MBA Insider's Blog

Live Student Webinar: Entertainment@Anderson (August 6 @ 7pm PT)

Tune in this upcoming Tuesday, August 6 at 7:00PM PT for a LIVE webinar with current UCLA Anderson MBA students! You will have the opportunity to connect with full-time MBA students Sarah Duncan and Todd Duboff as they tell their stories of how the Anderson helped them launch into a career in the entertainment industry!

Register and view webinar here:

 

Learn more about our student hosts:

 

Tom Duboff '20 hanging out with Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse during his internship

 

Sarah Duncan '20 hanging out with fellow Ted "interns" at MRC Studios

 

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Stay in Touch: Introduce Yourself
Follow the Admissions Team @uclaMBA:  Twitter
Questions? Contact us at: [email protected]

From the Dean’s Desk: Welcome to our International Students from the Class of 2021!

This post is part of our “From the Dean’s Desk” series, where we hear directly from our UCLA Anderson leaders across the school.

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Hello Class of 2021 International Students and welcome to UCLA Anderson!

On behalf of the MBA Admissions office, I am happy to welcome all of you to International Welcome Week. We are all proud of what you have accomplished to date, joining the best graduate business school in the world. Personally, I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know many of you at our recruiting sessions, the on-campus interview appointments, the admit events, and reading your applications. Your class is definitely a extraordinary collection of talented and diverse individuals.... but in the end, we are all one Anderson family.

Over the course of the next several days and weeks, you will be provided with countless advice on how to make the most of your two-year experience at UCLA Anderson. The UCLA Anderson experience is truly unique. You may find yourself in situations that will challenge you in a variety of different ways. Fortunately, you have enough classmates, faculty, staff, and alumni who are there to help. I encourage you to embrace these opportunities to challenge yourself and find out how much you can truly accomplish. Some ideas to consider include exploring the city of Los Angeles and later travel around the United States, if possible.

And at the same time, don’t forget that your relationship with the MBA Admissions team has not ended. We are always looking for the best talent to join future classes at UCLA Anderson. There are a number of ways to stay involved – you can join the Admissions Ambassador Corps (AAC), volunteer at a recruiting event, or simply refer a friend or colleague who you believe would be an outstanding addition to the UCLA Anderson community. And of course, feel free to connect with me by email, LinkedIn, or even better – stop by my office and share your experience since arriving in the City of Angeles. :) 

-- Alex Lawrence

Assistant Dean and Director - MBA Admissions and Financial Aid
UCLA Anderson School of Management
310.825.6944

 

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Today’s post is from Alex Lawrence, Assistant Dean & Director of Admissions for the Full-Time MBA Program. Alex is a UCLA Anderson MBA alum (Class of 1999), spending his post-MBA career working in Management Consulting prior to returning to UCLA Anderson, where he served as the Executive Director of The Riordan Program prior to joining the Admissions team.

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Stay in Touch: Introduce Yourself
Follow the Admissions Team @uclaMBA:  Twitter
Questions? Contact us at: [email protected]

UCLA Anderson Application Insider: Essay Questions for the 2019-2020 Application

This blog post is part of our "Application Insider" blog post series that provides insider information, tips, and advice about applying to the UCLA Anderson MBA program.

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APPLICATION INSIDER TOPIC:

2019-2020 ESSAY QUESTIONS RELEASED
(FOR CLASS OF 2022)

When our new MBA application goes live on August 1st, you will find we have made some changes to our essay questions for this application year (for the full-time MBA Class of 2022) --  here are our newly released questions!

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NEW APPLICANTS

a) Tell us about your MBA goals AND why you are applying to UCLA Anderson now:

• Describe your short term and long term goals. (150 words max)
• Why is UCLA Anderson a good school for you? (150 words max)

b) At Anderson, we believe our students are engaged, courageous, humble, and open. Describe a time when you demonstrated one of these traits in your personal life. (250 words max)

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REAPPLICANTS

Reapplicants are those who submitted a completed MBA application within the previous two application years. If you applied three years or more prior, then please answer the "New Applicant" questions. 

a) Please describe your career progress since you last applied and how you have enhanced your candidacy. Include information on short-term and long-term career goals, as well as your continued interest in UCLA Anderson. (500 words max)

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OPTIONAL

We also have an optional question for those who need some additional space to explain extenuating circumstances that are not evident in the application. No preference is given in the evaluation process to applicants who submit a response to the optional question. The optional question can be answered by either new applicants or reapplicants.

a) Are there any extenuating circumstances in your profile about which the Admissions Committee should be aware? (250 words max)

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It's never too early to begin thinking about your answers to these questions.  As you begin to brainstorm and write your essays, remember that your responses are the primary way for you to share your perspectives and plans with the admissions committee. The best essays are introspective, genuine and succinct in directly answering our questions and responding to our topics -- craft an essay that truly represents YOU. Whatever your target goals may be, your essay is the platform to distinguish yourself with your passion, clarity, planning and eloquence. Refining your career plans once you get here is fine, but first your application should make a compelling case for how you would use the UCLA Anderson MBA to build on your transferable skills to reach a distinctive future.

View our Admissions Requirements webpage for more information about the essay requirements, as well as the other elements of our application. 

 

Check back for more "Application Insider" blog posts that will cover information and tips on the many aspects of applying to the UCLA Anderson MBA program!

-- Ilana Van Allen '13
   Associate Director of MBA Admissions

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Stay in Touch: Introduce Yourself
Follow UCLA Anderson:  Twitter and Instagram
Questions? Contact us at: [email protected]

Day in the Life: Interning at Amazon (Tuesday Takeover)

Post is a part of the Day in the Life series - each post is written by a current UCLA Anderson student who shares their "Day in the Life"

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Hi everyone! My name is Tommy Changaris and I'm honored to host today's Tuesday Takeover for UCLA Anderson. This summer I am interning at Amazon as an intern in the Retail Leadership Development (RLD) Program. I’m originally from San Diego, CA and am actually a “Double Bruin”, having attended UCLA for my BA in Economics. Prior to returning to UCLA for my MBA, I served 4 ½ years in the U.S. Navy as a Surface Warfare Officer. After transitioning to civilian life, I was interested in working at the intersection of tech and the retail experience, so I feel like I am really in the right spot for my internship! 

 

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5:30am: Really wanting to throw myself headfirst into the Seattle lifestyle, I bought a cheap bicycle to use for my commute during the Summer. I also like to get a workout in before work, so I’m up early and ready to bike along beautiful Lake Union to my gym near the Amazon offices in Downtown Seattle. At almost 48 degrees of latitude, Seattle enjoys over 15 hours of daylight during the Summertime, so the sun has been up long before I even begin! There are plenty of other cyclists, jogger, rowers, and paddleboarders out this morning, so even with an early start I have plenty of company.

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10:00am: In an effort to promote what Amazon calls “Work-Life Harmony”, dogs are allowed and almost all of the Amazon offices (search for the hashtag #dogsofamazon on Instagram-- you won’t be disappointed). One of my teammates regularly brings in her furry friend, Wally, and every so often I’ll take a little break from working on my project to play with him a little. Speaking of my project, after finishing up with Wally, I head to a one-on-one meeting with my manager for an update on my project. I’m currently trying to find ways for Amazon to better serve military members, veterans, and their families-- a customer group that is near and dear to my heart and that I’m unbelievably excited to be exercising “Customer Obsession” for. I’ll be conducting a midpoint presentation soon, and I’m hoping to be as prepared as possible!

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12:30pm: One of Anderson’s most important values is “Share Success” and today I’m getting lunch with a couple other RLD interns from UCLA. We all have similar roles this summer, and today we’re getting together to share our learnings so far, where each of our projects are at, and helpful people we’ve been able to connect with. There are a lot of other Anderson interns in Seattle this summer, and it’s really amazing to be surrounded by such a supportive community, even when we’re all so far away from Los Angeles.

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5:30pm: Before beginning my ride home, I stop off for a quick drink with a couple of folks from my team. Amazon has a hardworking, but fun culture where I feel right at home. After a long day of work, it’s great to be able to hang out with some of my coworkers and talk about just about everything except work! Amazon employees come from all over the world and from all kinds of backgrounds, so I’ve really enjoyed getting to know as many people as possible. Thanks to the long days here, I’ve got plenty of daylight left before I get home!

 

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Hopefully this paints a good picture of the life of an Anderson intern at Amazon, and I hope you’ve enjoyed!

 

-- Tommy Changaris ‘20

 

ABOUT TOMMY

• Hometown: San Diego, CA
• Undergraduate Studies: B.A. Economics -- UCLA
• Pre-Anderson: U.S. Navy
• MBA Summer Internship: Retail Leadership Development Program - Amazon
• Post-MBA Goals: Tech/E-Commerce
• Leadership@Anderson: VP of Yield and Special Projects, Admissions Ambassador Corps, VP of Admissions, Anderson Veterans Association, VP of Recruiter Relations, Marketing Association, Interview Prep Team Coach, AnderTech
• Activities@Anderson: Anderson Veterans Association, AnderTech, Admissions Ambassador Corps, Marketing Association, Outdoor Adventure Club

 

Day in the Life: Interning at PwC (Tuesday Takeover)

Post is a part of the Day in the Life series - each post is written by a current UCLA Anderson student who shares their "Day in the Life"

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Hi everyone, my name is Shreya Pramanick and I’m a full-time MBA student at UCLA Anderson, and I’m very excited to host today’s Tuesday Takeover! This summer, I am interning at PwC in New York City. Before we get into a day in my life, here is some background on me. I grew up in Cupertino (home of the iPhone) and graduated from UC Davis with a degree in Neurobiology. I then moved to San Francisco where I worked as a researcher in the biotech startup space for five years. I came to Anderson so I could leverage my industry experience and switch to consulting, so I’m very excited to be a part of PwC’s Pharma/Life Sciences R&D Advisory group. Check out my day below!

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8:30am: Arriving at the office. Depending on what the client’s needs are, I will either work out of my home PwC office in New York City or the client site. I’m staffed locally, so even when I do travel to the client site, it’s an easy travel day. When I work out of the home office, I usually try to book a workstation by the window so I can enjoy the gorgeous views of the city. The first thing I do is check in with the Senior Associate on my team to plan out my day, and then I get started on my workstream.

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1:00pm: Progress checkpoint with my engagement team. PwC takes career development very seriously and prides itself on helping employees grow by providing real-time feedback. This is especially important for people like me, who are brand new to consulting. I start by sharing what I feel I’ve done well and where I can improve, and the Senior Associate and Engagement Manager give me candid guidance to help me reach my goals. Besides them, I also have an entire Development Team, consisting of a Manager who is my Career Coach, a Director who is my Relationship Leader, and a Partner who is my Connectivity Partner. They are all there to help me navigate my internship, and I have regular check-ins with them as well.

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4:00pm: PwC’s Promotion Day. Every year, PwC celebrates all the employees who were promoted with a company-wide celebration called Promotion Day. This year, one of the partners of our group hosted the entire team for drinks and games on his rooftop. It was a great way to get to know everyone from Associates to Partners outside of work, and personally congratulate all the team members we were there to celebrate.

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7:30pm: Intern Outings. While Suzanne (pictured here winning Giant Connect 4) and I are the only Anderson interns at the New York office, the entire intern class is huge and PwC hosts lots of outings for us to get to know each other. These range from happy hours to baseball games, and later this month, we will be going to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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Thank you so much for joining me on a day in my life!

 

-- Shreya Pramanick ‘20

 

ABOUT SHREYA

• Hometown: Cupertino, CA
• Undergraduate Studies: B.S. Neurobiology -- UC Davis
• Pre-Anderson: Research and Development in the biotech industry
• MBA Summer Internship: Pharma/Life Sciences R&D Adivsory - PwC
• Post-MBA Goals: Healthcare Consulting with a focus on Pharma/Life Sciences
• Leadership@Anderson: 1st year: Director of Admissions, Healthcare Business Association; 1st year Director, Admissions Ambassador Corps. 2nd year: VP of Admissions, Healthcare Business Association; VP of Marketing, Admissions Ambassador Corps; Consulting ACT Coach; IPT Coach, Management Consulting Association
• Activities@Anderson: Women’s Business Connection, Out@Anderson, Anderson Craft Beer Club