{"id":49214,"date":"2020-07-05T12:26:45","date_gmt":"2020-07-05T19:26:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/?p=49214"},"modified":"2020-09-29T10:11:12","modified_gmt":"2020-09-29T17:11:12","slug":"kelley-part-time-mba-shares-hybrid-learning-experience-and-advice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/kelley-part-time-mba-shares-hybrid-learning-experience-and-advice\/","title":{"rendered":"Kelley Part-time MBA Shares Hybrid Learning Experience and Advice"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p> Paramvir Sawhney, a former MER (<a href=\"https:\/\/myessayreview.com\/\">myEssayReview<\/a>) client, is working as a senior staff engineer at Stryker Corp. He graduated from Kelley part-time MBA program last year. In a candid conversation with Poonam, Paramvir explains how the MBA program was the best \u2018fit\u2019 for him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"449\" src=\"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Paramvir.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-50004\" srcset=\"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Paramvir.jpg 800w, https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Paramvir-300x168.jpg 300w, https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Paramvir-768x431.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>In this video interview, Paramvir talks about the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>His\nbackground- 00.57<\/li><li>Career\ngoals\/ How Kelley (PT) MBA helped him achieve them- 01.56<\/li><li>His\nFavorite thing about Kelly (PT) MBA- 02.54<\/li><li>Format\nof Hybrid Program- 04.12<\/li><li>Application\nof classroom learning at work \u2013 11.11<\/li><li>Participation\nin Extracurricular activities at Kelley- 08.52<\/li><li>Work-life-\nschool balance<\/li><li>His\ninsights into hybrid learning amid COVID-19- 13.59<\/li><li>Interest\nand Hobbies- 17.57<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And now presenting Paramvir: <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Kelley Part-time MBA Shares Hybrid Learning Experience and Advice\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Eln6-mJa6Zw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam:<\/strong> Thanks for taking the time to talk to us. Congratulations on graduating from Kelley. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: <\/strong>Thanks, it has been\na long time coming. I can't believe the last time we connected was back in 2017,\ntime flies for sure. &nbsp;Thanks for all the\nhelp. I appreciate it. <a href=\"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/reviews\/comments\/multipe-school-package-345353241\">I think I would\nnot have been able to get in without your help.<\/a> That's for sure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam:<\/strong> It was a pleasure to assist you with your application. Can you introduce yourself to our viewers?\nWhere are you from? Where and what did you study as an undergrad? What was your\npre - Kelley job? What are you doing now?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: <\/strong>I am Paramvir Sawhney. I grew up in India, in a city called Chandigarh, where I completed my undergrad in Biotechnology and came to the US to pursue my master's in biomedical engineering in 2007. Most of my experience has been in Medical Devices. I have been in various Senior Engineer and Project Management positions in medical devices over the years. I graduated from my MBA from Kelley Business School last year. Currently, I am working as a Senior Staff Engineer at Striker Carb. I am also a private pilot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam: <\/strong>&nbsp;It has been a year\nsince you graduated. Are you happy with how your career has shaped up post MBA? How did Kelly MBA help you achieve your short-term\ngoals? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: <\/strong>Well, I see myself in a product leadership role, preferably in medical device space in the future. I can say that Kelley Part-time MBA prepared me precisely for the short-term goals that I was looking for. Kelley has not only equipped me with hard skills and knowledge that I will need actually to navigate the business and the corporate landscape but also soft skills to build relationships and become a better negotiator in different aspects of life-professional and personal. To climb up the corporate ladder, one needs soft skills as well as hard skills and technical expertise. In that aspect, Kelley has helped me become a better leader and a better speaker, which helped me land a new job after I graduated from Kelley. I am thrilled with the program. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam:<\/strong> Good to know that. What is your favorite thing about your program? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: <\/strong>The best thing I liked about Kelley was that it was a\npart-time program. It was a combination of online and on-campus instruction. Online\nlectures were conducted using Zoom sessions where the professor and the\nattending cohort were present in live discussions. This format enhanced and\nencouraged live discussions among participants, and professors generally\nmoderated them. These live discussions and the entire session were recorded and\nprovided for later review. Since I was working full-time, it gave me the\nflexibility to attend classes in the evening and work, completing my\nassignments during the weekends. That was a significant part of the program for\nme. Since it is a part-time program, it gave me the flexibility to apply what I\nlearned in the class in the evening to my job the very next day. It was almost\nlike following experiential learning modal. So, those were the aspects of the\nprogram that appealed to me, and I am glad that I was able to apply what I\nlearned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam: <\/strong>Good.<strong> <\/strong>Kelley Part-time MBA is a hybrid program, a combination of online and on-campus teaching. I am curious to know how this works. Could you please throw some light on the hybrid format of the program?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: <\/strong>Yes, the program is in a hybrid format with on-campus classes twice a week and twice online. Also, depending upon the courses, the Professors try to balance by having half of the course online and the other half on campus for face to face interaction. It is a kind of 50-50 mix for each course. Online lectures are conducted using Zoom sessions where the professor and the attending cohort are present in live discussions. This format enhances and encourages live discussions among participants, and professors generally moderate them. These live discussions and sessions are recorded and provided for later review. If you have multiple courses, there are also weekend events, corporate events that are separate from your core courses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam<\/strong>:\nIs there anything about\nthe program that you would like to change?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: <\/strong>I wish I could\nspend some more time there and could take a few more courses, but overall, it\nturned out to be a great experience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam:\n<\/strong>What did you wish you had known before you started, and what was a\nchallenge?<strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: <\/strong>I wish I had a little\nbetter time management skill before I started this program. Being in a part-time\nprogram and balancing a full-time job can become a bit of shock as one enters\nthe program. Initially, you take core curriculum classes, which sets the tone\nfor the rest of the program, so adjusting quickly in a new routine becomes very\nimportant to make the best out of your program. If you are not good at time\nmanagement, it becomes challenging. These programs are very condensed and fast-paced.&nbsp; The people that you meet in your cohort are\nvery ambitious. So right from day 1, you must bring your A-game. Time\nmanagement is one of the most vital skills that you will learn in an MBA\nbecause you have your professional life, your school life, and you also have a\nlittle bit of your social and family life. So that was one skill that I wished\nI had developed out of the gate. Apart from that, I learned quickly, did my course\ncorrection, and as I went through the program, I was fine. The other thing that\nyou develop in a professional program like MBA is the habit of saying 'no'; it\nhelps you prioritize things in your life. If you are not able to say 'no,' the\nthings that matter can just fall off; it enables you to prioritize things in\nyour life and teaches you better time management skills.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam<\/strong>: So\nthis is the advice you have for the incoming students who would aim for any\npart-time MBA program, specifically Kelley?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: <\/strong>Absolutely. You must\ncome with an expectation. You must temper your expectation. The hope is that\nyou really will not have your social life for the duration of the program. It\nis just because of the workload of the program, and if you are also doing a full-time\njob, then it does not leave you much time. So, my advice is - have the right\nexpectation, develop your time management skills, and make sure that you have\nan open mind to prioritize what is essential in your life. Opportunities are\ngoing to come your way, and you just must have a belief in yourself and take a\nplunge. You learn from your failures, and things will fall in place. That is\nthe confidence you need to have. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam<\/strong>:\nHow well you were able to apply classroom learning to your work while pursuing\nyour MBA?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: &nbsp;<\/strong>That\nis the beauty of the part-time program<strong>. <\/strong>Whatever you learn, you can\ntranslate that to your work-life right away. It\nis not only book learning. In my case, most of the projects that I completed as a\npart of my MBA related to developing a solution towards a work problem I was\ninvolved at that time. So, I could apply my new skills to\nthe project I was involved in. It was a win-win situation for me. Secondly, all\nyour batchmates and the cohorts are working professionals who bring in\ndifferent perspectives from diverse industries and different corporate levels.\nSo instead of just learning from books, you learn from others' experiences that\ngive you many opportunities to think about the problem more broadly. One of the\nhighlights of my MBA was an interview with the CEO of Ambu. It is during\ninteractions such as those that one realizes the real value of an MBA as one\ncan confidently and intelligently hold a conversation with accomplished\nleaders. Additionally, MBA gave me an understanding of how my role fits into the\noverall picture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam:\n<\/strong>As a part-time student,\nhow often did you get opportunities to participate in any extracurricular\nactivities (student clubs, organizations)?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir:\n<\/strong>Often, people think that if you are\nin a part-time program, you do not get many opportunities to socialize. But\nthat is not true. It depends on how much you want to get involved with extracurricular\nopportunities. Again, prioritizing things is what you are challenged with. I\ncan give you an example of myself. Every Wednesday night, we had a class, and\nafter the class, we had trivia nights and social activities of clubs. I was a\npart of a venture club, which had events every Thursday during lunchtime, so to\nbe a part of that, I used to keep my schedule flexible at work. My involvement\nin the venture club allowed me to develop a professional network, which is essential\nto help you advance in your career. So, there are always opportunities\navailable, and it just depends upon the individual if he\/she wants to get\ninvolved. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam:\n<\/strong>Yes<strong>, s<\/strong>ome people\nare concerned that as part-time students, they will only be engaged in classroom\nlearnings, and they will not be able to participate in any other activities.\nYou have addressed those concerns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir:\n<\/strong>Yes. If you talk to your Professors,\nthere are always opportunities. You just have to seek out those. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam: <\/strong>You pursued an MBA along with your full-time job and family responsibilities? What challenges you faced, and how did you overcome them? Can you share some advice regarding the work school-life balance?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: <\/strong>Sure, as I have\npreviously mentioned that time -management is the most critical skill\none would need to master quickly to be successful. These programs are as\ndemanding or maybe more as the full-time programs. One should be ready to give\nup any aspect of their social life while in the program, and they should be\nable to protect their time by saying 'no\u2019 to a lot of things\/events in\ntheir lives. It forces you to prioritize what is essential in your life.\nAdditionally, it helps you become a better negotiator as you would need\nthis skill with everyone, whether you negotiate with your boss for a salary or with\nyour spouse forcing you to go to a social event. It also helps you become a\nbetter team-player among your cohort as you would be able to help people\nwhen they are in a crunch. Overall, I think it helps you develop into a better\nperson. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam<\/strong>: Given the chaos and uncertainty caused by COVID 19, the virtual format of education has gained more importance than ever. Since March, all educational institutions had to move to virtual classroom instruction and outside -of- class events. In the AIGAC virtual conference that I attended last month, representatives from European and US B- schools talked about <em>phydiga<\/em>l environment- a hybrid world that combines both virtual and physical elements. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At Kelly, you went through a similar experience in the<em> phydigal <\/em>environment. &nbsp;What insights you have to share regarding your experience with online learning? What advice you have for those incoming students who are considering deferrals or are just nervous about starting the fall semester in an online format.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: <\/strong>I can understand\nthe concern around online instruction<strong>. <\/strong>Initially, I also had reservations\nwith online learning. But in hybrid classes, most of the lectures are recorded,\nand that gives you the luxury of learning at your own pace. You are not time-bound\nthat you have to be in the class at a particular time while you are working\nfull-time. So, that flexibility helps your time management and prepares\nyou in a better way as you go through the hybrid part of the program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In an online format, though you are\nmissing out on the face -to- face interaction, these courses are structured in\nsuch a way that they foster a <a href=\"https:\/\/myessayreview.com\/mba-topics\/current-students-share-insights-mba-experience-amid-covid-19\/?fbclid=IwAR1cTzbyiScUlTiMERbkuEAjcTS0DfYaKA19OWFLsDu82GoIiM4HQBdiyvM\">healthy discussion\namongst the participants<\/a>. The discussion part from which you learn the most is\nalready present. The professors are getting creative in delivering these online\nclasses. So, in my opinion, one should not be concerned about missing out on-campus\nlearning. Moreover, in these exceptional times, when a lot of work, corporate\nstructure, and organizational situations are also going to be moving online, we\nalso have to think differently about the hybrid programs. The hybrid program\nprepares you to get into a new type of corporate world, where most of your\nwork is possibly going to be on the laptop without being physically there. It\nwill help future managers learn the skills to manage their workforce\nremotely.&nbsp; The hybrid program equips the\nstudents with those skills. In this changing world, the skills need to be\nupdated, and soft skills are much more important to pursue\/promote your career.\nSo I think people should not look at online learning as a negative thing;\ninstead, they should look at it as something that will prepare them for the future\nworkforce that they are going to enter. I found the hybrid format of\nlearning very beneficial. It helped me give a little bit of freedom to balance\nthings in my life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Finally, the Hybrid\nprogram gives you much more face time with your cohort and builds a better\nrelationship with them. You are not only dependent on-campus classes since\nyou are interacting off-campus, too. So, it helps build those relationships\nmuch quicker. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam<\/strong>: What are your interests\/\nhobbies? I remember you are a private pilot. Would you like to share your\nexperience with our viewers\/readers?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: <\/strong>Sure. I am a private pilot. I have not flown for a\nvery long time now. The last time I flew was after graduating because when you\nare in the program, you don't have time for anything except for studies and work.\nHowever, once I graduated, I had a ton of time on my hands, and since then,\napart from getting a new job, I have dabbled in standup comedy routines and\nlearned to play Ukulele. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam:<\/strong> Is there anything you would like to share that I have not\nasked?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Paramvir: <\/strong>I think we covered\neverything in our discussion. The only thing I will say that an MBA is a big\nstep for anyone so goes ahead with an open mind. Do not focus only on the hard\nskills. It will help, but an MBA will also help develop your personality. It\nwill help you become a better person and a better leader. Apart from that, I\nwould like to wish everyone the best of luck in their future endeavors and hope\nthat programs prepare them to tackle the challenges of the 21<sup>st<\/sup>\ncentury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Poonam:<\/strong> Thank you for sharing your\nstory with us. I am confident your insights will be a helpful resource for the\nincoming students who have concerns about remote learning in Fall. We wish you\ngood luck and continued success in your career.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can connect with Paramvir via LinkedIn <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/sawhneyparam\/\">https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/sawhneyparam\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Related Resources<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/myessayreview.com\/category\/student-interviews\/\"><strong>Success Stories of MER Students<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/myessayreview.com\/category\/case-studies\/\"><strong>Case Studies<\/strong> <\/a><br>\n<br>\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since\n2011, MER (<a href=\"https:\/\/myessayreview.com\/\">myEssayReview<\/a>) has helped\nhundreds of applicants get accepted into the top 20 MBA programs (Poonam is one\nof the <a href=\"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/reviews\/myessayreview-345345505?fl=menu\">top 5 most reviewed consultants on the GMAT Club<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You\nmay email Poonam at <a href=\"mailto:poonam@myessayreview.com\">poonam@myessayreview.com<\/a> with questions about your application for the 2020-21\nadmission cycle.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Paramvir Sawhney, a former MER (myEssayReview) client, is working as a senior staff engineer at Stryker Corp. He graduated from Kelley part-time MBA program last year. In a candid conversation&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":141,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,943,243],"tags":[184,2250,2219,1896,2248],"class_list":["post-49214","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","category-myessayreview","category-blog","tag-admissions-consulting","tag-hybrid","tag-kelley","tag-mba","tag-success-story","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49214","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/141"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49214"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49214\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50005,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49214\/revisions\/50005"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49214"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49214"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49214"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}