Student Perspectives: Finding Balance at Anderson

This post is a part of the Student Perspectives series - each post is written by a current UCLA Anderson student, and provides first-hand perspectives and experiences about being an MBA student at UCLA Anderson.

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It’s no secret that you will be very busy in business school; however, it is important to find balance, so you can enjoy the experience rather than feeling overwhelmed all the time. There’s an adage in the business school community that you can focus on only two of the following three at a time: recruiting, academics, and social life. While true to some extent, here are some tips to help you navigate through your time at Anderson: 

1. Recruiting: You will spend a lot of with your classmates recruiting for an internship in your desired industry. I encourage you to enjoy this shared experience and use it as a time to get to know your classmates. You will be spending a lot of time laughing (or crying) together, and I met some of my best friends during recruiting.
   
   
2. Academics: Instead of grades, focus on learning the material and applying it in the business world. Very few employers care about your GPA; rather, they are more interested in your business knowledge. You will learn so much from the world-class faculty at Anderson and from your classmates. There will be times when you feel overwhelming during recruiting but remember that your learning team and section mates will always have your back!
   
   
3. Social: There are so many things to do that you should not feel bad about missing a few events here and there. From weekly happy hours and Anderson Afternoons to learning team dinners, winter (Park City) and spring break trips (Israel, Japan, Morocco), school-wide events (tailgates, 90s Party, AnderWeen, AnderProm), and club-sponsored events – just to name few – there is always something to do. I encourage you to enjoy student life while you can, but again, don’t feel pressured or obligated to go to everything.

Lastly, it’s okay to change your priorities as you go through school! For instance, during the summer and fall quarters, I focused on recruiting and academics, and during the winter and spring quarters, I ramped up my involvement in clubs and socializing with classmates and friends in LA.

-- Michael Wang '19 

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Student Blogger:  Michael Wang '19 Hometown: Belmont, MA Undergraduate Studies:  Harvard University, Classics Pre-Anderson: Huron Consulting Group - Analyst, HBR Consulting - Senior Consultant Post-MBA Goals: Management Consulting Activities@Anderson:  Management Consulting Association, Anderson Ambassador Corps