Evelyne Vu-Tien ’24: Succeeding for the Betterment of Others

Evelyne Vu-Tien, DDS, ’24 (MBA) has lived a life full of accomplishments, but to her, some of the greatest achievements have been those from building success for others. As a busy pediatric dentist who ran her own practice for 14 years, going back to school again for a masters degree was a bold move made with her community in mind. 

Graduating this year from the part-time MBA program at Knauss, Evelyne has big plans for using her degree - not to make more money but to help more people by sharing best practices for their businesses, creating more sustainable dental practices, and encouraging access for underserved communities.

Finding Balance  

Evelyne Vu-Tien is a pediatric dentist, business consultant, wife, mother, volunteer, and so much more. She majored in Business Economics in her undergrad from UCLA, and received her doctorate of dental surgery (DDS) from the University of San Francisco. 

After receiving her DDS, she went on to open her own pediatric dental practice, one of the first here in San Diego. She ran it thoughtfully and passionately for 14 years before selling it to become an even bigger part of her community through consulting and volunteering. 

Evelyne decided it was finally time for her to head back to school and get the MBA she had always dreamed of. Except, her life now looked drastically different than it did when she started school for her DDS. With two children heading into their teenage years, a husband who’s active in the military frequently deploying, and her own clinical career, she worried that she wouldn’t find a program flexible and supportive enough for her to balance a busy life between home, school and work. 

“I knew I needed a part time program because of my career and family. I ultimately wanted to be a role model for my children who are 11 and 14 now. I want to show them that if you have an interest in something, you go for it, because you’re never too old.”

Evelyne was excited to discover the part-time MBA program here at Knauss, not only for the flexibility but because of the school’s core values. “I’ve been to a lot of big schools that are more research based and I chose USD for its emphasis on supporting students through small classes and connections to expert professors.” 

She emphasized what she was looking for in her dream school, adding, “I also knew I wanted a school that was local, really prioritized networking, and prided itself on its integrity, sustainability and helping others.” 

A large part of her life was spent partnering on health initiatives and volunteering, such as previously serving as a board member for the Oral Health Initiative for San Diego Health and Human Services, creating and piloting “Give Kids a Smile Program” to treat underserved children, and serving on the ethics committee at San Diego County Dental Society. 

Staying true to this she was determined to go to a school that actively encouraged community engagement. “Knauss really embodies the values of being involved in the community and doing sustainable changes that will help others in the future so it was a great alliance of the business and healthcare viewpoints I wanted, while remaining community-minded.” 

Consulting for Change 

Leading up to graduation, Evelyne has already been sought after for several full-time opportunities - but her mind is focused on a different goal than personal success. 

“I am still helping my friends with their clinical practices and I want to do more help in the community, such as for Rady Children’s Hospital and other companies by doing both business and dental consulting. Whether for profit or non-profit, just getting people started and using my MBA to leverage greater opportunities in the community where I can be of service.”

When asked how Knauss’ part-time program assisted her in this dream, she said, “Everything helped from the communication to the leadership skills and even the analytical skills. I ran my own practice for 14 years and did business consulting as well, but this program provided me a whole new level of business acumen that I can use to help those around me thrive and that’s a big part of my goal now.” 

Having already had a successful business herself, Evelyne reflected on what she might have done differently with the knowledge she has now, or what she might encourage others to do with their own. 

“Knauss really makes you think about how you can mitigate your impact in this world. A big problem within dentistry is the amount of plastic disposables we use to be hygienic. Now it’s making me think about what kinds of things could be sterilized instead. How can we make the system more sustainable?”

Now, leaving with the models of sustainability she’s learned at Knauss, Evelyne feels prepared to share her knowledge with other business owners here in the San Diego area.

Setting an example for her children and sticking true to her values, she stated “the older you get, the more you realize that there are things in life that you chase that increase your happiness. Part of that is those experiences with other people, making a difference. You can earn as much money as you want but true happiness is in the relationships you make and building up others to see them succeed as well.”

 

– Jessica Applonie