academics). This can be positive feedback on aspects that work well and might be shared as best practices. This can also be concerns about issues that negatively affect the student academic experience.
They function as a “first line of defense” for student issues. Class reps ensure that faculty and staff are continually listening to and engaging with students to improve the student experience
Core courses typically have two class reps while smaller elective courses have one.
They are chosen any number of ways including:
-
- student volunteers
- class holds a vote
- professor choice
We recommend that this is done on the first day of class.
- Administer Mid-Semester Review: This is done around the course’s halfway point. 15 minutes at the beginning or end of class is allocated to this important task. The professor will step out of the room and the class rep conducts an “audit” via a short survey of 3 open-ended questions. They then schedule a meeting with the professor to provide feedback.
- Administer Final Evaluation: Sometime before the final week, discuss with the professor the best day to administer the final course evaluation. The evaluation is electronic and instructions will be sent to the professor.
- Act as Liaison Between Students and Professor: The class rep’s role as a liaison to the professor is typically announced in class. Making contact with the professor early in the class seems to facilitate smooth resolutions of student concerns. The class rep’s primary role is to voice student concerns with the professor–with promises of confidentiality, if necessary. Throughout this process, class reps will be in touch with the EWMBAA VPs of Academics, who may provide further guidance and also escalate concerns through other channels.
- Enthusiasm
- Commitment to helping others
- Willingness to be visible to your classmates
- Ability to present problems in a clear and non-judgmental way
- Follow through
- Leadership opportunities for students who have little or no experience or are looking to enhance prior management experience.
- Can be a stepping stone for future roles within the EWMBA Association (VP of Academics or cabinet-level).
- Resume booster for those looking to showcase transferrable skills in the areas of leadership, communications, dispute resolution and negotiation.
- The chance to be an advocate and voice of your fellow students.
- Make a positive contribution to the EW program. Your input contributes to ongoing development and program improvement that benefits future students.
- Course content — Are the lectures interesting and instructive?
- Professor — Does he/she move too fast? Too slow? Are students engaged and keeping up?
- Assessment and grading — Are there too many assignments? Too few? Too close to exams? Clarity of feedback?
- Course structure — Does the course structure reflect the course description? Is time being spent effectively?
Step 1: Discuss and clarify specific details with the student. Listen to their story and consider whether the issue is isolated or whether it affects other students. This determines whether or not the concern should be escalated and, if so, where to direct the feedback — professor, VPs of Academics, classmates, program office, etc.
Step 2: If the issue is personal to the student, encourage them to speak to their academic advisor. If it affects other students in the class, then ask for feedback from the whole cohort. Arrange to speak to the professor about it.
If it’s a global issue that affects the entire class across all four cohorts, bring it to the VPs of Academics and/or other class reps. You can utilize the Class Representative bCourses site.
Step 3: Meet with the appropriate stakeholder(s). Outline the issue and the students’ views. Seek joint solutions and, if possible, agree on a course of action. Report back to your fellow students.
EWMBA Association
The EWMBAA Executive Board serves as student leadership for all EWMBA students. Learn more about the EWMBAA here.
Selection Process: Elections in late Fall semester
Duration: One Calendar Year (January to December)
How to apply: Mid fall semester, you will receive information via the Bear Necessities to nominate yourself for a specific position (Co-President, Executive Vice President, EVP of Finance, EVP of Marketing and Communications). Once nominations are collected, the student body will have the opportunity to vote for their executive board.
Why apply?: Become a trusted leader amongst your classmates and have an opportunity to shape the experience during the program.
Function: EWMBAA VPs oversee various initiatives and realms related to the overall student experience at Haas. The number and type of positions may change based on the needs of the student population. A few of the current positions include VPs of Academics, Social, Diversity and Inclusion, Health & Wellness, New Student Experience, and more.
Selection Process: By application and selected by the EWMBA Association Executive Board in early Spring
Duration: One Calendar Year (January to December)
Program Office Contact: Avni Kansara, Director of Student Experience
How to apply: The EWMBA Association will send out communication via the Bear Necessities and slack with the link to apply in late January, with interviews and selection occurring in February.
Why apply?: Become a trusted leader amongst your classmates and have an opportunity to shape the experience during the program.
Learn more about the current 2022 VPs here.
Function: In 2021, the VPs of DEI & Outreach launched a new peer education program, called Bear PALs (or BearPals) for current and incoming EWMBA students. PALs, which stands for Peer Allyship Liaisons, are volunteers from the classes of 2023, 2024, and 2025 who are committed to supporting their fellow students. The mission of Bear PALs is to provide a community of resources to fellow EW Haas Students who are navigating the challenges of starting and continuing their MBA experience, specifically around wellness and DEI.
The VPs of BearPALs now manage the program and recruit and provide training workshops for the BearPALs.
How can PALs help?: Through a variety of ways, including:
- 1:1 peer chats on resources available at Haas and UC Berkeley around:
- Mental Health
- Wellness
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
- Offer small group chats
- Host and share community events
- Float up student concerns to VPs of DEI to address with Program Office
- Alongside VPs of DEIBJ and BearPALs, support student-led initiatives related to DEI and Mental Health
Note: BearPals are NOT substitutes for trained-professional medical providers. -
Duration: Training is over the summer
Program office contact: Jessica De Anda, Program Manager
How to apply: Fill out the google form here and the VPs of BearPALs will reach out to you.
Haas Institutes and Centers
Berkeley Haas Institutes and Centers offer various conferences, competitions, and other events throughout the year that call for volunteers or student liaisons for their respective programs.
Examples include:
- Berkeley Board Fellows (Center for Social Sector Leadership)
- Student Engagement and Advisory Board (Center for Responsible Business)
- Sustainability at Haas Opportunities
Learn more about Haas Centers and Institutes here.
Selection Process: Varies
Duration: Varies
Student Group and Club Leadership
All student groups are hosted on Campus Groups. Leadership openings for Student Groups and Clubs are generally posted to club members via announcements. For career related clubs, there is generally a VP of EWMBA. Learn more about Student Groups and Clubs at Haas here.
Selection Process: Varies
Duration: Varies
How to apply: Varies