The MBA Student Voice

Get Ready for the Good Life

Hi everyone! I'm Kate Edwards and I'm thrilled to be blogging for you this summer. Before I dive in, let me tell you a little bit about me, so you know who you're dealing with here.

I've lived on the East Coast my entire life, from DC to Providence to NYC, so the transition to Los Angeles will be a big one for me. In my head, LA is all swimming pools, movie stars, and the Peach Pit, with a little Baywatch mixed in. So I definitely have a lot to learn.

I studied International Relations at Brown, but somehow I ended up in the world of advertising. I like to tell people that it's exactly like Mad Men, except we partied a lot more. Unlike a lot of people who jump ship and go to business school, I actually really loved my job - it allowed me to be creative and artistic and analytical every day. I just knew it wasn't what I wanted to do forever.

I just had my last day of work this past week, and true to form, my coworkers threw me a "Going Back to School" going away party, complete with boxed wine and Solo cups. Good joke, right?

These are my coworkers celebrating me going back to school - they're jealous can you tell?

When you start school, they always ask you to come up with fun facts about yourself, which apparently tells you a lot about a person. With that in mind, here are a few of mine. Feel free to interrogate accordingly:

 

- I grew up on a farm raising chickens

- I'm a twin (and my sister is engaged)

- I'm obsessed with the Washington Redskins

- I'm super handy and can fix anything

- My favorite food is Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches

- I do the New York Times crossword every day

- I was locked in the New York Public Library for a scavenger hunt overnight

 

this is going to be our year I just know it...

 

So now you know a little about me. In the next few weeks, I'll be traveling in Spain and France, mostly on my own, so I'll have plenty of adventure stories to share with you. I promise to post lots of pictures so you know I'm ok :)

I'm so looking forward to sharing my Anderson experience with you - let's do this!

 

Me at sushi night with some of the other NYC admits - we're ready!!

 

Follow me on Twitter @k8eddie - Over and out!

 

 

A summer of hope...

One fateful day earlier this year, my phone rang to the tune of Phantom Planet's song below:

We've been on the run
Driving in the sun
Looking out for number one
California here we come
Right back where we started from

I had no clue the voice on the other side would say "Welcome to the Anderson MBA class of 2014" and make these words so real for me all of a sudden. Yet, thats what happened. I couldn't control my excitement then. I can't, even today! And I owe that to the bunch of amazing people I've already met on facebook through the summer - people who're joining me in the class of 2014 at UCLA Anderson.

Before I trail off on a tangent, let me introduce myself. My name is Ayushman Jain but my friends call me aupsy (long story!). Born and brought up in New Delhi, the political capital of India, I graduated with a bachelor's degree in computer science from Indian Institute of Technology. I've worked with IBM since the past three years as a software developer in Bangalore, the information technology/pub/lake/garden capital of India. I may come across as the typical geek, but if you read my bio in Jessica's post on the admissions blog, you'll know there's more to me than meets your eagle eye! (The combo pic below shows where I was born and where I studied, respectively)

My linkedIn profile might help you gain more insight into my pre-UCLA professional life. Besides that, I love travelling, dancing and writing. (The combo pic below shows what I've been upto lately - a recent trip to NYC, a Hip Hop show, and N.O.W - a youth magazine I started with friends!)

The months before the program starts have been exhilerating. There's already so much to do, and I haven't even quit my job yet! I've relocated to a new place every year since the past 7 years now, but the move to LA is gonna be the most exciting and challenging one till date, though its not gonna be a culture shock at all for me because I've watched so much of American TV that it feels like I've practically lived there all my life! On a more serious note, while LA itself is a cultural melting pot, UCLA in general has lots of resources to make international students feel at home - the Dashew center, some really cool housing options and a very responsive financial aid office.

While there's already a list of relocation related to-do's right from getting the visa to shopping for stuff I'll carry with myself, a longer and more exciting to-do list is building up in a parallel universe - involving selecting a pre-orientation trip, looking for housing, building up my resume, getting to know my classmates, and so much more thats not even gonna fit into one post! I'll try and write down as much as I can about this whole pre-MBA experience in the days to come before I dive into the crazy busy MBA schedule. Watch this space!

~AYUSHMAN JAIN, MBA '14

You can give me a shoutout on twitter @ayushman_jain and follow @UCLAMBA!

I'll be back with more but until then i'll happily sing..

...Californiaaaaa, here we comeeeee!!!

48 Days of Summer

Greetings from the Starbucks on the 40th floor of the Columbia Center in Seattle, WA. My name is Gregory Paige, and I'm honored to contribute to the MBA Student Voice blog as a proud member of UCLA Anderson's class of 2014. Please bear with me as I utilize this first post to share some introductory details. I promise we'll get to the fun stuff soon enough.

I was born in Philadelphia, PA and grew up in the area, attending the Lawrenceville School in New Jersey before heading down south to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for my undergraduate studies. Upon graduation I continued my southward journey, driving twelve hours to Miami to begin what would be a six-year career in account management at advertising agency Crispin Porter + Bogusky. Fifteen months ago, I moved out west to help the agency expand its now flourishing Santa Monica office. Leaving CP+B was bittersweet to say the least, but I'm extremely excited and equally humbled to begin the Anderson chapter of my life.

I must admit, however, that I've enjoyed these past few weeks of "funemployment." I recently returned to Philly (for the first time in a long time) to see family and friends. Naturally, I acted like a complete tourist despite growing up in the area. Cheesesteaks, the Liberty Bell... the whole nine. Next stop: Seattle, where my parents and brother currently reside. I've been particularly observant here because Seattle is a potential summer internship destination. So far, so good. When the sun is shining, I'm not sure there's a more beautiful city in the country.

Philadelphia. This isn't the real LOVE Park sculpture, but it'll do!

When I return to LA this week, I'll have approximately six days to meet up with my future roommates (Reggie Hall '14 and Michael Leyva '14), find a house and move into said house. Good times. I'll have to unpack quickly, too. Six days later, my brother Michael and I embark on a long overdue trip to Japan. Keep an eye out for a post or two on that adventure.

I'm looking foward to sharing my stories and experiences with y'all over the next couple months and beyond. My road to business school has been long and windy, and it's amazing how much I've learned before even stepping foot in a classroom.

There are 48 days left until the start of orientation at Anderson. Let's make them count.

- Gregory Paige
  (Follow me on Twitter: @gregorypaige)

Dwight Asuncion, MBA/MPH candidate

Hi everyone! My name is Dwight Asuncion. I graduated from UC Berkeley in 2008 with a degree in Industrial Engineering. I joined the consulting workforce at Accenture later that year. After two years, I was promoted in from analyst to consultant. Over the past four years, I have been at several different engagements and had several different roles, but I have primarily been based at a large academic medical center. Currently, I am enhancing the patient portal, the website where patients can log in, view their medical record, and message their physicians.

While technical in nature, my role has given me great exposure to project management, produce development, marketing, process improvement, and thorny legal matters. It has also given me great satisfaction to know that I have positively affected patient care for countless patients.

In fact, my roles at the large academic medical center have inspired me to pursue a dual degree: MBA/MPH (masters in public health). I want to pursue work that is meaningful and that helps people and as someone who loves making processes more efficient and who has experience in healthcare, I can think of no other career that suits me better than being a hospital administrator. My dual degree will help me transition from electronic medical record consultant to hospital administrator.

 

(As an aside, I highly encourage those thinking of applying to think of a career they would want that is meaningful and fun.)

I am a big proponent of work/life balance and outside of work, I have a couple of passions: spending time with my lovely girlfriend, being outdoorsy (camping, hiking, rock climbing, biking, etc.), grilling, cooking, traveling, reading and rooting for my beloved Los Angeles Lakers.

I went to the epic Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals!

I look forward to sharing my experiences as an incoming student with you all. It was only a year ago that I was a prospective student looking at the Anderson student blog. Reading about the student experiences made me much more excited to apply to UCLA, and I am happy to pay it forward. Unlike some of my fellow bloggers, I do not have my blog posts outlined. Just taking it one day at a time.

 

I am proud to become a Bruin. GO BEARS! (Oops! Sorry, old habits die hard - I will always be a proud Golden Bear though) GO BRUINS!

 

~Dwight Asuncion, '14 (or is it '15?)

Follow UCLA Anderson on Twitter!

A Farewell to Army Life

Part of Army tradition is the Hail and Farewell, an event where a unit welcomes new members and bids adieu to those who are departing. My JAG office at Fort Shafter is no different; we hold periodic Hail and Farewell events as new lawyers and paralegals rotate in and out. Our event on July 19th held special significance for me, however; I was not just leaving my old unit, but leaving my active-duty Army career.

For this event, my office took advantage of our location in Hawaii to go to Waikiki, Honolulu's famous tourist district.  The morning started with an educational tour of the Fort DeRussy Army museum, which houses exhibits chronicling the history of the U.S. Army in the Pacific. Next, we headed over to a beach park for a barbecue lunch.

For the formal farewell portion, the Staff Judge Advocate (our senior attorney) presented me with a Meritorious Service Medal for my service during the past two years at Fort Shafter. My officemates also presented me with an American flag that had been flown over the USS Arizona on the 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor Day--very cool.

Of course, the hardest part of the day was saying goodbye to my fellow attorneys, soldiers, and Army civilian employees. To use a well-worn cliche, my departure from the Army is bittersweet. I am leaving behind a career that has allowed me to travel the world, serve the public, and forge lifelong friendships. Fortunately, this sadness is tempered by my staying in the Army Reserve, where I can continue serving part-time as a JAG officer. Moreover, I am thrilled to be moving to Los Angeles where I can be closer to my family while attending a top-ranked business school.

So to my Army colleagues, I say thank you for your service and I hope we meet again soon. To my fellow classmates at UCLA Anderson, I say -- can't wait to meet you this fall!

-Ann Ching, '14

Follow me on Twitter: @annibbler

What is summer?

Touching down at Heathrow airport after almost 10 months on the road my crisp brown tan, seaswept hair and grisled beard (imagine I can actually grow a beard) disappeared almost instantaneously.

Having had a year of summer travelling through the Southern Hemisphere - South America and Australia - October through February, the tropics - South East Asia - March through May and the Northern Hemisphere - China and Japan - June and July, I'm not quite sure whether London, or indeed Europe, has what I now call a REAL summer. It's basically gray and raining. I can't really complain though, revisiting my old investment banking bullpen and seeing the disheveled pale faces of my former colleagues reminded me that I have had it pretty good this past year and a summer of rain will not damper my spirits. Besides, I'll soon be moving to California and we all know what the weather is like out there.

London weather report - pretty self-explanatory...

I'm French and Swiss, born in Singapore but grew up in Belgium - for the long version just shoot me a message. I'm also an ex-M&A banker having followed half of my undergraduate Wharton class to the Street, or in my case the City. After two years of highly intensive albeit interesting work I decided that pure finance was not really for me and decided to pursue a long term ambition of mine to travel the world.

After a few months working in social entreperise in Peru, I made my way through South America and Asia before returning home a new man. I applied to Anderson along the way to switch careers and focus on my passion which is sports and football (the real kind) and received the excellent news of my acceptance somewhere in the Ecuadorian Andes. After my year of self-discovery I'm actually expecting to spend a good deal of my time at UCLA in the Price Center trying to combine entrepreneurship with my passion for sports. But before that I need to reduce the seemingly endless list pre-MBA tasks and also try to enjoy my summer, or lack thereof...

-Chris Varin, 14'

Follow UCLA on Twitter @UCLAMBA

Read up about my travels on Wordpress @ametronomiclife

Most relaxed I've ever been? - Halong Bay, Vietnam

Greetings from Mexico!

Hello everyone! I am super excited to join the bloggers' team this summer! My name is Alejandra Rodriguez and I am from Monterrey, Mexico. I will be joining UCLA Anderson's full time MBA program this fall with class 2014 (Go Bruins!). Since this is my first post I will talk a bit about myself so you know what to expect in future posts.

My grandfather, some of my cousins, and me. The whole family can't possibly fit in one picture!

I have a very bubbly but intense personality. When I set out to do things I will go to extremes because I am so into it but keeping it in good humor. For instance when I need some motivation I like to play "Gonna Fly Now" (the theme song from the Rocky movie) or "Eye of the Tiger" in my head to get pumped. It works great for GMAT prep motivation by the way, especially when you have been at it for hours!

I majored in accounting and finance at the Tec de Monterrey and have worked as an internal control auditor for about four years. My experience is mainly in U.S. banking laws and regulations and anti-money laundering laws. For those looking for a job where you travel, visit different companies, meet many kinds of people at all levels of the company, and learn new things every day then take a look at internal control auditing. It is a very exciting and adventurous job!

On my free time I like to engage in artistic activities. I am passionate about anything that adds more beauty to the world. My favorite hobby is make-up, what a better way to start the day than doing art on your face? It gets creativity flowing early in the morning and it makes me feel like my day can't possibly be anything but awesome. There is just something fun and magical about being able to enhance different face features to match your mood and the occasion. I also love drawing, especially in anime style since it allows more freedom in movement, proportions and color. Finally I enjoy baking deserts like cupcakes, cookies, pies and cakes. I made the pirate cookie on the right for a  party.

In the following weeks I will be posting about how I prepared for the GMAT, how I researched schools, why I chose UCLA, things I am trying to learn to cook so I don't starve in L.A., my preparations to move to Los Angeles, and my last days with my friends and family here in Mexico.

 

-Alejandra Rodriguez '14
Follow UCLA Anderson at @UCLAMBA

On the Road Again - Meet Kyle Forrest

Bam! My hand slapped down to the table and startled my friends. "I just got into UCLA!" On May 18, during a hot Houston evening, I received the news that signaled the start of a new adventure. 

My name is Kyle Forrest, and I have the pleasure of serving as one of the UCLA Anderson Class of 2014 student bloggers. About me - born in New Orleans, lived in Fullerton (CA.), Lafayette (LA.), Danville (CA.), College Station (TX.), and Jakarta, Indonesia.

I attended Rice University, where I graduated in 2008 with a BA in Psychology and Sports Management. Post-graduation, I joined Deloitte Consulting in the Human Capital practice, where I worked in the HR Transformation service line. I focused on understanding HR trends, helping clients design a new HR strategy, and developing business cases to support the implementation of their strategy. 

I had the good fortune of being accepted into Deloitte's sponsorship program, so I'll be sharing a different perspective with you than my fellow bloggers. As they delve into the opportunities available to help them switch careers or start their own business (UCLA attracts a lot of entrepreneurs), I hope to work with the MBA Student Affairs office to determine how to best take advantage of the Custom Track. 

Outside of class, I'm excited to be moving from Houston after 8 years (longest I've ever been in one place!) I plan on joining clubs that allow me to take advantage of all that LA, and California, has to offer - such as the Running and Tri Club (Ironman in my future? One classmate has already completed one, and another has done the half); the Ski and Snowboard club; Anderson Eats; and the Microbrew club. 

I'm also going to be involved with the Management Consulting Association and the Strategy and Operations Management Association so I can keep up with business trends in the consulting world. 

During the next several weeks I'll share updates on what I'm doing to prepare for the Anderson experience; my apartment search and move to LA; my pre-orientation trip and other travels; and other thoughts on what it means to me to be attending Anderson. 

I hope you enjoy the posts!

~Kyle Forrest, follow on Twitter and follow UCLAMBA

(FYI - all posts are my personal view/opinion and don't reflect the opinions of others)

I've done 3 marathons - Disney World (above, 20 degrees at start time! Chicago, and New York)

And one bike ride - MS150 from Houston to Austin. All I need is a swim and putting it all together and Ironman here we come!

 

Aloha Hawaii, Hello California!

Took this on the way home from work. Rainbow over Punchbowl Crater, Oahu.

As I write this, I am looking at a couple of countdown timers on my phone. 35 days left in my current home of Honolulu, Hawaii, and 59 days until I start orientation at UCLA Anderson! I can't believe so few days remain before I start my next adventure, but even more so, I can't believe how far I've come since last fall when I first decided to apply to Anderson's full-time MBA program.

A bit about me: I have been an Army JAG Officer (lawyer, in case you didn't see the TV show) for my entire adult career. When I was assigned to Hawaii in 2010, I decided it would be my last active-duty assignment before transferring to the Reserve component and pursuing full-time civilian life. As I thought about what I'd like to do "on the outside," an MBA was at the top of the list. It seemed to be a great way to transition from the Army to the civilian workforce, as well as expand my knowledge of the business world. Of course, having GI Bill benefits also makes it easier to go back to school mid-career. I'll admit, I also thought it would be a nice "break" where I could ponder my future for 21 months. I quickly realized that is NOT how business school works, but that's a topic for a future post!

At any rate, after months of research, essays, recommendations, resumes, interviews, and of course the dreaded GMAT, I now find myself mere weeks away from launching into my new full-time career: Anderson MBA candidate. I'm honored to share my further adventures with you while I complete my transition and prepare for the journey ahead. In the meantime, in no particular order, here are the top 5 items on my summer to-do list:

1. See as much of Hawaii as I can before I move! I'm leaving my job early enough to pack in a few weeks of playing tourist. Top on my list: Swim Pipeline to Waimea bay (a 2.3 mile ocean swim), visit Ho'ailona the Monk seal at the Waikiki Aquarium, and of course, see some LAVA!

Kilauea Volcano. Photo credit: free-extras.com

2. Work on my quantitative skills. You may have guessed that lawyers don't do a lot of math... at least I haven't! I have signed up for MBA Math as well as the Essential Prep collection from mba.com to get up to speed before the first quarter.

 

3. Prepare for my move. Moving back to the mainland (which is how Hawaiians refer to the continental US) means getting my dog, Huxley, ready for a trans-Pacific flight; shipping my beloved MINI Cooper on a freighter; and winnowing my non-essential clothes, books, and Star Wars action figures before the movers pack me out.

4. Spend quality time with my family and friends. Knowing that school will keep me very busy, I want to hang out with my Sig-O (significant other) and our beloved dogs, visit my family in AZ and CA, and see some friends on the mainland before the whirlwind begins.

5. Go to Disneyland! C'mon, this one was a no-brainer.

Stay tuned to see how my plan goes!

-Ann Ching, '14

Follow me on Twitter: @annibbler 

                                                                                                                                                     Huxley says, "Aloha!"