Wharton Stories: Community

A large group of diverse individuals smiling at the camera, likely gathered for a conference or group event, with a building and staircase in the background.
Founded by two professors and Wharton alumni, The Tenure Project is on a mission to help more underrepresented junior business faculty receive tenure across the country.

Closing the Tenure Gap for Business Faculty of Color

PhD students and faculty playing basketball. Half are wearing maroon and green, and the other half wears blue and black. A basketball is in the air.
Now in its fourth year, the annual Wharton Health Care Management Department Student-Faculty Basketball Tournament has become a cherished tradition for both professors and PhD students at Wharton.

Wharton Health Care Management Faculty and PhD Students Square Off on the Basketball Court

Assistant Professor of Management Stephanie Creary
Assistant Professor of Management Stephanie Creary brings her research on diversity and inclusion into her MBA and undergraduate classes.

How Prof. Stephanie Creary Works Towards Inclusion in Research, Teaching, and Wharton Culture

Professor Kartik Hosanagar is walking with a student. Both wear casual clothes and talk outside, a brick bridge behind them.
During his “walk-and-talk” office hours, Prof. Kartik Hosanagar connects with students outside the classroom in a unique way. The influential researcher and entrepreneur trades insights and conversations with students on his daily walking commute.

How This Professor Goes the Extra Mile to Build Connections Inside and Outside the Classroom

A student wearing casual clothes stands in the stacks of Van Pelt Library. He has blonde hair and blue eyes. He is wearing glasses.
Take a look at a current student’s schedule and get the insider perspective from doctoral students and coordinators on what to expect from a PhD schedule.

What to Expect from a PhD Schedule

Headshot of Tanya Paul. She has short, dark hair and is wearing a khaki jacket over a pink shirt.
Getting a PhD wasn’t part of Tanya’s long-term plan when she started as an undergrad at Wharton. She initially aspired to work as a data scientist or analyst but soon fell in love with data in a whole different way through a research assistantship.

How This Doctoral Student Began Her PhD Journey as a Wharton Undergrad

Headshot of Kyle Myers. He has short, brown hair and is wearing a blue shirt and glasses.
“Because Wharton is very welcome to the idea of students taking courses and collaborating with professors outside of their core department, I have been able to make great relationships with professors and students across both of those disciplines.”

Interdisciplinary Collaboration Attracted This CDC Researcher to Wharton’s PhD Program

Headshot of Andrew Boyson. He has short, brown hair and is wearing a pink shirt with a black bow tie.
“My work experiences really help me pull out examples of concepts that people can connect with, and also allow me to speak about the messiness and complexity of life in organizations, which can’t be ignored when thinking about how to apply textbook strategies to the real world.”

How This Tech Manager Transitioned from Research Consumer to Research Producer in Wharton’s PhD Program

Andrea Contigiani smiles in front of a blurry Locust Walk. He wears a dark gray suit and tie. He has short dark hair.
“I realized how fascinating the job of a researcher is. I was 21 then — I changed most of my plans and invested the following years to get into a PhD program, and I am more convinced every day that was the right thing to do.”

Why This PhD Candidate Changed His Plans from Consulting to Academic Research

Headshot of Jessica Jeffers in front of a brown wall. She has blonde hair and is wearing a white shirt.
“There is a pipeline problem in business academia: more women tend to drop out of the program, or choose a non-academic career. At some point we realized, we wanted to make sure that other generations had access to this kind of a group, because it was so instrumental to our success.”

How This PhD Student Took Advantage of Wharton’s Resources and Created a New Pipeline for Women in Academia