I’ll never forget the summary my corporate finance professor offered on the last day of class.
You have had to do four things since you came to business school – study, look for a job, socialize with your classmates, and sleep. But, you have only had enough time to do three of these things at once.
My classmates and I long ago learned that this is true, but I had not yet heard it stated so succinctly. The funny thing is that there’s quite a bit more to do than that. Attending lectures given by c-level executives from Fortune 100 companies, exercising (yoga and runs in Central Park), cheering on inter-business-school sports and game competitions, seeing Broadway shows, and eating at New York’s myriad restaurants come to mind. The first semester is rigorous, and fun, beyond belief.
Orientation and Peer Advisers
Orientation lasts two weeks and is a whirlwind of activity. Days start at 8:00 am, consist of eight hours of classes and at least another eight hours of social events. There are no breaks through the majority of the first week, not even for lunch. Our peer advisers, a group of nine second year students, serve as our guides and sociocultural business school role models throughout the process. Their energy is contagious, and I am certain that one of the main reasons our class is as close, as selfless, and as enthusiastic as we are is because of them. Shayan, Kevin, Jen, Omer, David, Lisa, Monelle and Ben - Thanks! The 538 of us is grouped into clusters consisting of about 65 students. These students go through orientation and take of all their core classes together during the first year. My cluster, Cluster H, bonds immediately.
Study
I take two full-term courses and six half-term courses this semester. Each course consists of three hours of lecture per week, is accompanied by a 300 plus page course book containing cases, assignments, notes and various other instruments of torture, and requires a plethora of work outside the classroom. The academic rigor of the MBA is no joke; however, the challenge lies not in the technical difficulty of the work, but in the sheer volume of it. The material is fascinating and practical and an overwhelming majority of the professors are engaging. The two full term courses are accounting and corporate finance. Half term courses include managerial statistics, strategy formulation, managerial economics, marketing strategy, leadership development, and operations management. With the help of my learning team, five other Cluster H’ers with whom I complete group assignments, I feel as though I internalize the content of a four year business degree in the course of four months.
Look for a Job
Outlook runs my life. Seriously. I put events in Outlook and Outlook reminds me to attend a few days (or weeks) later. I don’t question Outlook. I just suck it up and follow along. Throughout the semester I am double booked for recruiting events. This is one aspect of business school that completely took me by surprise. Recruiting for summer internships starts a few weeks after the first day of classes. Summer internships turn into full time job offers after business school. This means you better have figured out what you want to be doing and who you want to be doing it with. Fast. Many say recruiting for a job is like a sixth class. I’d argue that it’s like a sixth and seventh class. Firmwide presentations last one to three hours, depending on whether you have time to stick around and chat with those hosting the event. Attending these events is a great way to learn a lot about a lot of different companies and to meet a lot of people in the industry. During the height of the recruiting season, I remember leaving my apartment for class at 8:00 am and not stepping foot in back in my apartment again until 11:00 pm. And then I’d start my homework. Who’d have thought?
Socialize with Classmates
This has been one of the best parts of business school. All my classmates are so intelligent, so cultured, so professional, and so much fun. The people here truly make the experience. School-organized happy hours in Uris, the main business school building, on Thursdays provide a great opportunity to wrap up the school week. Hundreds of students (and a few professors) show up, eat catered food, drink kegs of beer, and dance to professionally DJ'd music. It’s a good time. Other events around the city (with and without alcohol) are organized regularly and never fail to disappoint. I can’t wait for what the next three semesters have in store.
Am I forgetting something on my corporate finance professor’s list? Oh yeah, sleep. It’s not the first time.
