The MBA Student Voice

With a spring in my step...

As I end the glorious year 1 of the best MBA program in the world, it is only fitting that I give the spring quarter a fitting tribute with a quick round up!

The quarter started on a high note. I'd signed my internship offer from Microsoft for the summer (Product Management) and from MarkedUp Inc. (a Santa Monica based startup) for the spring (Product Marketing). Yes, its very common for students here to do an internship during the school year and because the school is so well-entrenched in the Silicon Beach community (LA's startup scene) and opportunities keep coming all the time. Naturally, with the recruiting season behind me, I was relieved of so much stress. Also, while most people are confused about the difference between Product Mgmt and Marketing, I got a chance to dabble with both!!

I got to meet so many vivacious new admits from the incoming class of 2015 at the A days, where I represented the International Business Association(IBA), Anderson Creative and the International students panel.

As the first week of classes began, we started practicing for our C4C cheer, part of which we'd performed already in the Anderson Talent Showcase (February), but wanted to take it to the next level. After 3 weeks of tireless practicing, we put up a great show at the Stanford C4C weekend, which Kyle talked about earlier. You should totally watch the video below and stare at it with your jaw touching the floor (ok that part's optional). WHile the dance itself wasn't that difficult, learning to throw and catch an athletic girl took many dark turns during the practice sessions. Fortunately, everyone lived to dance the day!

  

Somewhere along the way, on the trip back from Stanford, we also finalized our AMR team. AMR is one of the most important parts of the second year of the MBA, and everyone therefore selects their teams and project preferences very carefully. I will be working on a new technology created by a Ph.D student at Anderson - specifically trying to establish a company and then it to market. The technology, called Mighty Mount, won the Knapp Venture Competition - another key component of the UCLA MBA. Yes, we have an amazingly entrepeneurial program here! What better way to capitalize on that by doing your second year project on building your own business? :)

Talking of entrepreneurship, I helped organize the biggest conference at Anderson - the EA Conference, which saw a huge attendence from successful entrepreneurs, VCs and students. Bill Gross, founder of Idealab, gave the most amazing keynote that I've ever heard in any conference so far and made me realize that I could just be hearing to the next Steve Jobs of the world.  It was amazing to see so many illustrious people in the school at the same time. Speakers came from companies such as Google, Disney, Fox, Yahoo!, CornerStone On Demand, Riot Games, Veggie Grill and many more. A complete roundup of the conference can be read at buzzfeed.

So much going on, but was I even studying, you wonder? Well ofcourse, I took 5 classes this time and was loaded with tons of work at all times. However, I really enjoyed the classes, in particular, the Tools for Business Strategy class which had mini projects for Deloitte and PwC, and the Brand Management class which is jointly taught by Professor Sanjay Sood and Jim Stengel (ex-CMO, P&G). In the latter, we got a chance to meet some really amazing people, such as Erik Ryan of Method, Davide Grasso of Nike, and Robert Eckert, former CEO of Mattel Inc. We also visited Ogilvy's LA Office and listened to their intriguing story of UCLA Anderson's rebranding effort (see a video made my Anderson Students for the new brand). Seriously, where else could you get to meet these people? I fell even more in love with my school! :)

 

While we're talking of meeting famous personalities, this quarter made  me completely starry eyed. A huge advantage of being inside one of the best universities in the country is that you get to be part of the larger community, where so much more keeps happening all the time. Some of us were lucky to take advantage of that and meet Josh Radnor (Ted Mosbey of How I Met Your Mother), the Hangover star cast at the premier and Owen Wilson at the premier of The Internship at the Bruin Theater. At UCLA, the stars come to you! 

This isn't all that UCLA has to offer though. I started discovering really fun events organized by different departments at UCLA that are also open for MBA students. Professor McCann, who heads the Center for Global Management at Anderson, secured VIP tickets for Anderson students at the Trisha Brown Dance show at the Royce Hall (the most exhilerating dance performance I've seen) ...

and the Graduate Student Association organized a trip to the Knotts Berry Farm (awesome rides!). 

We rounded out the quarter by yet another set of fun activities - first the Prom (which was also my first prom ever - you're never too old for your first prom, right?) and then the Hollywood Hike (literally ending at a high note!!) 

Oh and did I tell you about the amazing beach bonfires, making s'mores ( a teaser below) and so many other things?! Phew, I dont think I can describe my adventures at UCLA Anderson in just words.

And finally the icing on the cake, or perhaps the cake itself...

You really need to be here to experience it for yourself. I heart UCLA!

~Ayushman Jain (MBA '14)

 

Winter has come and gone!

It was perhaps not a long time ago when the air nipped, leaves began to fall, Anderson Afternoons became Anderson nights and the rare hoodie-covered soul who'd be found roaming the Anderson compound had but one thing to say with a grim stare, "Winter is coming..". Just the thought of a winter quarter with the heavy recruiting, interviews, sitting in classes with suits and the wretched Operations Management course haunted almost everyone, except ofcourse the above-mentioned bravehearts. My absence from this blog, therefore, is pardonable. Hibernating seemed to be the safest thing to do.

Alas, hibernate I did not. As we slowly began to ease into the rigorous MBA program, a lot more began to be piled up on our frail shoulders. Here are some of the highlights, from my perspective, of the war that ensued.

Recruiting

The quarter sort of began with days on the job for finance, tech, entertainment, sports and retail industries. My sweet but short Florida winter vacation was cut even shorter by the "Tech trek" organized by HTBA. The allocation of companies was done through a bidding system where you bid 1000 points across the 9-10 companies chosen for the trek. I was somehow allotted companies I had bid only 1 point for and thus had no motivation at all to travel to the bay area. Frankly, being from the tech industry I already had contacts in most of my target companies who I could've contacted and arranged a meeting at a bit more convenient time. So the tech trek was a bit of a dampener in that sense for me. However, a lot of my classmates had a good experience because they could've never arranged to visit these companies on their own, so I guess it definitely has more value for people with non-tech backgrounds. 

As soon as school started in January, most of the big tech companie started pouring in and people like me recruting for tech were left gasping for breath. We were under the impression that the early recruiting is usually for consulting and finance but tech started real early this time.  I applied for about 20 jobs in January alone and interviewed with atleast 10 over the next 2 months. Almost everyone underestimated the time it takes to drop resume and cover letter into the Parker posting for on-campus opportunities! Interviewing itself was ofcourse time consuming because of the unique way one needs to prepare for different companies. All in all, it was hectic, but not stressful. So many companies come on campus at UCLA Anderson that it tremendously reduces your travel needs and time. Interviewing at Parker (with the friendly staff, Emily Taylor with the usual coffee and your friends offering you comfort) makes it much more relaxed. All through I was in touch with my friends from other schools and it was obvious that Anderson had the lead in the quality of companies to campus (atleast for tech, not sure whats the scene for other industries). Product Management, Product Marketing, Corp. Strategy, Finance and Buss. Development were the usual roles  in the offing. I ended up riding high on the first wave of recruting, got three offers and will be spending the summer in Seattle! My classmates recruting for rech have also reported some amazing offers, proving Anderson's reputation in tech.

Academics

While the coursework, as usual, was great and the professors awesome, it was hard to maintain focus while you're waiting to leave the class midway for an interview. You're physically in class, but in all other respects all you care about is the job you're interviewing for. Naturally, academics tend to suffer. It is worth mentioning, then, that the professors here make it really easy for students by bringing in a ton of energy to the classroom. I'm lucky to have been taught by Anderson's own Dougie Houser, Bruce Carlin, who has a way of spicing up Finance classes through Pink Floyd quotes and Philip Leslie, who got in his son's entire second grade class to participate in the Disney case discussion for the Strategy course. Yes, classroom continued to be a lot of fun!

Ander-fun

The recruiting stress couldn't keep the future business leaders here from partying fridays and being hungover Saturdays. While I'm bound by the Ander-honour code for partying, I can't really talk about all the crazy things that happened. What I can talk about are fun things we did on campus. A case in point being the Harlem Shake, where a bunch of MBA students-gone-crazy wore the most preposterous costumes and danced awkwardly to the meme of our times. Oh, and we even did one on the beach!
The song and dance continued into the Anderson Talent Showcase organized by Anderson Creative, a show where Anderson students perform to raise money for Challenge4Charity.  It was overwhelming to see the kind of talent we have in our class. We're surely gonna kick some butt in the upcoming Stanford C4C weekend!

Ander-families

This was the quarter that saw the first of Ander-babies, as some of my classmates became proud fathers/mothers. Our section put up a baby shower for four to-be dads, all at once! We're one big family and we're only growing. Sig-O's of Anderson students are a pretty active bunch as well! Never to miss the social scene, some of them are even making the most of their stint in LA. If you're a sig-o reading this or someone who has a sig-O, check out Sunny's blog to explore the possibilities.

Thats it for now. They say in the game of MBA, you either win or you die. That makes us a 360-strong class of survivors!

By the way, If you're a new admit still making a decision about Anderson, feel free to hit up any of us who post here and we'll be happy to talk! I've already spoken to a few people in the last few weeks and looks like we have amazing class starting this fall!

~Ayushman Jain, MBA '14

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Speed of MBA > Speed of light

It has never been busier, it has never been crazier. And yet, I've never learnt so much and never been so satisfied about being so busy. 

I've just completed the first couple of MBA-years (1 MBA year = 1 earth month), and this speeding bullet is not getting any slower. So what have I been upto and why have I been absent since so long from here? Hmm, let me take stock:

1. Two case competitions: Yes, an MBA is grossly incomplete without case competitions. The first one was the Amazon case competition where I collaborated with 3 other team mates through 24 hours to create a business plan for the new Amazon Gamecircle. We didn't win, but it was still like a successful conquest - coming up with some great ideas and writing a whitepaper - Amazon style! The company reps went so far as to say that they were highly impressed with the quality of submissions from UCLA Anderson and they're gonna hire big time from here. They love this school (read this again if you're a prospective student :) ). 
The second competition was the Deloitte National Case Challenge, where I spent another sleepless night with 3 other classmates working on a marketing plan to make Intelligentsia coffee a national brand. We ended up at 4th place and won $25 vouchers for the most expensive coffee in LA. The most exciting thing about both of these competitions was the fact that they were real problems of real businesses. You're not just working on some hypothetical situation but on something the managers at these companies have to deal with on a daily basis. The result? A highly rewarding experience which gives you a safe laboratory to test your business skills. Being at UCLA Anderson definitely gives you the advantage of participating in such big case competitions. 

2. Academics: The quarter system at UCLA Anderson is very different from the semester system in othe schools. The pace of learning is very fast and you get to take a lot more courses in your 2 years. We just had our mid-terms 2 weeks and the finals are coming up in 2 weeks! 4 courses checked off in just 3 months! The classroom experience has been absolutely delightful and very lively. The professors make it fun and they're so patient with explaining everything. I sometimes feel over-pampered! Also, coming from India where final exams make up 75% of your grade, I really like the continuous testing process here such that everything you do during the quarter counts towards the grade. See the picture below o get a better idea of what we do in the classroom. :P

3. Recruting/networking: This has been the hardest part already. With the already over-loaded calendar, its sometimes hard to be on the top of your game during recruiting events. However, I find it very helpful to be meeting people from companies I'm interested in before I start dropping resumes and interviewing. HTBA recenly organized its career night and we got to meet reps from companies such as Zynga, EA, Ebay, Amazon, Hulu and others. Yes, it leaves me panting for breath but its also a great way to take a peek into the companies. I've also started a project with Paramount which is helping me learn about the entertainment. Think UCLA Anderson. Think LA. Think Hollywood!

4. Socializing: Phew, this calls for a completely new post. When you're in LA, the fun never stops. From the Anderson Afternoons to the birthday/halloween parties to the football tailgates, we've done it all. 

 

Meanwhile, I'm also delighted by the fact that UCLA Anderson's rankings have been rising and there's a buzz about the school everywhere. The second years are getting some great offers and there's a lot of optimism. BusinessWeek recently published a video about Anderson when it released the new b school rankings. Again, if you're a prospective student, pay special attention!

 -Ayushman Jain, MBA '14

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Building our leadership skills, one Lego block at a time!

Regular readers of the blog might have noticed a drop in the number of posts published since the past 2 weeks. Here's why: the new class of 2014 is immersed in UCLA Anderson's comprehensive orientation program called the "Leadership Foundations". The result: we're all super-busy and super-excited!

When I first looked at the schedule and read that we have to go through a 2 week long orientation, I was a bit apprehensive about the whole thing  - wondering whether we'll have to sit for long hours in a big hall listening to an endless line up of speakers from all over Anderson dole out endless "leadership anecdotes" and whether i'll be able to stay awake at all given that the day starts at 8 am. Oh, how wrong I was! The Anderson orientation, like everything about the school, is such a wonderful experience. Let me give you a lowdown.

We started with the UCLA-wide New Internation Students and Scholars Orientation (NISSO) and Anderson's Internation Student Orientation Day (ISOD), which were both full of very useful information about visa, job search, culture issues, campus resources, etc. for international students. It was a pleasure meeting the Anderson MBA Admissions team that recruited us all, and the Parker CMC staff that have already begin the hardwork to prepare us to get recruited to our dream jobs. 

The Leadership Foundation course started next and we're into the second week already. The case readings for each day of the course were already given to us. While going through them, many students imagined a boring classroom discussion. However, to our surprise, the whole program is group-discussion oriented and hands-on. On the first day, we did some excellent role-playing for a case and learnt important leadership lessons. Earlier in the day, Assoc. Dean of the MBA program, Robert Weiler left us spellbound with his welcome speech. An international specialist was also invited to speak about his experiences with the various cultures around the world and we had an interesting time as he talked about some extremely hilarious cultural habits, eg. What does an Indian mean when they shake their head side-to-side. The second day saw some interesing discussions over John Wooden's leadership style, a group activity to find a murder suspect in an interesting case, among others. In the end, we constructed a Lego model in a group which taught us what can go wrong in planning and strategizing even though everyone in the team is doing their part of the role perfectly. We've already been assigned into 5 sections of 70 students each and learning teams with 5-6 students each and we go through the program together each day. We're also preparing for the section cup and you'll soon see some hilarious moments from the cheer and skit we're supposed to do soon.

(International students at NISSO)

(Building the Lego man!)

Another interesting aspect has been the awesome food! Every afternoon, we sit on a different tables with randomly picked people so that we get to talk to as many classmates as we can before the real grind starts in 2 weeks. We also had out first Anderson Afternoons last week - free food and drinks in the Anderson north lawns. To sum up, the experience till now seems to suggest that the MBA program at Anderson is not just gonna be another line in my resume, but a whole array of life skills in my armoury. I'm so happy I decided to invest in this program!

PS: we at UCLA are fundraising for three non-profit organizations in the US- Special Olympics, Junior Achievement, and Project Echo. This is a part of the Challenge 4 Charity - an annual fundraising effort across several west coast B schools. Please consider making a small donation because it can make a huge difference to somebody's life! Thanks in advance for your contribution. 

~Ayushman Jain, '14

@ayushman_jain

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Class of ‘14 insider summer scoop - PART 7 - "Start of an era"

This will be oue last collective summer post! We’re all here, orientation starts today, we’ve met a bunch of classmates, socialized and found out as much as we possibly could about what’s going to be happening to us for the next two years. We all have different first impressions but here is how we are seeing things today.

(source)

Kyle Forrest: This is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made personally. When I first began thinking about an MBA, I originally thought part-time would be the way to go - let’s face it, as Dwight said in the previous group post, not having a salary is a big change, and the two year MBA experience can be quite expensive. However, in the 6 weeks I’ve spent in Los Angeles before orientation started, I’ve been able to get to know my classmates in a way that I never would have been able to do in a part-time program. The relationships are already more meaningful, and I can’t wait to see how things turn out after the next two years with everyone!

Gregory Paige: Pressing the pause button on a career is a significant risk for most people. I certainly fit into that group. But here we are at the start of Orientation, and I can already tell that Anderson will prove to be one of the best decisions of my life. You’ve heard it before, and I’ll say it again: It’s all about the people. My classmates have arrived from all over the country and across the globe. From every industry imaginable. And with all types of personal and career aspirations. I feel privileged to have access to such a variety of minds and experiences. Ultimately I’m not hitting pause on my career, I’m upgrading from DVD to Blu-ray!

Ashley Mallinson: I have been incredibly impressed with my future classmates, Anderson and Los Angeles. I knew that business school was the right decision for me personally and fell in love with Anderson  as early as my first campus visit, and so far the experience has surpassed my expectations in every way. I truly could not have imagined being this happy with all the dramatic changes that have taken place in my life over the last two weeks. Based on my experience so far, it is truly the people at Anderson that make the school exceptional and set the entire experience apart. It is incredible to be surrounded by such a friendly, intelligent, open-minded group of people who are each individually outstanding in unique ways. I am beyond excited to see what we, as a collaborative group, are capable of. I feel confident that I am starting a new chapter of my life with new allies, realistic goals and no limits!

Alejandra Rodriguez: It has been as awesome as I thought it would be! I had the opportunity to talk with a lot of my classmates before even coming to Los Angeles so I already knew the kind of fantastic people I was going to share my next two years with and let me tell you I was not disappointed! It has also been surprisingly easy for me to adapt to living in a new country and I believe it is because my new friends have been keeping company and helping me every step of the way. Anderson has one of the best communities you will ever find and I am delighted to be a part of it! I am very much looking forward to the first day of orientation, which also happens to be my birthday, so expect a post about it soon!  

Dwight Asuncion: Happy birthday Alejandra! How auspicious! I’m excited to start school again, but I also have butterflies in my stomach. It’s the first day of school all over again. I’m sure I’ll be a little nervous again before classes actually begin. Today I’ll meet everyone in my section and start to build meaningful relationships with them. That’s what I like about Anderson. Everyone’s in it together and willing to help each other. We’re at the start of a two-year journey that hopefully be full of personal and professional growth, and I couldn’t be happier that I’m at Anderson.

Kate Edwards: The others bloggers are correct - it is all about the people! Having spent the past two weeks spending quality funemployment time with my future classmates, I could not be more impressed with how diverse, ambitious, and thoughtful everyone is. We have organized trips to the beach, explored Los Angeles, and even attended our first UCLA football game en masse (Go Bruins!). School hasn’t started yet, but we are all so eager to get to know each other; I know these will be lasting friendships. Getting to know these people reminds me that Anderson was the right choice, and I can honestly say I am just incredibly happy to wake up every day in Los Angeles knowing I have such an adventure ahead of me.

Ann Ching: Every time I have started a new school, whether it was junior high, college, or law school, I’ve always worried whether I’d end up eating lunch alone on the first day. Sounds weird, but I think that’s where I channel my “real” anxieties about new people and a new environment. Well, this is the first time I’m not worried about that, because I already have so many new friends at Anderson. Whether through Forte Foundation, organized mixers, or informal events, I have met a lot of my classmates and they are truly exceptional. I heard that what makes Anderson unique is the incredible sense of community among students and alumni, and so far I have not been disappointed. I’m starting orientation ready to take on a new challenge (and have fun at the same time!).

Chris Varin: I just got back from sunset on the Santa Monica beach with 8 of my other new classmates and I had this moment of existential angst as I briefly contemplated what these next two years would bring. I've had a lot of great experiences up till now and while I don't really believe in fatality it all kinf of lead to this new beginning - I guess I did somewhat engineer it. After three weeks of meeting up with classmates before things start I'm completely at ease and looking forward to take the next step. These next two years are going to be special and I'm incredibly fortunate to be here.

Ayushman Jain: Having spent my first fortnight in beautiful LA and the awesome company of my Anderson classmates, I can truly say that the pre-MBA experience has taken my expectations to a much higher level, and I’m pretty sure I’m still underestimating how brilliant the next two years are gonna be. The social events and even the international students’ orientation were great opportunities to meet a large number of classmates with such diverse backgrounds. The best thing is that we blend in very well together, irrespective of geographical or linguistic boundaries. Everyone has been immensely helpful even before the program starts and I can already see the collegial culture building up amongst ourselves. I’ve also got the chance to interact with people from the Student Affairs Office, Parker CMC as well as the Financial Aid office and they have been unbelievably courteous and encouraging. Thats why, even though I know the next 3 months are gonna hit us like a ton of bricks with all the coursework and job search, I’m totally looking forwarding to starting the next chapter of my life - the MBA!

-Anderson 14' bloggers

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Class of 14' insider summer scoop - PART 5 - "I gotta feelin’..."

“...that this year’s gonna be a good year” - Ok so let’s be honest, many of us are looking forward to more than just going to class during b-school.  We all come in with high expectations academically and we are here to plan for our futures, but there is so much to experience socially with our classmates as well. So here’s what we’re looking forward to...

(Above: The UCLA Bruin Theatre at Westwood Village)

Kyle Forrest: In no particular order... learning to surf, hiking, camping, my first (of many?) triathlons... and on the non-outdoors side of things, Anderson Afternoons (beer and snacks every Thursday afternoon, sign me up!), all the Anderson related parties I’ve heard about (Casino Night, Anderson Prom, etc.), road trips to Vegas!!, and of course, exploring the LA nightlife. Also, crossing Coachella off my list.

Chris Varin: Playing soccer again. I tried to keep it going while in London and in South America but it will be nice to be on a full sized pitch again! I’m generally looking forward to being in an academic environment again where there are so many types of different interactions in different settings. Club-wise there are just so many activities to choose from that the decision might be harder than I anticipated. Vegas is definitely on the cards as is a PCH trip. An alumni also mentioned to me nights spent going out in Hollywood which sounded like a lot of fun (his stories weren’t entirely PG rated).

Ann Ching: The alumni I’ve spoken to all encourage getting involved in the Anderson social scene, especially Anderson Afternoons! I also want to participate in Challenge for Charity (C4C). As for LA, I can’t wait to hike in Griffith Park, visit the Getty Museum & Huntington Library, and perhaps sneak into a movie premiere at Westwood Village.

Ashley Mallinson: There are far too many things for one post. It is the people who make Anderson awesome, so I’m most excited to meet my classmates. I’m excited for Anderson Afternoons on Thursdays, Sundowners and Lit Club, a uniquely Anderson student-run event basically have a great comedy hour hosted by the “librarians” hilarious students who roast their classmates and host sketches the event. Learning to surf is high on my list. I definitely want to participate in Challenge for Charity! A few of us from New York have talked about starting a “Brunch Club” since LA seems to be quite lacking in that NYC sport, so stay tuned on that!

Kate Edwards: I’m waiting in serious anticipation for Lit Club, because I can’t wait to see how I get roasted! I’m also really looking forward to getting involved in lots of clubs and activities, and just diving into the Anderson community. Outside of school, I’m eager to doing many of the outdoorsy activities I’ve been missing out on in New York - hiking, biking, swimming, beach volleyball, and yes, like everyone else I do think I’ll have to learn to surf. I’m not, however, anticipating I’ll be very good!

Ayushman Jain: My calendar has literally spelled Monday, Tuesday, …WTF (hoping you get the pun) since the last 12 months or so. While on the one hand I know its not gonna be any better once classes start, I’m also kinda overwhelmed with the number of social activities that are already lining up on my calendar. Getting to know all my classmates eating, drinking, and orientation-ing is gonna take the major chunk of the social time. However, I’m so excited by the fact that I’m gonna be in Hollywood so catching a movie premier and some live performances is surely on the must-do list. I’ve always wanted to live close to the sea, so now that I’ve got a chance to, I’d make the most of it by swimming and learning to surf. Although I’m sure the year ahead is gonna be chock-full of social activities such as Anderson Afternoons, my locked-in plans for September feature trips to Disneyland, Seaworld and Universal Studios as well as the plethora of activities part of the True Bruin Welcome, an annual UCLA tradition. I’m so lucky to be part of the outgoing and fun-loving Bruin family!!

Alejandra Rodriguez: I am very much looking forward to hanging out with my new classmates and friends!  It’s all about who you are with, not where! I also want to join UCLA’s tennis club, I haven’t been able to play tennis since college and I miss it a lot. Los Angeles has awesome weather for any sport that does not require snow or ice. Additionally, I am dying to go to Disneyland again, after all it’s the second happiest place on earth (UCLA is the first one of course). Last, but not least, I am very excited about all the shopping I “need” to do. Moving to a new country is the perfect excuse for a little shopping spree…or two!

-Anderson 14' bloggers

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Class of 14' insider summer scoop - PART 4 - "Rush hour frenzy"

We’re almost all here now and everything kicks off very shortly but there is SO much to do once we get in. Here are the main things we had to settle upon arriving and what we did to make everything go smoother.

(Source)

Kyle Forrest: Outside of the typical items that go along with moving (setting up internet, utilities, etc.) most items on my to-do list involved paving the way for proving I should receive in-state tuition in year two. DMV visit for a California license and vehicle registration... changing the mailing address on all my current bills, credit cards, etc... and other items that the Financial Aid Office recommended I do to prove my intent to be a California resident and not just somebody chasing in-state tuition.

Ashley Mallinson: I’m not actually in LA yet, so my to-do list is still rather long. Top of list are changing mailing addresses, new drivers licences, establishing residence and of course, there is a huge push to be prepared academically, be recruitment-ready and ready to prioritize all the great events and club activities that we will soon be signing up for!

Kate Edwards: I just nailed down my apartment with two incredible girls from Anderson, and at the top of my to do list is to get settled! All three of us are moving with very few possessions from the East Coast, so we’re essentially starting from scratch. The decorating possibilities are endless. In addition to furnishing our empty abode, I’ll be working on finding a new car - do I lease, do I buy, and importantly - what awesome ride do I get?? There are lots of decisions to be made. And of course there is so much to do academically before school begins - I’ve been furiously working on my math skills and I even broke out my old accounting book from college. It’s been a while, so I have lots to do!

Alejandra Rodriguez: Thankfully I got an apartment at Weyburn Terrace so I do not have to run around looking for apartments when I arrive at Los Angeles in a few days. Sadly I had the silly idea of requesting the apartment unfurnished so now me and my awesome roommate, Nhung, will have to rent a car and visit Big Lots, Ikea, Walmart, Target, etc. until we find all the furniture and appliances we need. I am also ordering a Laptop to pick up at Best Buy and I am planning to go to the premiere mobile booth at UCLA where we can get discounts on mobile phone services. Finally, I need to pick up some of my belongings I sent to a Relative in Santa Barbara a few weeks ago and pick up my Bruin Card! I am attempting to do all this in three days, wish me luck everyone!

Chris Varin: If you’re international it really helps to get a place before arriving, I can’t imagine what it might have been otherwise. Also make sure that you have plenty of cash or credit available for putting down deposits for EVERYTHING. Gas, electricity, water, phone, apartment... if you don’t have a social security number your initial bill can be quite high. There is so much to get set up it’s hard to figure it all out. I still don’t have a bed to sleep on and I’ve been here 3 days, my back hurts. People are meeting up all the time and you need to be on the ball not to miss anything which you inevitably will anyway. Get a phone early as well as it’ll be useful to get in touch with people early on. Finally, getting a driver’s license is going to be a pain because to get to the DMV I need a car! I’ll probably figure that one out as I go but I want my two wheels ASAP!

Ayushman Jain: I landed here last week and what REALLY helped was the fact that I’d already rented .an apartment and my awesome flatmates Chris Varin and Daniel Kraus had already purchased mattresses. After a 30 hour excruciatingly long journey, I could sleep at my own place on a comfy mattress instead of couch-surfing and making daily trips for apartment hunting! The important things I got done were - opening an account in CHASE bank, getting my BruinCard (UCLA id card), getting a new number and phone and buying some groceries to survive on. The Dashew Center at UCLA has tied up with common service providers - banks, wireless network providers, apartment package providers, etc and all that is pretty helpful for international students, especially those who’re coming here without much preparation. I’m also slowly meeting up fellow batchmates who live close by though my jet lag did not permit me to attend Sundowners (a weekly UCLA Anderson happy hours get-together). Exploring the beautiful UCLA campus is next on my list!

 -Anderson 14' bloggers

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The pre-departure hustle

Just like everyone else, I too am busy packing my bags as the D-day finally comes close. I've been preparing since the last 2-3 months thinking I'll be relaxed during these last days I have at home. However, to my chagrine, I'm far from relaxed. My suitcases are out, patiently waiting to be loaded with everything I'll be carrying for the trip to LA, but I'm busy running around to cross out a few remaining crucial to-do items from my list. While I don't intend to bore you to death with all the minute details, I think it'll surely help to share a part of my list here for posterity. So here they go:

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1. First and foremost, catching up with friends and relatives! While its ideal to meet as many people as you can before you leave, sometimes its not humanly possible, especially if like me, one has been working through the last month before departure. Since my last day was only last week and I fly in 4 days, I had to make a lot of compromises here - catching up with only the closest family members and friends who live somewhere close to where I am.

2. Completing post-resignation formalities is a an onerous task. In my case, it involved returning the company assets (laptops, etc.) back, submitting all pending travel claims and shooting off mails to expedite their payment, saying goodbye to colleagues and writing keep-in-touch emails, saving all the soft assets that till now were readily available on the corporate intranet, handing over tax-related documentation for the processing of the final settlement, and several small things I cannot even remember. Therefore,my advice is to resign as early as you can. Do not, i repeat do not, put off resignation till the last moment, and make sure your last working day is at least a month before your departure date.

3. Shopping!! I'm sure this is something almost everyone's busy doing at the last moment, no matter how much in advance you prepare a shopping list. And whew- what a tiring experience this been! Having lived away from home, I thought I won't need to shop a lot and I'll just carry whatever I have at present because thats what I mostly use. However, towards the end I realized I should leave the old things behind and take new stuff with me (literally and figuratively!). This meant I needed to buy a good number of clothes to refurbish my wardrobe, shoes to replace my worn off ones, medicines to replace the ones on the verge of expiry... and the list goes on. 

4. Getting the visa. While the formal process to apply for the visa and then go for the interview is pretty straightforward, its advisable to keep all bases covered. Therefore, before I could submit my application, I made sure I had tangible proofs of whatever I was gonna say during the interview - right from my high school marksheets to financial proofs showing how I proposed to cover the costs of the MBA. And since I claimed to get some portion of the funding from family savings, I had to nudge my dad to get his financial documents in order too!

5. Getting foreign exchange. If you're an international student, you'll have to carry US Dollars to cover your living expenses before your financial aid and fellowship kicks in. Credit cards work pretty well, but the downside of using them is the high conversion rates added to the final bill. There are some other options to offset these charges, such as wire transfer, traveller's cheques and travel/forex cards. Reading about all these, I found the travel cards to be the best and the most hassle-free. In India, you can get a travel card made from any major bank at a nominal one-time fee and at the US Dollar buying rate for that bank. Once you load this card with US Dollars, you can use it at any merchant in the US without incurring any additional charges. You can also withdraw cash from an ATM at a nominal fee for each withdrawal. They can be re-loaded on demand by anyone you authorize back home.

Ofcourse, there are a lot more things in the list and the whole of it won't fit in blogposts alone. For Indians, this is a very useful to-do list, that's reminded me of several things I'd forgotten about.

Phew! I'm almost done and I need to start packing. My next post will be from LA. Woohoo!! 

~Ayushman Jain, MBA '14 (Twitter @ayushman_jain. Follow UCLA Anderson at @UCLA_MBA)

Class of 14' insider summer scoop - PART 3 - "Back to school! What’s in my backpack?"

What am I packing? - It may have been a long time ago but we’ve all had to pack for school before. But we’re adults now, we’ve worked, we may or may not have a better sense of style and we actually know what we want and what we’ll need so what are we going to be taking with us?

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Alejandra Rodriguez: I have never had to pack for school before since my college was a fifteen minute walk from what has been my home all my life. I have twenty seven years worth of memories that I have been trying to sort through for the last few months. To make matters worse I love buying clothes, shoes, accessories, and makeup.  I have way more than any normal person needs. So what am I doing? Being impractical of course!!! I am taking all of it to L.A.! I already sent five bags to a relative who lives two hours away from UCLA and I am taking three more with me when I move to Los Angeles. I even sent seven pairs of boots already and L.A. is so sunny! I will have to do a massive project to fit all my stuff inside my small room at Weyburn Terrace (which I will of course blog about). I wonder if I will be able to even fit a bed in my room but who cares, style is more important than silly things like sleeping!

Dwight Asuncion: I already did some back to school shopping. :) Bought myself a North Face backpack to carry my laptop, Sperry shoes to walk around campus looking stylish, a Hugo Boss suit for interviews (will still need to get it tailored though). Of course, since I’m going to be a student, I bought everything on sale or at an outlet. For those of you willing to make the hour or so drive, the Camarillo outlets are nice. Other than some minor school supplies, I have everything else I need: clothes, electronics, etc. Trying to keep everything simple and low-cost (aside from my splurges mentioned above).

Kyle Forrest: My main purchases for school were a new personal laptop (Lenovo T420s) since I no longer have a work one, and updates to my casual wardrobe (only two pairs of shorts won’t cut it in LA now that I don’t have to wear business clothes 5 times a week). I’m also trying to figure out whether I’ll need to fit my motorcycle with some saddlebags or additional storage, or whether I’ll truly need a backpack or a locker at school.

Ann Ching:  I have actually carried a backpack to work every day in lieu of a briefcase, so I’ll continue to do so once I’m back in school. I have to buy a lot of civilian clothes because I have been wearing a uniform for so long. When I get to LA I plan to visit Santee Alley to shop for some interview suits at discount prices. Another thing I plan to purchase is a bigger lunch cooler to bring food and snacks for school. I’ve heard the days are long and eating out (on or off campus) can be expensive and high in calories!

Ashley Mallinson: I work in the Fashion Industry in New York City, so as far as wardrobe is concerned I’m going to have to invest in a more buttoned up look than I am used to for “business casual” affairs. I was nervous I might have to leave my fashion-forward footwear behind, but was thrilled when I heard that dean Olean says, “the higher the heel, the better” so one thing I will not surrender to the more casual laid-back Los Angeles lifestyle is my heels. I’m currently suit shopping, and will fill you all in on the blog as to my findings once that mission is accomplished.

Chris Varin: After having rotated 5 t-shirts and 1 pair of pants for the past year, I returned home to find that my closet is essentially works suits and shirts so shopping was in order. I went bulk shopping sales and despite some gaps I can now go a week without laundry which is a big step up. I still haven’t bought my laptop although I'm looking at some of the Dell deals offered at the UCLA computer store. I received an ipad for my birthday/going away present which will be really handy (it already somewhat took over my life). I’m also trying to figure out whether I should pack my four different pairs of soccer cleats in my bag as I’m going to be arriving in LA with one big suitcase, one small one and a backpack - I'm thinking of building an optimization model to figure this one out...

Ayushman Jain: Its been only three years long since i passed out from my undergrad university and having stayed away from home since the last 7 years, I have a fairly good idea of what I need and what I don’t. I have been self-sufficient with whatever stuff I have had till now and I’ve changed my address 7 times in the 7 years, so I also pretty much know in how many bags all my stuff fits. For LA, I’ m gonna carry more or less the same things. Of course, for a change I’m carrying some new formal clothes and a couple of suits (being a software engineer I’ve always worn jeans and sneakers to office, so my wardrobe really needed less of that and more of formals). Apart from clothes, I’m carrying a whole bunch of groceries, spices, utensils, etc. that I’ll need to cook (I’ve heard one doesn’t get too much time in the first quarter, but I’ll make sure I atleast cook 2-3 times a week and save my useful gastric bacteria from working overtime on cheese and bread!). The only thing I’m really sad about not carrying is a laptop! This is probably the first time ever that I’m travelling without one - and that’s because right now I have my office laptop which is soon gonna be taken away from me and I plan to buy a new personal laptop only in LA, with the cool back to school offers there. The UCLA store also offers some great deals so I’ll have plenty of options!

Gregory Paige: Like Ann above, I wore a backpack to work, so I’ve essentially worn a backpack nonstop since kindergarten! One aspect of preparing for Anderson that worried me was the single most important item in that backpack, the laptop. Should I buy a new PC, or take the necessary steps to run Windows 7 (read: Excel 2010) on my MacBook Pro? With a bit of hesitation, I chose the latter option. But the entire process couldn’t have gone any smoother. I purchased and installed Parallels Desktop 7 for Mac, Windows 7 and Microsoft Office 2010 in that order. Now I can switch back and forth between OS X and Windows 7 with ease, and the Anderson laptop configuration process was flawless, Excel add-ins and all. A highly recommended option for the Apple fans out there.

-Anderson 14' bloggers

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The UCLA Anderson MBA advantage for careers in high-tech

We usually decide to invest in an MBA with a specific short-term and a more abstract long-term goal - and not just because we have to write that essay convincingly, but also because an MBA is not just another degree but a life decision. Some of us have crazy goals, but thats ok, as long as you think an MBA is one dot you really need to connect to get there. This post is for those who, like me, are targetting a product management/marketing role (or other similar ones) in the high-tech industry.

While researching for MBA programs that'll give me the necessary training - both in terms of academicand experiential- to gear up to move to a product management role in the short-term, I realized that not all programs were a good match for me. Most of the popular programs, especially on the east coast, had a subtle bias towards careers in finance, consulting and general management. This can be observed by studying not only the incoming student backgrounds but also the post-MBA employment stats. In many cases though, this is not a consequence of the way the program is designed, but more a consequence of the career asiprations of its students which largely dictates the focus of their campus placement teams. I tried getting in touch with current students from several schools during my research and found a standard response  - product management/marketing in the high-tech industry is a niche career choice, and is not very common. While on the one hand I was sure that this fact will not deter me as long as choose the right courses and build the right network, on the other hand I was apprehensive of getting enough experiential opportunities and peer support while in school.

In that respect, the UCLA Anderson MBA program was on one of the rare ones that perfectly aligned with my career goals. A quick look at the class profile told me that 20% of students come from engineering/high-tech backgrounds and this caught my attention. On exploring further and finding out that 21% of students choose careers in the high-tech industry (class of 2012), I immediately knew that this is a popular career choice here. Why this difference, one might wonder. Some factors that can explain this are its location, the coursework, and the experiential opportunities - all amplified by years of experience of the faculty and career services working with students targetting the high-tech industry. Academically, the Easton Technology leadership program provides the ideal recipe of courses to prepare even students from non-tech backgrounds for high-tech careers. Applied Management Research (AMR) projects with the high-tech industry are also fairly common and come in handy to get some valuable experience while being creative (check out this year's Youtube AMR project). A healthy network of alumni in the industry in and around LA and SF definitely helps a great deal in both career advice and job search. The Days on the Jobs (DOJs) to the Silicon Valley and bay area (sponsored by HTBA) are good opportunities to builld your network and at the same time, get a sneek-preview of the culture of the companies you visit. (For in-depth employment details for the class of 2011, look at the Employment Report)

These were some of the critical factors that influenced my choice of the Anderson MBA program and assured me that I'll be able to transition smoothly from a software engineer to a product manager. I'm also glad that apart from finance, consulting and technology, Anderson also maintains a stronghold on several other areas such as enterprenuership and real estate, thus giving the students ample choice to shape their learning and post-MBA careers. My classmates are coming from amazingly diverse backgrounds and are targetting an equally diverse set of career roles - right from media and healthcare to non-profit and real estate, apart from the more traditional areas of finance, consulting and general management. For more information on the career paths the Anderson MBA can open up for you, take a look at the brochure!

~Ayushman Jain, MBA '14 (Twitter @ayushman_jain)