“I know there are people who say all these things don't happen. And there are people who forget what it's like to be 16 when they turn 17. I know these will all be stories someday. And our pictures will become old photographs. We'll all become somebody's mom or dad. But right now these moments are not stories. This is happening, I am here and I am looking at her. And she is so beautiful. I can see it. This one moment when you know you're not a sad story. You are alive, and you stand up and see the lights on the buildings and everything that makes you wonder. And you're listening to that song and that drive with the people you love most in this world. And in this moment I swear, we are infinite.”
These words from "The Perks of Being a Wallflower”, a 2012 film, captures exactly what I felt when I received a call from the number with LA code 310. It was 5.30 PM India time which meant Andy Promsiri, Assistant Director of Financial Aid was making that call at 5AM from his home. That gesture itself convinced me that I will be among the people who will go out of their way to make me feel good.
It all started when I attended ‘The MBA Tour’ and spoke with an admissions officer. We talked about resources provided by Anderson, Parker Career Management Center, Los Angeles, weather and opportunities for my Spouse. But what fascinated me most was the diversity which Anderson offers. It’s probably the only school which has about ~35% of students from non-traditional backgrounds like Entertainment/Media, Real Estate etc. And I for one believes that a person should keep learning new things and this is the reason why me, an engineer from IIT started my career as financial analyst with Capital One, switched to internal consulting role with Flextronics, started a non-profit venture in parallel and have now decided to pursue management consulting. During all these times, I worked and learned most from different people I have worked with. And UCLA’s teaser – Anderson’s India admits, has been exceptional. We all have been meeting in groups and batches but next week it’s going to the time when all of us go together for a trip that has all the promises of being a once-in-lifetime experience. (Details in next post)
Life in June vs June
June 2014 brought me the most amazing experience an individual can have. I visited Ladakh. And then I kicked off my MBA prep. I started exploring schools through websites, forums and connecting to students. I also prepared my draft-1 for resume which was really crappy and got a complete overhaul by the time I applied.
June 2015 has just ended and it’s been one of the most amazing summers for me. I quit my job and joined a Digital Healthcare startup – Curofy, where I have been creating user acquisition strategies and managing operations for them. I also traveled in the mountains and met my family and played cricket and watched movies and discussed life and dreamt together with my wife about the future.
And with all this, July is here. It will be the month when I will go back to books, travel more, meet more, learn more and most importantly write more. Thank you, Anderson, for reminding back a long forgotten hobby.
Readers, drop a comment if you want to learn about any particular aspect of school and we will try to ensure that one of the members from the team shares their experience on the blog.
