Hello! My name is Jake Lippmann, and I’m a rising Junior at the University of Pittsburgh. And, I’m thrilled to be participating in this program! Tomorrow I will be flying into Prague, Czech Republic for the next eight weeks, and I’m so excited. Below is a little introduction about me!
In my free time I have plenty of hobbies. I’m a lifelong skateboarder (recently retired), but I still enjoy watching new skate videos and appreciating the creative nature of the sport. Another hobby close to my heart is my love of MMA. Whether it’s watching the UFC every Saturday or practicing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at the MMA club at Pitt or various gyms around Pittsburgh and my home in New York — I can’t get enough. Apart from my hobbies, I love hanging out with friends, watching TV and movies, and listening to music. Lately I’ve been on a big 70s rock kick.
At the start of my Sophomore year, I switched my major to finance, pivoting after feeling restricted in my career outcomes as a pre-med student. Finance provides me with career flexibility and a general knowledge base across a range of industries. Additionally, after taking a class on Modern Thought Freshman year, I decided to pursue a philosophy minor. Philosophy is great for building reasoning skills. Finance builds quantitative rigor while philosophy sharpens critical thinking. While Finance gives me the quantitative analytical skills, making me a more well-rounded thinker.
In the fall, I was elected to be my fraternity’s Historian, which is the alumni relations position. I speak regularly with alumni about their post-graduate journeys and organize networking events each semester. I’ve also continued training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and have a regular role at Pitt’s MMA club where I teach BJJ every Wednesday to all skill levels. Last semester, I developed a beginner’s curriculum so future officers have something to follow.
Professionally, I have held a number of jobs throughout both high school and college. In high school, I was the Assistant General Manager of my Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gym, where I helped set up clients with memberships, maintained the facility, and helped oversee merchandising. More recently, I took a job at the brand new Recreation and Wellness Center at Pitt as an Operations Attendant, where my responsibilities mirror a lot of what I did at the gym in high school. Working at the Rec is comfortable for me — I’m happy to be back in a similar environment to where I spent so much of my time growing up.
Why IIP?
During my time as a pre-med student, I tried to knock out as many gen-eds as possible to free up space for my major courses down the line. I had already come to terms with not being able to study abroad, since the pre-med courseload makes it nearly impossible. However, when I switched to Finance, I started looking into possible study abroad options. I spoke with my advisor and realized that a traditional study abroad program wasn’t feasible either, since I was still behind on core business requirements. Looking into alternative opportunities, the IIP stood out immediately. Being able to gain real-world work experience while living in another country was something I simply couldn’t pass up.
Additionally, Prague is an industrial hub of Central Europe, with a growing tech sector and a thriving startup scene — making it the perfect place for me to gain real-world professional experience.
What I hope to gain
Professionally, this opportunity would be the first step in gaining understanding of the business world. I learn well in the classroom. However, I learn even better in a hands-on environment. Where I can see how my actions and decisions play out in the real world. I’m looking forward to using what I’ve learned in the School of Business and seeing my classes come alive when participating in the work of real companies making meaningful decisions.
Personally, I’ve never lived in another country. I’ve been to Europe before, but I’ve never been able to truly dive headfirst into a culture. This is an experience I’m not only excited to learn from, but also an opportunity to navigate a completely different environment from anything I’m used to.
Academically, the 6 credits from this program will keep me on track to graduate on time. The IIP also gives me the abroad experience I’ve craved since the moment I came to college, while exposing me to how businesses approach decisions in a real-world setting. I look forward to seeing everything I’ve learned in the classroom come alive in Prague.