Siebel Scholars, from left: Helen Berhanu, Philipp Schellhaas, Michael Liu, Isabella Haegg, Ian McRae | Photos by courtesy.
Five second-year MBA students at Stanford Graduate School of Business have been named 2025 Siebel Scholars, in recognition of their leadership and academic accomplishments. The students — Helen Berhanu, Isabella Haegg, Michael Liu, Ian McRae, and Philipp Schellhaas — were chosen by a committee of Stanford GSB faculty. The award includes a $35,000 stipend to be used toward the student’s final year.
The Siebel Scholars program was established by the Thomas and Stacey Siebel Foundation in 2000 to recognize the most talented students at the world’s leading graduate schools of business, computer science, bioengineering, and energy science. Each year, more than 90 graduate students at the top of their class are selected during their final year of studies. More than 1,100 Siebel Scholars currently serve as advisors to the Siebel Foundation and work collaboratively to find solutions to society’s most pressing problems.
The 2025 Siebel Scholars are:
Helen Berhanu
Helen Berhanu received her BA in English and history from the University of Pennsylvania, where she was a Benjamin Franklin Scholar and graduated summa cum laude. Before the GSB, she worked as an associate principal on the demand generation team at Via, a software startup building more equitable and sustainable transit services. Before Via, she worked in publicity at Penguin Random House. At Stanford GSB, Helen serves on the Student Association’s Academic Committee and tutors through the Peninsula Bridge program. This summer, she worked as a summer associate at Bain and Company in New York. In her free time, Helen enjoys medieval and Renaissance art, speculative fiction, and baked goods.
Isabella Haegg
Isabella Haegg graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Princeton University with a BA in economics and certificates in finance and journalism. Before the GSB, she worked as an engagement manager at McKinsey & Company in New York and London, where she focused on M&A strategy and large-scale transformations for advanced industrial clients. At the GSB, she serves as co-president of the Private Equity Club. This summer, she worked at 26North in New York City as a member of the investment team in the private equity group.
Michael Liu
Prior to Stanford GSB, Michael Liu worked in private equity at Warburg Pincus and Crescent Capital Partners, investing in buyout and growth deals across Asia-Pacific. This summer, he worked as a public equities investor at T. Rowe Price. He began his career in M&A investment banking at Goldman Sachs. At the GSB, he serves as the co-chief financial officer of the Student Association, chief investment officer of the Finance & Investment Club, president of the Australia & New Zealand Club, and vice president of the Private Equity and Greater China Business Clubs. He is also a View from The Top leader and an Arbuckle Leadership Fellow. Michael is passionate about diversity in finance and has founded a non-profit to improve the representation of intersectional identities within corporate Australia. Michael graduated with a bachelor of commerce in finance from the University of New South Wales, where he was a New Colombo Plan Scholar.
Ian McRae
Prior to pursuing his MBA at Stanford GSB, Ian McRae was a private equity associate at The Carlyle Group in the firm’s U.S. buyout fund, where he evaluated investment opportunities in the technology sector. He was previously an investment banking analyst at Morgan Stanley in the media and communications group. Over the summer, he worked as a public market investor at Dodge & Cox. At Stanford GSB, he is co-president of the Finance and Investment Club and co-chair of the Academic Committee. He is also a voting member of the Stanford University Board of Trustees. He graduated summa cum laude from Northeastern University, where he studied finance, accounting, and economics. He grew up in Massachusetts and enjoys skiing, hiking, and fishing.
Philipp Schellhaas
Philipp Schellhaas serves as an Arbuckle Leadership Fellow at Stanford GSB, where he is also co-chief financial officer of the Student Association and co-chair of the Academic Committee. Raised in Germany and a scholar of the German Academic Scholarship Foundation, he is the president of the GSB Europe Club. Prior to the GSB, he worked as an engagement manager at McKinsey & Company in San Francisco, where he advised tech investors and fast-growing tech companies, and gained further experience at J.P. Morgan and Goldman Sachs. This summer, Schellhaas worked in venture capital at Accel. He graduated with a BA from the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland, and holds an MSc in financial economics with distinction from the University of Oxford. In his spare time, you can find him outdoors running, snowboarding, or playing tennis.
About the Siebel Foundation
The Thomas and Stacey Siebel Foundation, a nonprofit, public-benefit corporation, was established as a private foundation in 1996. Its mission is to foster programs and organizations that improve the quality of life, environment, and education of its community members. The Siebel Foundation funds projects to support the homeless and underprivileged, education and research, public health, and alternative energy solutions.
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