Preparing for classes - Repost from FT

Originally posted on Financial Times MBA Blog - http://blogs.ft.com/mba-blog/2014/09/09/preparing-for-classes/

Although we still have 10 days before our orientation, UCLA Anderson has kept us on our toes both professionally and socially. I was accepted onto the course in May and since then have received weekly emails from admissions and student affairs teams. Some of the activities are:

1. Meets-ups – A journey is best measured in friends. Both the business school and the students organise local meets in most major US cities and international locations such as Shanghai and Delhi. Since I have arrived in Los Angeles, I have been meeting students during Sundowners, a weekly UCLA Anderson happy hours get-together.
2. Career search – Although most applicants have a strong story for business schools, they are not bound to it once they get admitted. Business schools make us aware of different industries and functions, some of which may not even be on our radar. Over the summer, UCLA Anderson has shared various career guides and alumni work profiles for us to get a sense of each industry or function.
3. Networking – The buzzword of business schools. I have been consolidating my existing network and reaching out to second and third degree connections in my industry of interest.
4. Moving in - For international students, this is like starting a whole new life. We have to apply for fresh IDs, bank accounts and a social security number. Staying in university housing is an easy option but the set-up cost is still considerable.
5. Travel – For many of us starting school, the summer was the longest vacation we might ever have. I used this time to travel within India and spend some quality time with friends and family. I also arrived early to go on a three-day pre-orientation trip near San Diego.
6. Academics – Business school can be academically challenging and we were offered maths and excel workshops over the summer. Before school starts, we also have one-day refresher workshops in different core subjects such as finance and accounting. I also enrolled onto MBAmath.com, which offers some MBA preparation material.

I will continue to expand on each bullet point above in future posts. Please send any comments, questions, excel shortcuts, yardsale locations and unheard career opportunities via the comment box below. You can also follow me on Twitter @0jain

Pre-orientation trip near San Diego