It’s a busy time.
You have fussy clients and skittish bosses. Sick kids and destructive dogs. Your check engine light will flash on and your refrigerator will break down. Plans may change, but the expectations won’t. On top of that, you have a case to read and a paper to write.
Welcome to the always-on world of the Executive MBA. Forever caught up in the moment, racing from one emergency to the next. Checking off tasks, knowing something unexpected is bound to knock you off course.
Temi Oyewunmi experienced a similar life as an Executive MBA student at the University of Virginia’s Darden School. As a director in corporate services for Airbus, Oyewunmi’s responsibilities included facilities management, security, product safety, and sustainability. If you think that list is intimidating, she can also click off family, travel, school assignments, residencies, and professional responsibilities outside the office.
While she was “fully committed” to her studies, Oyewunmi admits that she often focused on getting from one point to the next. Looking back, she regrets not appreciating the “magnitude” of the MBA experience.
Temi Oyewunmi, University of Virginia (Darden)
SLOW DOWN, LOOK AROUND, APPRECIATE IT
“The EMBA was not just a program I completed. It was a life chapter that stretched me, shaped my thinking, expanded my confidence, deepened my leadership, and connected me to an extraordinary community of people I might never have met otherwise. I am proud of how hard I worked and how much I gave to the program, but I do wish I had slowed down more often to document the growth, celebrate the small wins, and spend even more intentional time with classmates whose perspectives made the experience richer.”
As a result, she offers a word of caution to Executive MBAs following in her footsteps. “Achievement matters, but presence matters too. It is possible to be so focused on finishing strong that you forget to look around and honor the journey while you are still inside it.”
The inability to enjoy the moment is just one of the regrets that Executive MBAs shared with Poets&Quants. As part of its Best & Brightest story, P&Q asked 71 EMBA graduates from top business schools to share the biggest mistakes they made as students. Here are the most important things they would do differently if they could go back in time.
Olesya Afanasyeva, Yale School of Management
1) Tapped Into The Larger University: “My biggest regret was not being able to take fuller advantage of all the opportunities Yale offers beyond the EMBA program itself. Because I live far from campus, my time in New Haven had to be structured around class weekends, which meant I could not always participate as fully as I would have liked in the broader life of the university.
At the same time, I do not see that as the end of the story. I plan to stay connected to Yale after graduation and continue taking advantage of opportunities available to alumni, including auditing courses. In that sense, I hope to keep building on this experience for years to come.”
Olesya Afanasyeva, Yale School of Management
2) Spent More Time With Classmates: “My biggest regret is not prioritizing more extracurricular time with my cohort. Some of my most valuable learning happened outside the classroom, be it over coffee or shared meals with classmates. Those conversations exposed me to industries, perspectives, and ways of thinking I never would have encountered in my career as a surgeon. It’s easy to treat those events as optional extras on top of the coursework, but in hindsight they are equally as important. An EMBA is a rare chance as an adult to build a strong network with people entirely outside your professional bubble, and I wish I had taken even more advantage of it.”
Tyler Tetreault, MD, USC (Marshall)
3) Invested in Every Class: “In the courses I did not enjoy, I let my cynicism get in the way. Some modules did not immediately resonate with me, and instead of leaning in anyway, I kept one foot out. I engaged enough to get through and not enough to actually learn.
Looking back, that is the wrong call every time. The EMBA brings exceptional people and ideas to you for a limited window. Deciding a subject is not for you before you have really given it the chance is a waste of something you cannot get back. I knew better, and I still did it. That is the regret.”
Diego Salama, University of Oxford (Saïd)
4) Prioritized Finance: “My biggest regret is not having more time and bandwidth to dive even deeper into subjects like accounting and finance, which were largely unfamiliar to me before starting the program. Coming from a surgical and scientific background, many of those concepts initially felt like an entirely new language. As the program progressed, however, I developed a better appreciation for the nuance behind the numbers. I wished I had more time to build an even deeper understanding of the subtleties of financial analysis, capital allocation, valuation, and how these numbers ultimately shape organizational strategy and decision-making.
Leslie Kim, Ohio State (Fisher)
5) Stopped Underestimatiing Myself: “My biggest regret was spending too much time early on questioning whether I was capable and truly belonged. I often heard that if you’re admitted, you’ve earned your place. However, it took me a while to believe it. Looking back, I wish I had trusted both the process and myself sooner. Letting imposter syndrome sit in the driver’s seat held me back more than it should have. Once I moved past that, I was able to engage more fully and get much more out of the experience.”
Britney Greene, Brigham Young University (Marriott)
DON’T MISS: BEST & BRIGHTEST EXECUTIVE MBAS: CLASS OF 2026
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