The MBA Student Voice

Time management in a MBA program

I've noticed a strong correlation between how busy I am and the types of food I eat on busy days. I need to run a regression to verify this data, but today, a day filled with my Real Estate Investment and Finance class and back-to-back-to-back-to-back meetings, continued the pattern from my first year - an Espresso Roma Cafe turkey sandwich for lunch during time-crunched days.

So how do you manage your time in a MBA program? A friend suggested that approximately 1/3 of my time should be devoted to academics, 1/3 should be dedicated to the career search, 1/3 should be given to MBA-extracurricular activities and clubs, and 1/3 should be given to my non-MBA related things. While my friend may not be the most proficient at math, he was definitely right: time management will always be a challenge for MBA students.

I think I strike a good balance between the four categories listed above, but there will definitely will be times when I focus more heavily on one of the categories. To make sure I'm using my time effectively, I started making to-do lists at the start of each week and then checking off things each night before going to sleep*. This tip came from one of my study group members last year and it has really helped. Feel free to post your tips for time management here or ask questions about my 'Day-in-the-Life' at UCLA Anderson.

*As an aside, my weekly to-do list now includes keeping a tally on how many turkey sandwiches I eat this year - it will be a great way to unofficially measure the time crunch of being a MBA student. I'll keep you and the time-efficiency researchers posted on my findings.

Leadership Foundations

Wow and wow.  UCLA Anderson starts their program with Leadership Foundation, a week-long course looking to get us thinking about the qualities that make an effective leader and how we, over the next two years, can embody those qualities. The week included lectures, presentations, speakers, group discussions, a ropes course, improv training, and some extremely tired members of the Class of 2010. The variety of activities was overwhelming but in retrospect was essential to getting a complete picture of what leadership entails. One thing is being lectured to about encouraging others; another is to be 30 ft in the air on a telephone pole getting encouragement from your screaming team members. It makes tangible the abstract concepts of the classroom.

Another highlight was getting to hear John Wooden, the former coach of the UCLA basketball team, speak to us about leadership. People were giddy with excitement, I, on the other hand, did not know who he was. I certainly do now. He gave us advice on how to prioritize so that leadership and achievements fall into place. His passion for everything he did in life was evident. I hope to be able to apply that same passion in my own.

The highlight of the week was getting to meet my classmates. The talent present was simultaneously exhilarating and intimidating. I am very much looking forward to spending the next two years with them. Next week: Orientation...

On the end of Orientation

It's the last weekend before classes start, and I'm already back in the library.  Extreme?  Probably.  My AMR group (AMR is a practical project done over two quarters during the second year of your MBA) wanted to meet this morning to do some planning.  This was a bit rough since I was out pretty late last night with the first year MBAs at the annual 80's party.  But, I figured I should get some reading done for my classes next week while I was here.  And, write my weekly blog, of course.

But the start of classes means the end of Orientation.  This event, which my fellow Orientation Leaders and I had been preparing for since last April, went by much quicker than we thought.  Not only am I going to miss hearing section cheer battles and the UCLA 8 clap on a daily basis, but also seeing the fantastic group of people who make up Section B from the Class of 2010.  I was proud to be a part of this group, especially when we all went to a school in an lower-income area of L.A. yesterday morning to volunteer for the Junior Achievement program through the C4C club.  Our students were divided among all the classes in the elementary school to teach them about various business concepts.  The kids fell in love with their "guest teachers," and the first years were left with a very positive impression of this experience. 

While I'm no longer an official Section Leader, I've told my section that I will be there for them any time they want to chat.  I'm excited to see how they all do this year as they progress through their core classes together.  I'm here for you, as well, so let me know if you have any questions!  For now...it's back to my reading.

Anderson Orientation Week 2: Fun’n Games, Full Steam Ahead

Whether or not you fancy dressing-up in high socks and short shorts with headband and wristband accessories or you like to dawn drag every once in a while and improvise your rendition of Chicago (boys???), you just might find yourself smack dab in the middle of Orientation Week 2 at Anderson.  Gone are the days of Week 1 and the somewhat more structured lecturers of Leadership Foundations, your current mission is to dive headfirst into Section Spirit in attempt to make your bid for the Section Cup.  Bonding with your fellow classmates is not an option; it’s the consequential reaction to spending too much time together while working out the dance routine for the section skit.

If you’re at all confused with my first paragraph, no worries - rest assured I’m still trying to wrap my head around the events of the week but that’s just what made it so much fun.  These are the type of experiences that leave lasting impressions (some bad, most good), and open the doors to all of those lifelong friends I hear alums talking about regarding their experience at B-School.  It’s cheeky, I know – but did I also mention ihow much fun it all was?

Lessons from the Club Fair

Tuesday night, I staffed the Section G table at the UCLA Anderson student club fair. It was interesting watching the first year full-time  MBA class scurry from table to table to learn about each group. The evening brought me back to a year ago when I was running around from table to table. That night, I learned some very important lessons about business school that I thought I would share with you.

In no particular order, here they are:

1) Business school catered food is often better than undergraduate catered food.

2) Industry clubs (ex. High Tech Business Association, Net Impact, and Entertainment Management Association) and function-specific clubs (ex. Investment Finance Club, Management Consulting Association and Marketing Association)are important to join. These clubs often provide great information about industry trends, insider sessions about specific jobs in the field, interview training seminars, and access to some amazing companies via Career Nights or Days on the Job.

3) Social clubs (ex. Wine Club, Challenge for Charity, Ski and Snowboarding Club) and identity clubs (ex. Asian Management Student Association, Women's Business Association, and Latino Management Student Association) are as important as the professional clubs. They are great ways to meet classmates with similar backgrounds and interests.

4) People are more likely to stop by your table if you have cool stuff to give them. Congrats to the Retail Management Association - the gym bags were a great idea!

For more information about the clubs at UCLA Anderson, visit the Anderson Student Association's club information page.

Classes start on Monday. Until then, enjoy your weekend and look for more updates soon.

Coming Together, UCLA Anderson Orientation Week 1

Week one of orientation taught me that the b-school experience at Anderson is filled with normal people who have an uncanny ability to act crazy if given the opportunity, goodies, food and more food, and events full of amazing fun.

I arrived the first day, and immediately gathered round my fellow San Franciscans who I met previously at a variety of happy hours up in the Bay Area a mere month before. While we only knew enough of one another to have briefly exchanged phone numbers or business cards, there was an instant kinship comparable to the other 300+ students that we had yet to meet. We all gathered in three rows in Korn Hall and passed whispers of our pre-formed opinions of our new classmates based on their responses to the 2010 Anderson Yahoo Groups. There was a nominal agreement that the need to reply to all with a few sentences was generally annoying – do these people know email etiquette?

All thoughts were quickly shattered and our group was scattered as we were divided-up into five sections from A to E. *** This is obviously where I have to give a shout-out to my Ultra Super Cool section leader and fellow student blogger Shianne Park – oh yes, and I probably should throw in Josh Horwitz for good measure as well.  These two 2009 candidates dubbed my Section - Section B - the Blues Brothers - and took the lead for more than 70 unsuspecting classmates in the class of 2010.

The remainder of the week was a whirlwind of different events. I vaguely remember jumping off of tall telephone poles, spending more than half the day with an improv group, something involving loud cheering (including the aptly renamed b-side cheerleaders - GOOO SECTION B) and nearly turning over a bounce house at the end of the week. It leaves me wondering what’s in store next week.

On being an Orientation Leader

This may be an obvious statement, but it must be said: Orientation for UCLA Anderson is quite a different experience as a second-year. 

By the end of the first week of my own Orientation last  year, I already knew that I wanted to participate as a second-year leader.  Last week, I cut my summer vacation short to come back early and prepare for the incoming Class of 2010.  This Monday, my fellow Orientation Leaders and I welcomed about 370 first-years to the Anderson campus.  It's been busy all week, I'm running on less sleep and working for longer hours than I did during my summer internship...and I'm having a blast!

Orientation at UCLA Anderson is a two week event: the first week is a leadership course with lectures and activities focusing on team building and personal characteristics; the second week introduces students to the numerous resources - career, academic, club, and social - available to them at Anderson.  We're now coming to the end of week 1, and I'm a proud leader of Section B, which has already grown into a strong, supportive team (and happens to include, by chance, fellow blogger, Evelyn Lee!). 

My current role in Orientation has allowed me an objective view of UCLA Anderson and the students in our community.  In a word, they're impressive.  Between the second-years volunteering their time and energy towards this multi-week event, the first-years who've come from all over the world to contribute their diverse backgrounds and learn from each other, and the school that really works with the students to affect change and ensure a successful MBA experience...I am impressed.

On facing my second year

Being a business school student can be a bit surreal at times.  Take, for instance, the fact that I just had my first "summer vacation" in seven years.  Granted, I was working as a summer intern at Princess Cruises, but I was lucky enough to have a few weeks off afterwards - all without the hassle of time off requests and 500 emails to go through at the end of it.  And while I came to business school so that I could better position myself professionally, this summer has helped me to realize that I really appreciate being a student.

That's not to say that it's without difficulties - the classes at UCLA Anderson have been a great challenge to my (very) un-quantitative background, and there were so many interesting events to participate in that I sometimes felt like a piece of saltwater taffy.  But the variety of my activities, and the amazing friendships I have made through them all, have added to my business school experience in a way that I never expected.  After graduation, I will definitely leave with more than the analytical marketing skills I came here to get.  I'll also have life-long friends and unique memories of my time at Anderson.

I hope to provide you all with an insightful perspective of my experience as I complete my MBA studies this year.  If you ever have any questions or comments, please post them and I'll make sure to address them the best that I can!

Back to School, Before School Begins

Having little or no experience with accounting, excel, and business related math (it’s a misnomer that architects need to know a math – we have consulting engineers for that). I took the opportunity to take in all the pre-orientation classes offered by Anderson prior to the first week of orientation.  What does that amount to you ask? Five days (Monday through Thursday) and a Saturday of 9am-4pm classes with an hour break for lunch.

For someone who’s been on vacation for more than a month (although working remotely writing for other online blogs), the whole experience of being back in class, was quite an undertaking and somewhat of a rude awakening to the coming weeks of school. In many ways it was an evil necessity that actually relieved some of the anxiety I had regarding my background in architecture going into Business School. I was worried about my lack of finance, economics, and banking, but found that many of my fellow classmates are in the same boat.

And We Are Back With Round 2

I am truly excited to start the second year of my MBA at UCLA Anderson. My first year was filled with great people and special moments, and, if all the hype is true, this year will prove to be equally, if not even more, remarkable. I just honestly didn’t think my final year would arrive so quickly.

Only eleven weeks ago, I was settling back into the Bay Area after a one year hiatus. Seven weeks ago, I finished the first of my five intern projects at Wells Fargo. Two weeks ago, I realized that I hardly put a dent in my ‘List of Things to Do in SF This Summer.’ And, to be completely honest, it only dawned on me yesterday that after the first day of classes, I’ll have officially completed more than 50% of my MBA program.

A lot of my co-workers this summer had MBAs and they all said the same thing – they were jealous that they couldn’t go back with me and relive their second year. I asked them what made the second year so great and the unifying themes were the people they met and the opportunities ahead.

My classmates at UCLA Anderson are an incredible bunch of people. They have shaped my academic experience, influenced my career path, and added a healthy dose of fun to the work/life balance that is graduate school. As I begin to seek an answer that impending question of ‘What’s next?’, I have no doubt and am very fortunate that my classmates will be very influential in those decisions.

I’m looking forward to providing you with my perspective as I start my second year. Feel free to leave comments and questions – I’m happy to answer them.