BOP student Malik Hicks says networking, time management, accountability, case studies preparation and good study habits have been key to his success at Purdue, where he maintains a near perfect GPA. (Photo provided)
Opportunity Abounds
BOP student Malik Hicks counts his blessings
Spring 2021
By Eric Nelson
Growing up Carmel, Indiana, Malik Hicks often heard his older sister’s friend, Madison Long (BSM ’17), heap praise upon the Dr. Cornell A. Bell Business Opportunity Program (BOP) at Purdue’s Krannert School of Management. “It sounded like an amazing program and I wanted to be in a place where I could have the same opportunity,” he says.
Enter Darren Henry, director of BOP and Krannert’s diversity programs, who introduced Hicks to other BOP students as well as alumni. “I was sold,” Hicks says. “I met the best people, got a feel of what college life was like and saw the upperclassman really go out of their way to make us feel like family.”
He is also proud to be a member of the 50th entering class of BOP, which celebrated its half-century anniversary in 2018. “I can’t imagine a better way to carry on the legacy of Purdue, the Krannert School and BOP than to use my experiences to make an impact not only on campus, but wherever I go.”
Now a junior, Hicks is double majoring in Finance and Supply Chain Information and Analytics and involved in several student organizations. He is a Management Ambassador, a member of the Society of Minority Managers, and an active member of the Purdue Club Golf Team.
Hicks says networking, time management, accountability, case studies preparation and good study habits have been key to his success at Purdue, where he maintains a near perfect GPA. He has also participated in numerous events, including the Goldman Sachs Undergraduate Forum, the McKinsey Diversity Leadership Summit, and Citi Freshman Discovery Program, among others.
He has also benefited from his time with BOP alumni and their families. On a shopping trip to Target, Hicks and his classmates had a chance encounter with Jewel Parrish, the wife of alumnus Roland Parrish, who was the lead donor in creating Purdue’s Parrish Library of Management and Economics. “She had recognized us as BOP students that she had met at another event with her husband,” he says. “She offered to take us home and even offered help paying for our groceries. These genuine experiences with BOP alumni have been foundational to my success.”
His first internship came the summer after his freshman year, when he served as a supply chain analyst for Calumet Specialty Products Partners, LP. “I worked using systems like SAP, Transplace and BOBJ to determine on-time transit for the company. I learned most about railcars and trucks in addition to how each of them was transported before making the switch to the financial institution,” he says.
Most recently, Hicks worked at JPMorgan Chase & Company in Indianapolis, where he was a middle market banking and specialized industries. “I delivered treasury solutions to help a company decrease its conversion cycle,” he says. “My biggest takeaways from the experience were the relationships I built, being adaptable to change due to COVID, learning to work remotely, confidence in giving presentations to upper management, and collaboration with colleagues in other states.”
As a Management Ambassador, Hicks regularly advises prospective students on what they can find at Purdue and the Krannert School. In fact, he may own the record for the longest tour of Krannert out of all Ambassadors. In addition to sitting on panels for Management Ambassadors, Hicks has shared his voice and experiences as a representative of Krannert on Diversity and Inclusion panels through Purdue Admissions.
“My pitch is if you are looking for a large, safe campus with a family feeling, world-class professors, supportive alumni, opportunities to speak to the top management in the biggest companies, opportunities to study abroad, and a job offer before you graduate, Krannert is the right business school for you.”
