Story by Tricia Miller Klapheke
Image Courtesy Sal DeGrazio
Sal DeGrazio ’24 MBA hones his problem-solving skills.
Sal DeGrazio ’24 MBA (pictured) had a life-changing conversation with a Navy recruiter at Lehigh’s career fair in September 2023. Several interviews later, the Army veteran had his choice of jobs from three Navy teams that wanted to hire him.
DeGrazio left the Army in 2023 after more than 11 years. His wide-ranging Army experience made him a perfect candidate for Lehigh’s one-year MBA program. He had managed people and resources, and he could express his opinion and synthesize different solutions. He had less experience, however, interviewing for jobs and working in a corporate environment. He learned a lot from Lehigh staff and professors, including Professor Dale Falcinelli, whose practicum, DeGrazio says, was “bar none.”
“Dale offered insight that could only come from his 30-plus years in investment banking and consulting,” DeGrazio says. “He shared his experiences and challenges, and then he allowed us to figure out our own ways to solve the problems he had faced.
DeGrazio started working as a logistician at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey in July. His group supplies metal 3D printers to the Navy’s entire fleet, plus allies’ ships.