Natalie Blickensderfer
Lipscomb University College of Business
“I am Christian woman studying finance aiming to glorify God and enjoy Him forever!”
Fun fact about yourself: I have a pet snake named Jake.
Hometown: Plano, TX
High School: Plano Senior High School
Major: Finance
Minor: Data Analytics
Favorite Business Course: Equity Investments. We learned the foundations of equity investing and managed a portfolio of primarily large-cap US stocks. Lipscomb’s performance as a class returned 847 bps of alpha in 2024!
Extracurricular Activities, Community Work and Leadership Roles During College:
Awards:
- College of Business Joe Ivey Strategy Award
- Virgie Elrod Clouse Creativity Award
Clubs:
- Dean’s Student Leadership Council – Member
- Finance Club – Member
- American Marketing Association – President
- Classics Book Club – Co-founder and President
- ASPIRE Fellows (Global Leadership Honors)
- Maverick Innovators Fellowship
- Christian Economic Forum Student Ambassador
Competitions:
- American Marketing Association International Collegiate Conference (1st – Design Lab, 3rd – Sales, 4th – Marketing Strategy, 2024; 2nd – Elevator Pitch, Finalist – Sales, 2023; 3rd – Marketing Strategy, Finalist – Sales, Finalist – Elevator Pitch, 2022)
- Tractor Supply Company Supply Chain and Sustainability Case Study Competition 2024 – 1st
- Kennesaw Marketing Association Invitational 2024 – Tied 3rd
- Purdue University HR Case Study Competition 2021 – 3rd
- Oracle Sales Competition 2025 – 1st Elevator Pitch, 2nd Team Case Study
- National Shore Sales Challenge 2024
- CFA Research Challenge 2025
Where have you interned during your college career? Operations Analyst at Oracle in Redwood Shores, CA
Where will you be working after graduation? I am exploring opportunities and awaiting decisions (Undecided).
Who is your favorite business professor? Studying at Lipscomb University has afforded me the opportunity to have a personal relationship with every single one of my professors. While I cannot choose a favorite, I attribute much of my success to Dr. Rebecca Burcham. I have actually never taken a class with Dr. Burcham, but have benefited incomprehensively by her support, especially when it comes to competitions and extracurriculars. I remember one early Wednesday morning emailing her a crazy idea to take a team across states to compete in a promotional marketing strategy competition that weekend. By midday, we had compiled a team and worked out logistics. By Saturday, we had competed and placed third! Dr. Burcham is kind, hardworking, and overwhelmingly dedicated to the success of her students. She is one of my biggest supporters and I cannot imagine what my time at Lipscomb would have looked like without her.
What is the biggest lesson you gained from studying business? While the soft-skills I took away after four years in school are invaluable, I think all of my technical classes and the proficiency I now have are unique to the college environment. Learning the little things – like how to prepare amortization tables, write SQL statements, and identify customer segments – are skills I may have never learned otherwise. I might not use some of these skills in my job, but having them in my back pocket has given me confidence in my own capabilities. I could never have learned this much in such a short time if it weren’t for incredible professors who have high expectations and commitment to helping their students think critically.
What advice would you give to a student looking to major in a business-related field? Studying business is incredibly rewarding if done with purpose and diligence. The adage “you get out what you put in” is true for any college major, but especially in a discipline as broad as business. If I were to offer any advice, it would be to proactively seek difficult challenges so that you can reap the benefits of pushing yourself to learn as much as possible.
Looking back over your experience, what is the one thing you’d do differently in business school and why? Complain less. Business school is an amazing opportunity, and I am seriously grateful to have had this experience. There were difficult seasons, but the outcome was so worthwhile. I think more gratitude would have not only encouraged myself, but also those around me. I get to study with a great purpose as a Christian.
What is one way that your business school has integrated AI into your programming? What is one insight you gained from using AI? Generative AI tools like ChatGPT are expected to be used in many of my classes. Additionally, certain courses have very specific applications for AI. In my classes that utilized programming, we learned how to use the popular GitHub Copilot API with Python to help us write scripts and complete code snippets using the same tools that industry leaders use. For another class, I built a creative visual infographic for an assignment with different AI art tools. Lipscomb also has a new M.S. in Applied Artificial Intelligence that we still benefit from as undergraduates; the professors in this program teach some undergrad classes.
Which academic, extracurricular or personal achievement are you most proud of? As a bright-eyed freshman, I had the opportunity to travel to Chicago to compete for our school in the American Marketing Association International Collegiate Conference in the Marketing Strategy competition. My teammate Jordan Forbes and I were given 30 minutes to analyze a business case and prepare strategic solutions. We practiced often and did mock cases to prepare, usually failing and refining a lot. Neither of us were marketing majors nor had even taken any marketing courses. We placed third overall out of 60+ schools that year and set a precedence for excellence in that event for years to come. That weekend allowed me to see the tremendous benefits of extracurricular competitions and my collegiate experience has been enriched by everything I participated in outside of the classroom.
Which classmate do you most admire? Admiration includes respect and appreciation, and while I do not have a close relationship with this classmate, my peer Henry Wolfe is a stand-out student in our College of Business and widely-regarded as one of the hardest-working and most talented people at our university. I’ve had the honor to work with Henry in a few classes and I am always impressed by his professionalism, honesty, and intelligence. He has excellent priorities and an evident desire to see success in others. He is a phenomenal leader and makes those around him better.
Who would you most want to thank for your success? Only about a month into college, I became a member at Grace Community Church in Nashville, TN. I love my church family and am grateful to them for four years of amazing community and discipleship. While many of them may not even know much about my studies or involvement at school, I define success not by academic achievements, but by the ultimate success that Christ fulfilled when he defeated death. My entire church continually reminds and encourages me of this truth. Our pastor Scott Patty shepherds his congregation with great care and is someone I can continually thank for his faithful stewardship of the gospel.
What are the top two items on your professional bucket list?
Coach/advise collegiate competition teams (and win!)
Be an expert—my undergraduate interests and involvements are diversified; the next step for me is to specialize and bring value to a firm with specificity.
What made Natalie such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2025?
“Natalie is an exceptional student and leader. She is incredibly bright and talented with strong critical thinking and analytical skills. Over her four years at Lipscomb, she has excelled at the highest levels both in the classroom and in many co-curricular activities. She has competed in many national competitions including being selected twice to represent our entrepreneurship program at TCU’s Values and Ventures pitch competition, and she was also chosen as a student fellow at the 2024 Christian Economic Forum in Quebec City. Canada. This is one of several honors and fellowships she has received during her college career.
Above all Natalie is a wonderful young woman who possesses the highest personal and professional character, and she works hard to help others around her succeed. The epitome of a servant leader, Natalie represents the very best of the Lipscomb University College of Business.
Dr. Jeff Cohu
Executive Director, Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation
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