Mitchell T. Atchison
Daytime MBA
Prior Education:
BS Business: Marketing, Entrepreneurship, and Technology Mgmt., 2012
Why I Chose Fuqua
Every top-tier business school will provide incredible academics, recruiting opportunities, and professional networks. I specifically chose Fuqua because of its community, which is what separates it from the other top business schools. I found Fuqua’s community to over-index in intellectual acumen and career drive, but more importantly on authenticity and humility. These characteristics helped me realize that the Duke Fuqua community was the right network for me, both as a student in business and as an alumnus for a lifetime.
Five Ways to Spend a Saturday in Durham
- Go for a morning run at the Al Buehler Trail on Duke’s campus. This is a beautiful and relatively serene trail around Duke’s golf course. One lap around the Al Buehler puts you at exactly three miles.
- Visit the Durham Farmer’s Market to enjoy the best local produce, breads, meats, cheeses, and other specialty foods. The Farmer’s Market is open 52 weeks per year, rain or shine, and features live music on Saturdays!
- Grab brunch at Monuts, which has become one of my favorite restaurants! Monuts has a host of amazing coffees, donuts, breakfast sandwiches, and lunch items that nearly anyone would surely enjoy.
- Visit any of Durham’s many brewery options. Durham is home to an excellent craft brewing scene, and it is unlikely you will be able to visit them all in two years as a student. My favorite local brewery is Gizmo Brew Works.
- Go out to dinner at one of Durham’s countless local restaurants. Downtown has many options from which you can choose, but Durham has many hidden gems throughout the city. Twisted Noodles is my favorite restaurant in Durham.
My Life Before Fuqua
I worked at Target in Minneapolis for two years before joining Eli Lilly in Indianapolis. My seven-year Lilly career started in Forecasting and Market Research, where I leveraged market and customer insights to inform growth strategies for Lilly’s highest-priority brands. Most recently, I both built and executed the launch strategy for a novel diabetes medicine.
My Life After Fuqua
I aspire to progress towards senior leadership in my career. I plan to leverage the leadership skills I’ve honed through Fuqua to better manage and lead individuals and teams. I also desire to implement my expanded functional skills, especially in finance and analytics, to make empirically-driven decisions to move business forward.
My Fuqua Activities
MBA Association (Academics)
Health Sector Management
Admissions Fellow
Co-Chair, Blue Devil Weekend
Section Chair, Academics and Honor
Teacher’s Assistant in Statistics and Health Care departments
Advisory Council member to the Duke University President
