When we think of "diversity", we typically think of what I would call demographic diversity: race, age, gender, nationality, religion, etc. However, during my summer internship at Harrah's, I had the chance to be a part of a diversity training program, where I learned that there are over 50 ways to measure diversity.
(Yes, I know I said this last year. But last year I just wanted an excuse to make fun of my fellow blogeteers John Park and Matt Kerbel being fans of the Toronto Major Laughs Maple Leafs. This time I actually have more to say.)
Applying that logic, here are a few different ways that you could measure the diversity here at UCLA Anderson:
* Career Aspirations: One of the reasons I decided to come to UCLA was that while there are healthy contingents of people looking for careers in finance or consulting, these two fields represent a much smaller portion of the total UCLA Anderson population than they do in other schools. Nothing during my time here has dissuaded me of this opinion. There are many other career aspirations on campus, including sports, entertainment, healthcare, non-profit, and education.
* Entrepreneurship. I had heard a lot about UCLA Anderson's commitment to entrepreneurship, but I never appreciated that until i came here. Many of my classmates are actively looking to start new businesses after graduation, and the school encourages and actively supports these endeavors -- as evidenced by the projects that came to fruition during the summer and in our second year.
For example, one of my classmates has been working on edilex, a company offering professional grade business contract templates to legal professionals and business people over the web -- check it out at www.edilex.com.
* Previous work history: in my section last year, there were many different career backgrounds. The usual pre-MBA careers of finance and consulting were present, but so were military (not just US), entertainment (including a feature film producer!), non-profit, healthcare, and energy, plus two Mormon missionaries and a published author. And that was just within my 72-person section.
* Sport Activities: My regular readers will be forgiven for thinking that all we do here is drink, watch sports, play poker, and get into political debates. I can't imagine a sport that isn't represented from both the fan and the spectator perspective. And from those in the 1st year class I've met so far, that now includes cricket!
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* Yeah, I'm a little annoyed at my Steelers, who managed to terrify Tampa Bay, 38-13 last week. See, I'm annoyed because we have so many holes to fill - offensive line being the most glaring - that we need a year off, get a high spot in the draft, and rebuild. This year seemed like a good year to do that -- no Ben, no Santonio, difficult off-season. Instead, after beating three teams we should have beaten, we're talking about making the playoffs and I can just see that 7-9 train wreck coming. Of course if we make the playoffs, then I'll be happy to admit I was wrong.
* Great move by the NHL to get HBO involved in the Winter Classic with its behind-the-scenes documentary of the Capitals and Penguins up to the Winter Classic. The best part is that the NHL series is being covered by broader entertainment media, such as the Hollywood Reporter - this shows that the NHL can build on the momentum of last season, arguably the best NHL season since 1994 (the Capitals' own demise against Montreal notwithstanding).
* I've seen Chicharito's goal in Valencia several times now. What a brilliant strike! But I still don't understand why Macheda didn't just have a shot himself! Macheda has a lethal strike himself, surely he would have put that in. I complain only because of United's woeful finishing this season and last. Macheda has either lost his shooting instinct, or has gained an unworldly sense of vision.
-- Sreesha
