{"id":42697,"date":"2026-08-18T09:01:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T13:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/?p=42697"},"modified":"2026-08-18T09:01:00","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T13:01:00","slug":"team-fuqua-beyond-mba-admissions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/team-fuqua-beyond-mba-admissions\/","title":{"rendered":"The mbaMission Podcast: Why \u201cTeam Fuqua\u201d Is More Than a Motto and How It Turns Culture into Leadership| Ep 116"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In this episode of <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The mbaMission Podcast<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, mbaMission Senior Consultant Harold Simansky and Founder Jeremy Shinewald <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/duke-fuqua-mba-admissions-what-the-school-really-wants\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">continue their conversation<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with Shari Hubert, associate dean of admissions at Duke University\u2019s Fuqua School of Business. The discussion moves beyond essays and interviews to explore the program\u2019s paired principles, leadership model, alumni culture, Durham setting, and broader Duke University connections.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n\n<div class=\"video-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"embed-container\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Why \u201cTeam Fuqua\u201d Is More Than a Motto and How It Turns Culture into Leadership | Ep 116\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2sSMdHc0abk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/episode\/2MMnbXQbB7p6DX6vvWn1YZ?si=6e16a21fe8ac4e82\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-41852\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/spotify-button-300x100.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"100\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/spotify-button-300x100.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/spotify-button.jpg 563w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/the-mbamission-podcast\/id1748825410?i=1000784016871\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-41854\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/apple-podcasts-button-300x100.jpg\" alt=\"apple podcasts button\" width=\"300\" height=\"100\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/apple-podcasts-button-300x100.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/apple-podcasts-button.jpg 450w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_86 ez-toc-wrap-left counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/team-fuqua-beyond-mba-admissions\/#team_fuqua_in_practice\" >Team Fuqua in Practice<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/team-fuqua-beyond-mba-admissions\/#leadership_beyond_iq\" >Leadership Beyond IQ<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/team-fuqua-beyond-mba-admissions\/#leadership_from_day_one\" >Leadership from Day One<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/team-fuqua-beyond-mba-admissions\/#the_duke_university_and_durham_advantage\" >The Duke University and Durham Advantage<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"team_fuqua_in_practice\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Team Fuqua in Practice<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fuqua wants people who can pursue ambition with generosity, navigate complexity, respect different viewpoints, and contribute to their classmates\u2019 learning as much as their own. The school reinforces these behaviors in concrete ways, such as encouraging students to nominate their peers who demonstrate the principles in daily community life.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"leadership_beyond_iq\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Leadership Beyond IQ<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That approach connects directly to Fuqua\u2019s emphasis on IQ, EQ, and what Shari calls DQ, or decency quotient. Academic ability matters, but Fuqua also wants leaders who can build trust, bring out other people\u2019s strengths, and make difficult decisions when the information at hand feels incomplete. In a business environment shaped by uncertainty and AI, those human skills carry even more weight. The message for Fuqua candidates should be clear: The school values people who can make the teams they are on stronger, not just perform well on their own.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"leadership_from_day_one\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Leadership from Day One<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">First-year students at Fuqua join Consequential Leadership teams, known as C-LEAD teams, and begin learning how to set norms, discuss priorities, handle discomfort, and work through uncertainty with classmates. Second-year COLE Fellows, who are selected through the Fuqua\/Coach K Center on Leadership and Ethics, coach those teams while continuing to develop their own leadership capabilities. Admissions fellows, career fellows, club leaders, and peer coaches are other roles through which students can contribute to their classmates\u2019 MBA experience.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"the_duke_university_and_durham_advantage\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Duke University and Durham Advantage<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fuqua\u2019s broader setting matters, too. Students can take courses for credit outside the business school and benefit from Duke University\u2019s policy, law, environmental, engineering, entrepreneurship, and healthcare resources. Shari emphasizes that the city of Durham and the Research Triangle Park region also contribute to the program\u2019s value, contradicting some applicants\u2019 assumption that a smaller market automatically means less access and opportunity. The area offers technology, research, biotech, entrepreneurship, culture, and convenient air travel, making it much more dynamic than many prospective students expect.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">mbaMission\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/how-to-get-into-fuqua-school-of-business-duke-fuqua-essay-tips-and-examples\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Duke Fuqua School of Business Essay Tips 2026\u20132027<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> can help applicants who are still researching Fuqua connect this cultural discussion to the school\u2019s application prompts. The strongest takeaway from the episode, though, is that Fuqua asks its students to help build the community they hope to benefit from.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">New episodes of <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The mbaMission Podcast<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> are released every Tuesday on all major streaming platforms, with full video episodes available on <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@mbaMission\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">mbaMission\u2019s YouTube channel<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you are curious about how your story, experiences, and goals align with what top business schools are looking for, sign up for a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/consult\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">free 30-minute consultation<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with Harold, Jeremy, or another member of mbaMission\u2019s admissions team.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In this episode of The mbaMission Podcast, mbaMission Senior Consultant Harold Simansky and Founder Jeremy Shinewald continue their conversation with Shari Hubert, associate dean of admissions at Duke University\u2019s Fuqua School of Business. The discussion moves beyond essays and interviews to explore the program\u2019s paired principles, leadership model, alumni culture, Durham setting, and broader Duke &hellip; <a class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/team-fuqua-beyond-mba-admissions\/\">Read&nbsp;More&nbsp;&nbsp;<i class=\"fal fa-sm fa-angle-right\"><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":42698,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[16,24,643],"tags":[232,465,676,677],"class_list":["post-42697","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-admissions-officer-interviews","category-duke-fuqua","category-mbamission-podcast","tag-duke-fuqua","tag-podcast","tag-shari-hubert","tag-team-fuqua"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.2 - 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