Zach Stepp cultivated a strong work ethic at a young age, working his way up to becoming a manager at the local Five Guys in Avon, Ohio, where spent his nights working full-time hours during his senior year of high school.  Making what seemed like a lot of money to him at the time, Zach could easily see his future at the fast casual restaurant. With college on the horizon, he recalls thinking, “Taking out massive student loans and moving away from that job would have been a difficult decision.” 

Fortunately, his English teacher pushed him to dream big and apply to QuestBridge. Zach matched and attended the University of Chicago with a full four-year scholarship, which set him on a path to ultimately earn his MBA and make an impact in the public sector.

At UChicago, first as an undergrad, Zach majored in Political Science and was involved with Model United Nations, the Institute of Politics, and the admissions office as a campus tour guide. UChicago expanded Zach’s world, giving him the chance to travel far beyond the continental U.S. “My first time on an airplane was flying out for Admitted Students Weekend. By the time I had graduated, I had traveled to Seoul, Havana, and Vienna. UChicago opened a gateway to the world I never imagined.” 

After graduation, Zach began his career in Washington, D.C. in government and public sector consulting at EY, where he supported clients across federal, state, and local governments on projects ranging from analysis of complex data sets, development of 5–10-year strategic plans, and support of public agencies to reimagine their operating models. In addition to consulting, he also worked on political campaigns and even ran for office back home in Ohio in 2020. 

After five years, Zach decided to take his consulting skillset to the next level by applying to business school. Although he otherwise would not have considered business school an option given the significant direct and opportunity cost of time away from working, he realized that with the help of scholarships, the added value of the MBA made a lot of sense for his future. Just as QuestBridge had connected him to financial support as a high school student, the QuestBridge Graduate School Match: MBA enabled Zach to pursue business school with a full-tuition scholarship.

Since graduating from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business in 2025, Zach has returned to EY as a Senior Manager in the Government and Public Sector, where he feels he is able to “serve clients responsible for managing programs and services that significantly impact people that depend on public resources to get by every single day.” 

As he reflects on his academic and professional journey, he emphasizes, “Dream big and know your value. There are sometimes instances of people helping open doors for you, but more often than not, you need to knock on that door to get ahead. Don’t wait for your ‘turn’ or for the ‘standard’ promotion cycle. If you see yourself capable of a role, build that business case and go justify it. Odds are that you just need the self-confidence to pursue it, and in many cases, insist upon it.”