Pavel Dounaevski, MBA '24

From a young age, Pavel Dounaevski, MBA ’24, knew he wanted to pursue a career that was part of something bigger than himself. His decision to join the U.S. Army was his first step on that path, which would eventually lead him to the Ross School of Business.

From the Military to Michigan Ross

Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, Pavel moved to the United States as a child and then grew up in State College, Penn. When he graduated high school, Pavel went straight to Valley Forge Military Academy and College, where he graduated at the top of his class and got a full scholarship to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He served in the U.S. Army Reserves for two years before graduating in 2014 with a double major in political science and peace, war, and defense, which he says was similar to international relations, a lifelong passion of his.

Once he had completed school, Pavel served 10 years in the military, where he worked in several different roles in special operations. As he neared a decade of service, he began to think about what he wanted to do next.

“In the military, I would have never thought of myself as being a chief financial officer or something of that nature,” Pavel said. “It was only after my third deployment that I came back, and I wanted a change of pace. I wanted this ability to kind of take control of my own destiny, and I wanted to provide some generational wealth for my family going down the road. So I was kind of at this crossroads.”

Pavel gained interest in potentially earning his MBA after consulting others in his life who had done so. To him, it seemed like a natural step that could prepare him for a meaningful career in whichever industry he decided he wanted to pursue. So, in the span of six weeks, he took the GRE and applied to eight schools.

“I think, overall, the community was the main reason why I decided to apply to Ross. I can name like 1,000 folks that helped me make that decision, but one of those that I initially talked to is my wife's best friend, who was a first-year MBA when I started applying,” Pavel said. He says that as he reached out to alums and current students, he quickly found that the community at Michigan Ross stood out among others.

Every time I reached out to a program that I was interested in, I reached out to the veterans first. That was my first point of contact. And the veterans here at Ross were incredibly open and were willing to work off-hours to help me with resume and essay reviews. They were there for me even if I was going to choose somewhere else. And I didn't really find that at any other school.

Community and Opportunity

This sense of strong community led Pavel to choose Michigan Ross for his MBA. He enrolled in the Full-Time MBA Program and immediately found that the action-based curriculum was right up his alley.

“In every class I had, every single thing was built around this team dynamic. Everything is done as a team, because while there are a lot of jobs out there where you’re sort of an individual, the majority of things you do in teams,” he said. “If you learn the habits of a bad team player, then you're not going be able to perform in your job, whether that's in the military in a high-stress environment overseas, or in a corporate setting where you have a last-minute deliverable to a client.”

Pavel felt at home with this style of learning and decided to use it to his advantage and explore industries outside of his comfort zone. For his Multidisciplinary Action Project, he worked with an entertainment industry company called Atlantic Pictures.

“We looked at, basically, how do we grow their company? Whether that was geographically, by a new product model, or with a new adjacent product line. And I think the best parts about MAP are two things: the exposure to clients, and then learning how to be on a team,” Pavel said. “On top of that, we got to travel to New York City. I had never worked on an entertainment project before, so we got to hear stories of their work on previous movies like Spider-Man 3, which I thought was a really cool experience.”

With his learnings from the action-based curriculum, Pavel was able to recruit with McKinsey and Co., where he interned as an associate at their Denver office.

Giving Back to His Network

Throughout his time so far at Michigan Ross, Pavel has continued to make valuable connections, both with current students and alumni. He is involved in many things on campus, including the Armed Forces Association, where he does mentoring, and FitX, a club for students interested in the fitness industry.

For both years of his MBA experience, Pavel has also been involved with VETx, an event put on by the Michigan Ross AFA that hosts a series of veteran speakers sharing the experiences that made them the leaders that they are today. As a first-year MBA, he had the opportunity to be a speaker and tell his story, and this year, he is helping organize the event so others can do the same.

“I think my favorite experience at Ross has been VETx. Having the opportunity to speak in front of the entire school to people who may have looked at me from a different perspective was very impactful. We all have stories to share, right? Mine was just in a uniform,” Pavel explained. “I think it is important to share because it helps people understand that there are gaps in my armor. There's a lot of vulnerability there. In the military, just like anyone, we're not perfect, and we have similar struggles to everybody else. If I could lend an ear to that or lend a voice to that, I think that is one of my callings.”

Goals for the Future

As his graduation date approaches in 2024, Pavel says he is eager to soak up the Michigan Ross experience before he leaves.

“The MBA bubble is real. You'll never get this opportunity to be around this many different people this frequently again.” Pavel said.

Once he’s earned his degree, Pavel hopes to have some time to travel with his family. After that, he’s ready to tackle his career head-on with the skills and knowledge he refined at Michigan Ross.

To potential students, he offered this advice:

“Don't self-select yourself out. The business world needs more people with unique perspectives. And once you understand that Michigan Ross is the right place for you, reach out, because the student ambassadors will really help you. And at the end of the day, the people are what makes this place continue to get better. Michigan puts its money where its mouth is when it comes to DEI initiatives and sustainability initiatives. Even when it comes to the pedigree of academics, I think it all holds true. And that's why people continue to love this place.”