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Seojoon Oh, Joint MBA/MPCS Class of 2023

For Seojoon Oh, Joint Program Class of 2023, pursuing the Joint MBA/MPCS program was about more than earning two degrees — it was about connecting business strategy with technical depth. Here, he shares what inspired that decision, the challenges he faced, and how the experience continues to shape his career today.

 

What made you decide to pursue an MS in Computer Science degree alongside your MBA?

As a product manager, I had reached the point where translating between business and engineering wasn’t enough — I wanted to design products where machine learning and data systems were central, not peripheral. To do that responsibly, I needed more than a surface-level understanding of how those systems worked.

The joint MBA/MPCS program offered the kind of technical rigor you can’t get from online courses.

What is your favorite memory from your time as an MPCS student?

Typing print(“Hello, world!”) in my first Python class. I’d been working in tech for years, but writing code myself had always felt out of reach — something reserved for engineers. That tiny moment, watching the console respond, reminded me how empowering it is to build something with your own hands.

Did you face any significant challenges? How did you overcome them?

Balancing two graduate programs and a newborn was its own experiment in multitasking. There were nights when I’d switch between a Booth case study, a Python assignment, and a diaper change in the same hour.

What helped was keeping a sense of proportion — focusing on one concrete task at a time and not trying to optimize every detail. I also had an incredible support system: my wife, who somehow managed even more than I did, and professors who showed real empathy when life and coursework collided.

What was your favorite MPCS course? Why?

Algorithms.

It re-taught me how to reason. After years in business, where most problems live in shades of gray, it was refreshing to confront problems that required structured reasoning and precision.

I spent hours wrestling with one assignment, certain I’d hit a wall — and then, suddenly, the logic snapped into place. That moment of clarity is something I still chase in my work: the point where a messy, complex problem simplifies into something elegant and solvable.

You completed an internship at AWS during your time in the program. Can you tell us about that experience?

AWS was an incredible education in scale. My first week was a blur of acronyms — EC2, S3, IAM — but once I found my footing, I began to appreciate how those components fit together to keep the modern internet running.

Working on EC2 gave me perspective on how small design choices can cascade across millions of users. It also reinforced the importance of writing — at Amazon, every new idea starts as a six-page document that forces you to think before you build. That habit has become a cornerstone of how I approach product development.

After finishing the program, what was your first role? How did you land it?

I joined Uber as a Product Manager right after graduation. I went through external recruiting, but the joint degree made all the difference. It gave me the vocabulary to discuss technical trade-offs with engineers while also understanding business outcomes.

That balance — between precision and perspective — is what employers are really looking for in technical product roles.

What are your core responsibilities in your current job?

I lead initiatives that help the company make better, data-driven marketing decisions. I spend a lot of time framing ambiguous problems, designing solutions with engineering and data teams, and making sure those solutions are actually adopted.

I spend much of my time aligning teams across data, analytics, and marketing — translating technical trade-offs into business terms, and business needs into technical requirements. A big part of my job is translating between systems and people — ensuring that data leads to clarity, not confusion.

What does a “day in the life” look like for you now?

My day starts early — around 6 a.m. — since many of my teammates are in Europe. Mornings are usually spent on decisions that unblock others: prioritization discussions, product reviews, and syncs with engineering and data science leads.

Afternoons are quieter. That’s when I write. That could mean writing a product spec, digging into data, or thinking about how different systems should interact to support a new feature.

The afternoons are my favorite part of the day — it’s when I can think clearly, connect dots across projects, and shape the roadmap without interruption. I often end the day by documenting learnings so the next iteration is sharper than the last.

For students or alumni wanting to follow a similar path, what would you recommend they focus on?

Leverage the ecosystem as much as the coursework. UChicago gives you access to an incredible network of professors, researchers, and data sets — take advantage of it.

I spent much of my time working on experimentation and randomized control trials, collaborating with classmates and faculty to apply those concepts to real-world questions. Those projects eventually led me to write books and articles on A/B testing and data-driven decision-making — work that continues to shape my career today.

What advice would you give someone considering applying to the Joint MBA/MPCS Program?

It’s an intense program, but it’s exactly what the modern product landscape demands. Great product managers today need to understand not just users and markets, but also systems, data, and algorithms. This program equips you to do that.

You’ll work harder than you expect, but you’ll also come out able to bridge strategy and engineering with confidence. If you’re genuinely curious about how technology drives business — and not just how to manage people who build it — this program is one of the best investments you can make.

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Seejon Oh

Seejon Oh
Joint MBA/MPCS Class of 2023
Senior Product Manager, Uber