Austin Evers
Wake Forest University School of Business
Hometown: Atlanta, GA
High School: Mount Pisgah
Major: Business and Enterprise Management
Minor: Entrepreneurship and Social Enterprise
Favorite Business Courses: During my sophomore year in the School of Business, I took a class called “Why Business?” The class evaluated the proper role of business in a humane and just society and it equipped me with tools to explore why I was majoring in business. I think it gave a greater sense of purpose in my studies and helped me develop informed and reasoned positions of my own on the relative morality of markets and business. I also enjoyed my classes on strategy, marketing, and finance.
Extracurricular Activities, Community Work and Leadership Roles During College
Extracurricular Activities: TEDxWakeForestU 2016 – Executive Director; Student Advising Leadership Council – Chair of Training and Development; Lambda Chi Alpha – Vice President; Wake Forest Undergraduate Entrepreneurship Club – President; Founder – Appuous, Inc.
Community Work: Samaritan Inn Ministries; Habitat for Humanity; Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina; The Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund; Forsyth Humane Society
Awards/Honors: Dean’s List; The Richard T. Clay Scholarship; Wake Forest University Center for Innovation, Creativity, & Entrepreneurship 2012 – 2013 Excellence in Entrepreneurship Award
Where have you interned during your college career?
BNP Paribas Corporate and Institutional Banking; New York, New York
Describe your dream job; A position where I can creatively solve problems, utilize my passion for entrepreneurship, and make a positive impact on society.
What did you enjoy most about majoring in a business-related field? Aside from my favorite classes, I have deeply enjoyed traveling abroad with School of Business faculty studying business ethics and a trip to Silicon Valley studying organizational behavior at firms such as Google, Pinterest, Oracle, and others. I also found my internship and the accompanying class offered to Business and Enterprise Management majors to be a capstone experience in my business education.
Where would you like to work after graduation? To be decided.
What are your long-term professional goals? I want to continue to leverage my education and passion for entrepreneurship to enable people to live better lives and to profoundly impact humanity. I have yet to determine what form this will take, but am confident that I will be able to act on an opportunity when it presents itself.
“I knew I wanted to major in business when…I started my own software startup in high school. The business world is incredibly dynamic, allows for creativity, and has the ability to make a positive impact on society. I wanted a comprehensive degree that would prepare me for life after graduation and I knew that I wanted to major in a field I was passionate about. For me, business has always sparked an interest, so the choice was natural.”
“If I didn’t major in business, I would be…an economics or art history major.”
Which academic or personal achievement are you most proud of? One of my proudest achievements thus far has been building my own software startup from the ground up. I’ve learned so much about myself and have been able to apply the theories and lessons I learn in the classroom directly to my own business. While it has proved challenging at times, it has also been an incredibly positive journey.
What animal would you choose to represent your professional brand ? A dolphin. Their intelligence, complex communication abilities, and sense of self-awareness make them admirable.
Who would you most want to thank for your success? Both of my parents deserve endless gratitude for my success. I would say that my dad has played a pivotal role in shaping my passion for business and entrepreneurship, always supporting and encouraging me to pursue what I love, teaching me along the way, and providing guidance. I also want to thank the faculty and staff at Wake Forest University School of Business for a transformative experience during the course of my business education.
Fun fact about yourself: I’m a dual-citizen. In addition to my American citizenship, I am also a Dutch citizen.
Favorite book: Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
Favorite movie: Inside Job
Favorite musical performer: Alt-J
Favorite vacation spot: Anywhere in Europe
What are your hobbies? I love to cook, travel, volunteer, and sail. I started cooking at a very young age and I have been fortunate to see many different parts of the world—I am looking forward to spending time traveling post-graduation.
What made Austin such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2016?
“At first, Austin Evers didn’t know what to expect from my class, “Why Business?” The class was supposed to be an exploration of the role of business in a humane and just society. But did someone going into finance–or accounting or marketing–really need to think about that? It turned out that Austin immediately saw the point of what we were doing. What good did it do to know how to do finance, if one couldn’t articulate why one should do it? He threw himself into the arguments we read from philosophers, economists, businesspeople, and journalists with intelligence and determination. By the end of the class, he had constructed a reasoned narrative of his own that could explain the place of finance and the other areas of business in a humane and just society; more than that, it could guide his own future behavior. He wanted not just to engage in business, but to engage in honorable business. That is the essence of Wake Forest’s “Pro Humanitate” educational mission, which Austin came not just to understand but to embody.”
James Otteson
Executive Director, BB&T Center for the Study of Capitalism
Thomas W. Smith Presidential Chair in Business Ethics
Wake Forest University
“Austin is one of the most entrepreneurial students I know. In the classroom, he has shown a great deal of maturity in his thoughts and actions. He is able to take very abstract concepts and relate them to a variety of fields and applications and has the ability to recognize entrepreneurial opportunities in unlikely areas. Not only has he been a successful student while running Appuous, an app-development company he started, but he has also consistently helped other entrepreneurs. In his four years here, he has made a significant positive impact on developing the entrepreneurial community and culture at Wake Forest. He has served as president of the E-Society, a student-led club that supports entrepreneurial activity on campus and is currently serving as Executive Director for the 5th annual TEDx – Wake Forest event. His interpersonal skills and friendly nature go a long way toward motivating fellow students, and his ability to be a “big-thinker” while still being focused on the mission at hand is an inspiring leadership quality.”
Bren Varner
Professor of Practice, Strategy & Entrepreneurship
Director, Business & Enterprise Management Degree Program
Wake Forest University
Questions about this article? Email us or leave a comment below.