About Jeffrey: Prior to Anderson, Jeffrey was a creative marketer and storyteller from Durham, North Carolina. He worked in local government for the past decade helping residents navigate local government and delivering millions of dollars in capital and service projects to improve access to public transportation in the Research Triangle Region. Jeffrey is studying business strategy and entertainment. He plans to merge his love of storytelling and working on creative teams with his experience in project management and cross-functional team leadership to deliver representative stories in television to communities that need them.
Jeffrey is currently reading the Cradle series by Wil Wight, just finished hosting a watch party for Anderson Students for House of the Dragon, completed his first surfing lesson, and has perfected four new recipes.
As I decided to come to Anderson, I was paralyzed by questions about how I would fit and what my life would be like, and a fear of being so far away from my family. Now that I’ve got two quarters under my belt, I’d love to share some tips for building community in the MBA Program.
A-Days and AROW
A-Days is an incredible experience that I cannot recommend more highly. I decided to come to Anderson after attending a Parker/EMA/SBA session, where I learned a lot about recruiting and my job prospects; but I also met 40+ other people passionate about entertainment. Many of us are leaders in EMA, attend movie premieres in LA and watch shows together. I also met one of my roommates at A-Days.
Learning Teams
Your learning team is 3-5 people who you do EVERYTHING with in your first couple of quarters. My team is 50% international and 33% women. We are recruiting for entertainment, banking, tech and venture capital (one of us is sponsored and decides to jet-set whenever we talk too much about recruiting. Your LT doesn’t need to be your best friends, but it’s massively easier if you like each other. I hosted a brunch for my team before school started so that we could get to know each other classes and other deliverables were due. It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Shoutout LT C9!!!
Orientation
Week 1 is the only time we’re all together and wearing name tags. Polish your pneumonic devices, take photos and notes, and get numbers - whatever you need to help you remember as many people as possible. It’s much easier to remember someone’s story when they are excited about telling it, so ask real questions: “What’s your dream?” “Why did you decide to change your life?” “What’s the best trip you’ve taken?” My favorite Orientation experience was the rope’s course where we participated in a series of challenges. I met people in that course who aren’t in my section or any shared clubs, but we’re bonded for life and excited to see each other whenever we’re on campus.
Club Fair
I dropped too much money on clubs, but I regret nothing. Clubs are the cornerstone of your professional development at Anderson and a place to share your passion with others. I’m director of member education for EMA and get to plan interesting info sessions about the entertainment industry for my peers. I’m director of the watch for Indoor Adventure Club, and just finished hosting the watch party for the first season of House of the Dragon. I got to go to the Clippers opening game as a member of SBA and the Overwatch League finals with the VP of gaming for EMA and the opening weekend of Black Panther with BBSA. Clubs plan amazing events where I get to hang out with people I normally don’t see in class. While I’m talking about organizations, join professional programs like Consortium, Forte (for my women identifying individuals), Prospanica, National Black, Toigo; there are many organizations out there to provide community through business school, especially if you are an underrepresented candidate in some way. Use that community to make friends and build bonds.
Trips
Budgets are tight, I get it…but if you’re questioning if going on the Vegas trip or attending a conference is worth it. Listen to me…It is. These trips are moments to authentically connect with your classmates without the pressure of school, recruiting, or clubs. You’ll have enough FOMO in business school, don’t add to it, by prioritizing something over a shared experience with your class. Go ahead and write in Orientation (Vegas trip after first quarter), Snow Trip (ski trip supporting C4C after second quarter), Sundance (if you’re in EMA) and budget for 3-4 additional trips (I hear my class might be going to Japan or Morocco this spring break).
Slack
CHECK SLACK. There will be days where you are tired, weeks where you are overwhelmed and all you want to do is stay at home. All I’m advising you to do is not do it alone. You need a “Me Day” post it in Slack, chances are someone needs it too, you can organize an introverted beach day like my buddy Dan and I. If you feel like you’re not going to pass accounting, post in Slack and you might find yourself in a study session with the Consortium crew. Not sure where you’re next meal is coming from “i-freefood” has you covered.
Ultimately, it’s easy to build community in business school. You just need to show up - which, admittedly, can be harder than it sounds. But you are in a big program and I promise you, someone else is feeling the way you feel and also wants to find someone to walk with them through it.
Student Blogger: Jeffrey Sullivan ‘24
Undergrad: UNC Chapel Hill, ‘12
Pre-MBA: Local Government Marketing and Communications
Leadership@Anderson: Director of member education for the Entertainment Management Association; Director EDI for the Admissions Ambassador Corp; Director of EDI for the Anderson Student Association; Director of marketing and communications for the Black Business Student Association; Director of allyship for the Alliance for Latinx Management at Anderson; Director of The Watch for the Indoor Adventure Club; Director of theater for Creatives at Anderson.
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