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Director
Joined: 23 Mar 2014
Posts: 833
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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 04 Sep 2015, 10:01
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FROM Financial Times MBA Blog: A tale of two classmates
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For the past couple of weeks I’ve been winding down my affairs in New York by working on consulting projects, trying every exotic sandwich there is and then intensely hitting the gym. But I also wanted to get to know some of my future classmates at Saïd (Oxford University), so I posted in the MBA Facebook group that I was hosting a meet and greet on the rooftop of Salvation Taco restaurant on August 31 for anyone who was in the region.
I had just turned 30 the day before and, after a 24-hour period of unexpected jitters thinking about personal accomplishments and failures, I made my way there.
Read more
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ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Manager
Joined: 19 Feb 2015
Posts: 113
Concentration: Marketing, Technology
GPA: 3.49
WE: Sales (Advertising and PR)
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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06 Sep 2015, 18:02
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FROM Yudanashi: A New Adventure
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Tomorrow morning I hop on a flight to the UK and officially begin the next step in my journey. I’ve spent months getting ready. From pre-class assignments & readings, to packing up my entire life into just 3 bags. As I get finish my preparations I am struck with the question I’ve been asked a lot as I have gone through this process. “What do you want to do with your degree.”
As I look at all the options I have following my MBA I am at first struck with choice paralysis. I could continue in consulting but at a higher level, learning a lot about new industries as I go along. I could dive into finance and help a VC fund invest in start-ups that could change the world. I can focus on marketing and help companies use the power of their brand to improve the lives of their customers. I could shift more into tech and work as a product manager developing a tool to make someone’s live just a little bit easier.
As I look at my options and even how I describe them to others, there is a common thread. I want my work to have a positive impact on others. And in talking with almost a third of my class, this seems to be a reason why most of us picked Oxford. The school’s focus on Social Entrepreneurship is a key driver of our choice for Oxford; this holds true even for those of us who don’t want to be entrepreneurs ourselves.
While I love marketing and will likely end up down that path, if a role opened up in consulting for non-profits, or running finance for a charitable trust, or a product manager role for an AirBnB for homeless youth who have been failed by the foster-care system, I would probably take it in a heart-beat. Why? Because I care more about having a positive impact on the world than on fulfilling a specific job function.
To some, this may appear that I lack focus and to an extent they are right. I am open to any function that I am qualified for. However, what they miss is that my industry is very focused. It isn’t Healthcare or Energy; Manufacturing or High Tech. My industry is Social Impact. I hope that over the course of my Oxford MBA I can find the perfect function within that industry to enable me to have a positive impact on the world around me.
To that aim, my goals for the year, my MBA resolutions, my OKR’s (to borrow a term from my time at Google) are as follows:
- Societal
- Volunteer with a local Oxford charity at least one weekend per month
- Attend religious services at at least two different congregations each month
- Cook for my classmates at least once per month
- Physical
- Join an Oxford University Team (Crew for Lincoln or Fencing for the University)
- Workout at least 3 times per week with my classmates (Running for beginners anyone?)
- Yoga at least once per week to stretch my body and calm my mind
- Academic
- Achieve top 10% of my class in Marketing classes
- Achieve top 25% of my class in Finance classes
- Take at least 1 elective unrelated to my core focus in Marketing
- Professional
- Attend at least 5 networking conferences per term
- Have information interviews with 25 firms on my target job-list
- Speak on a public panel at least once per term
- Travel
- Travel to a new country at least once per month
- Explore other parts of England, Scotland, and Wales at least twice per term
- Discover a hidden gem of Oxford once per term
- Relationships
- Date several british men.
- Share a meal and a detailed conversation with every person in my section by end of Michaelmas term
- Meet with leaders of Oxford University’s broader network of LGBT and other University organizations by end of Hillary term
These may seem ambitious, but that is the point, to stretch myself. If I achieve 70% of these I will have done amazing. Join me next week as I talk about the pain points of being an international student, the Visa process, and actually flying over (assuming my flight tomorrow goes well).
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ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Director
Joined: 23 Mar 2014
Posts: 833
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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07 Sep 2015, 11:02
ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Manager
Status: Accepted
Joined: 09 Jun 2015
Posts: 65
Location: United States (IN)
Concentration: General Management, Healthcare
Schools: Harvard Business School - Class of 2017
GPA: 3.7
WE: Corporate Finance (Pharmaceuticals and Biotech)
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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08 Sep 2015, 05:01
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FROM Ambitiousbusinessguy: The Top 5 Free GMAT Prep Resources
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Most people find the GMAT very difficult. Whether you are out of the habit of studying or can’t seem to remember that you need to flip the fraction to find the reciprocal, most of us are going to need some help before we sit for the test. In a previous post, I outlined my approach to GMAT preparations. However, you maybe on a budget or just getting started and aren’t willing to shove out thousands of dollars for courses and materials to prepare for the test. Lucky for you, there are some great FREE resources available. Here are my top five:
Kaplan GMAT Test Prep
5. Ken Tran from Kaplan pointed me to the GMAT community homepage, where testers can preview all of Kaplan’s free resources. My favorite is the free practice test. Unlike many free practice tests, Kaplan tries to simulate test-day conditions with an actual proctored exam. If you enroll in the paid course, you can even take your practice exam at the real test center, an awesome feature that is unique to Kaplan as far as I can tell.
Economist GMAT Tutor
4. Economist’s adaptive GMAT preparation, best-in-class score guarantee, and included one-on-one tutoring make the paid version an incredible value. They also offer a free trial version. The Economist will let you try their course for 7 days, take a practice exam, and schedule a one-on-one tutoring sessions all for free.
3. Veritas Prep’s Mobile App: The first of two mobile apps on this list, Veritas Prep’s prep app is free on the app store. The app, actually designed to accompany the paid course, still allows you to stream all (yes I mean ALL) of Veritas’s course videos without parting with a single penny. Veritas’s video instructors keep it interesting with light candor while they radiate some of industry’s best instruction and most practical tips, making Veritas Prep the highest rated course on BeatTheGMAT.com.
Prep4GMAT
2. Our second app was design to be free. So unlike Veritas Prep, there is no referring back to paid material you do not have access to. Prep4GMAT recently redesigned their app and what a difference it made. The new app is user friendly and allows for easy progress tracking and weakness identifying.
GMAT prep now
1. The holy grail of free GMAT offers 500 videos including 35 hours of expert GMAT instruction. Unlike most GMAT prep courses, which use made-up questions, use questions directly out of the Official Guide. This guarantees that you are not wasting time with questions you will not see on the test and also gives you confidence in the level of difficulty of the practice questions. Brent Hanneson from GMAT prep now did not say why they started offering the course for free when contacted for this post; however, their website says, “our biggest reason is that we’re proud of our course.” Whatever that means…I don’t get it. All I know is you now have access to hours of high-quality content for FREE!
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ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
_________________
David Hamilton
Founder
HBSAccept.com
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Manager
Status: Accepted
Joined: 09 Jun 2015
Posts: 65
Location: United States (IN)
Concentration: General Management, Healthcare
Schools: Harvard Business School - Class of 2017
GPA: 3.7
WE: Corporate Finance (Pharmaceuticals and Biotech)
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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09 Sep 2015, 18:01
ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
_________________
David Hamilton
Founder
HBSAccept.com
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Intern
Joined: 12 Jun 2012
Posts: 45
Concentration: Entrepreneurship, General Management
GPA: 3.48
WE: General Management (Consumer Products)
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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10 Sep 2015, 16:01
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FROM j2insead: About Funding & Scholarships 2
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Funding- an MBA admit’s inevitable dilemma! If you thought the application process was gruelling, then wait till you are admitted. I have spent the past few weeks working extra hard on sorting out funding for my INSEAD MBA. It has been one helluva experience…and I’m not done yet!
Here is how my funding situation looks as at today (tuition only):
- Scholarship (INSEAD): 25%
- External Scholarship: 12%
- Prodigy: 64% (I have 3 months left to reduce this drastically as I am extremely debt averse)
The interesting bit about this stage of the process is how a lot of things unfold which affect individual decisions and how timelines are never in sync. Scholarship decisions are released at differing times and timelines (INSEAD & others) on financial commitments seem to be cast in stone.
Work on the other hand has taken a horrendous toll on my health and I have had to take time off work intermittently in the past few weeks. A long vacation looms on the horizon and i will spend time travelling and detoxifying my body. The thought of this alone is refreshing…
So here’s where I stand:
- Awaiting two more scholarship decisions that can hopefully enable me cut down on my prodigy loan (or not need it at all!)
- Still searching for more funding opportunities (Never say never…)
- Waiting to start my French visa application (cannot apply more than 90 days to start of MBA program)
- Still deciding on housing (shared? studio? Cost is key here)
- Trying to get a hang of all I need to do between now and December. Once the funding dilemma is fully sorted by end of September, I can focus on other things like visa application and housing
- On the verge of turning in an early resignation late October, but let’s see how that goes. My boss is still unaware about my plans and I intend to keep it this way till then.
I have also come across a lot of articles recently on the justification/reasons for getting an MBA degree- ROI, Requirement for Entrepreneurship? and all sorts. Well, like someone in the 16J group rightly said “There are about 500 people in the 16J MBA class and that translates to 500 different reasons to get an MBA degree”. Simply put.
So whatever the current or future funding hassles may be, I have been admitted to the INSEAD MBA: I will look for funding, I will find funding and I will go to INSEAD!!!
Congrats to all R3 Admits. Amazing times ahead!
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ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
_________________
https://journey2insead.wordpress.com/
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Manager
Joined: 24 Nov 2013
Posts: 95
Concentration: Healthcare
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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11 Sep 2015, 19:00
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FROM From Bench to Board (Fuqua): How the Duke MBA Makes Leaders - Collaboration
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A Duke MBA alum – this is a new title that is going to take some time getting used to. I’m happy to be finally back in the workforce and it’s been interesting seeing how the Duke MBA has changed my approach to things. With the MBA application season starting up soon – Fuqua’s early admission round interviews should be starting – I wanted to get back to blogging and supporting the MBA applicant community.
Continue reading »
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ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Manager
Joined: 07 Jan 2014
Posts: 109
Location: United Kingdom
Concentration: Technology, Leadership
GPA: 3.99
WE: Business Development (Entertainment and Sports)
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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13 Sep 2015, 21:01
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FROM NandoParrado: Arrival Week
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My adventure at Stanford began on Saturday, Sep 5th, after an exhausting flight from London to San Francisco via Dublin. A week has already passed by, and it was one of the most electrifying and intense of my life. I still … Continue reading →
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ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
_________________
my blog about the Stanford GSB experience (class of 2017): http://inacityofthefuture.fm/
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Manager
Joined: 19 Feb 2015
Posts: 113
Concentration: Marketing, Technology
GPA: 3.49
WE: Sales (Advertising and PR)
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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14 Sep 2015, 03:02
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FROM Yudanashi: My first week in Oxford – and how I got here.
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In the past week I have had an amazing time at Oxford. I have met a few dozen classmates, enjoyed a dozen pubs and restaurants, and gone exploring, but lets start with the flight.
On Monday morning I said goodbye to my Mum and boarded a flight from Salt Lake City, Utah to JFK. I spent that flight reading a book called “Watching the English” all about the different cultural norms and rules which create English culture (Thanks Cara for the suggestion). When I landed at Heathrow I checked into the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse and settled in for my 5-hour layover. I ate some dinner, got my hair trimmed up, and chatted with a handful of staff and my fellow passengers.
Next I boarded business class and for the next 7-hours had a wonderful international flight complete with Dinner, & Breakfast, some sleep and a chance to chat up a cute flight attendant (whom I have a date with next week). All of this service came free-of-charge as I put down my Oxford MBA deposit onto a new credit-card that offered me 75k miles if I hit a certain spend threshold; the business class ticket was only 60k miles. I highly recommend this strategy in the future.
After landing came immigration/customs. There is a student-line which goes very quickly or, with business class you get a priority lane as well (yet another reason). Make sure you have your admit letter and visa in-hand as your process will take a bit longer than just the usual questions you are asked. I highly recommend filing for your Visa immediately after getting your CAS number in July. You don’t want to save it till the last minute as the NYC office has messed up dates on visas multiple times this year resulting in another 3-4 weeks to get it resolved.
After getting through the airport and up to Oxford I checked into my flat and started unpacking. I am 90% moved-in at this point and for a college dorm room things are pretty solid. I share a kitchen/common room with 9 other people who have yet to move in, but I have my own bathroom and shower (a luxury here at Oxford). I live on a little street with some great restaurants and not too far away from a nice run at the University Parks.
This first week has been filled with jet lag and a lot of administrative work, but at the end of the day everything is awesome and I still can’t believe I’m here. Really I’m just waiting for the other show to drop and I think that’s around the corner with class-work.
See you all next week, the day before our program officially begins!
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ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Director
Joined: 23 Mar 2014
Posts: 833
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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14 Sep 2015, 10:02
ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Director
Joined: 23 Mar 2014
Posts: 833
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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14 Sep 2015, 11:01
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FROM Financial Times MBA Blog: Pass me the baton
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Jess Webb meets the students with whom she will soon forge a special bond
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ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Director
Joined: 23 Mar 2014
Posts: 833
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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14 Sep 2015, 11:01
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FROM Financial Times MBA Blog: Live Q&A: Masters in Management
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Is the Masters in Management degree, once the best-kept secret of European business schools, becoming the star of 21st-century business education? Submit your questions to our panel of experts, who will answer them live on Wednesday, September 16 2015, from 2-3pm BST .
On the panel are:
Submit questions on the right-hand side of this post.
For more information, take a look at the FT Masters in Management hub.
Read more
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ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Intern
Joined: 10 Dec 2013
Posts: 39
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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15 Sep 2015, 15:01
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FROM uwengdori - Current Student: Officially a 2nd year student!
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Before realizing, 2nd year at Rotman is finally here. It’s only a first week, but here’s what’s different so far.
- Take courses that you want.
First year mandatory courses still come as extremely useful for an engineering student such as myself, but also very stressful at the same time. I am taking only courses that I want that will directly help me with a career I want.
2. Fulltime job search pressure is on…!
Finally, it’s your first moment to shine and make a career transition or go for that great jobs that you want for a better future! (or to pay off the tuitions…). There are currently many jobs being posted on a career website, but it is also very important to do a personal search based on the LAMP list if you know what I mean.
3. More free time
It really depends on students. I intentially took two summer courses in summer and am planning to take two intensives during upcoming Winter, which means I’m taking…3…three fun courses this semester. But, that doesn’t mean that I can chill all I want (while I’m writing this blog post after a relaxing nap). I still have certifications to study for to qualify for jobs I want, take extra courses from MOOC and prepare for upcoming full marathon this October.
That’s about it so far. I took one class yesterday and it was very engaging and fun. I’m hoping that rest of the classes are as engaging and interactive.
I will end this post with a photo of a grilled pork chop I recently had to remind me to eat something nice when I’m stressed during school.
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ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Director
Joined: 23 Mar 2014
Posts: 833
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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16 Sep 2015, 06:01
ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Director
Joined: 23 Mar 2014
Posts: 833
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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17 Sep 2015, 08:02
ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Director
Joined: 23 Mar 2014
Posts: 833
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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18 Sep 2015, 04:01
ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Intern
Joined: 10 Dec 2013
Posts: 39
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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18 Sep 2015, 08:01
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Director
Joined: 23 Mar 2014
Posts: 833
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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20 Sep 2015, 04:01
ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Manager
Joined: 19 Feb 2015
Posts: 113
Concentration: Marketing, Technology
GPA: 3.49
WE: Sales (Advertising and PR)
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20 Sep 2015, 07:01
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FROM Yudanashi: Keeping an Open Mind
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I have now spent two weeks in the UK and have been loving every minute of it. Sure I miss home and probably need to call my family more often, but the time I’ve spent here has been incredible. In the past two weeks I have visited the pub C.S Lewis, JRR Tolkien (and the rest of the Inklings spent every Tuesday) at least 5 times. I have spent countless hours with my classmates and have started to get past the initial greetings portion of any new relationship. I spent 3 days in London including a wonderful date with the cute flight attendant. We went to one of the oldest pubs in London and to an amazing tapas restaurant in central London. After 3 years of DC “tapas” this was phenomenal as a full meal for two was less than $40 and the food was incredible, fast, and beautiful. The date went nicely and we are scheduling another (for those interested).
I also had a chance to attend an gathering of LGBT leaders, both under 30’s who are shaping the consulting, financial, and legal realm and senior executives of BP, HSBC, Credit Suisse, and Forbes, Inc. Finally I spent a day helping canvass for London mayoral candidate Syed Kamal (if anyone is interested in meeting & helping out with the race let me know!). It was awesome to notice the similarities and vast differences in campaign tactics and techniques in the UK vs USA.
What has been truly amazing is the mental transformation I have been going through as I continue to seek an open mind. Let me tell you, it is hard! However, one instance gives me hope that I can keep growing in this capacity. I am going to be vulnerable here so please forgive me my failings.
After bussing back up from London late one night, Matt and I went to the housing complex right behind the business school where a large crew of our Indian classmates were still having a party (it lasted 9 hours in total). We joined for the last 2 hours and for whatever reason I was expecting to walk into a very-foreign environment, one where Matt and I were the only white guys. To be disappointingly honest my gut reaction was one of semi-superiority. “I’m coming from the states”; “I have had some amazing experience;s”; “I have a unique perspective.” … yada yada … prejudiced BS that was coming from somewhere inside of me.
HOW WRONG I WAS and how glad that I am aware of it now and also feel comfortable enough with my classmates to share this vulnerability.
I met amazing people that night who come from highly successful and remarkable backgrounds; but at the end of the day we are all, above everything else, human. Regardless of country, race, gender, sexuality, religion, creed, or any other barrier. We are homo sapiens. And beyond that, what we share in common unites us. Nothing made this more clear than 2 key items.
The first was the power of dance regardless of music and culture. We all danced to Indian music and Hip Hop alike and shared a connection in the dance that help shatter my ridiculous, pretty-naive mentality. The second was the connections we shared in growing up as evidenced by the loud group of 15 people singing the theme songs from Ducktails, Tailspin, and The Lion King.
The biggest lesson I learned in the past two weeks was the continual need for me to have an open mind, as free from pre-conceived notions as possible and baring that a constant recognition that in the end, we are all human. The things that divide us are as consequential as someone having blond hair or red hair, right handed or left handed. We can choose to make a hullabaloo about them, but in all semblance of the reality that at our core, we are all the children of the stars and our differences are utterly immaterial. With so much that connects us, being biased based at what divides us is a waste of time.
I hope that my candid expression of ridiculous thoughts will be taken in the spirit they were written, one of humility and in a place of growing understanding. To my Indian friends in particular reading this I sincerely apologize for any absurd thoughts I have had and hope you will forgive me in the future as I continue to fail (although hopefully with far less frequency and obviousness.)
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ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Manager
Joined: 03 Jul 2014
Posts: 93
Location: India
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Re: Current Student Blogs
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20 Sep 2015, 19:02
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FROM mybjourney: Lets do this!
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The day for which countdown begun 290 days back (literally), is now hardly 11 hours away! I’m going to take a moment to let that sink in.
I moved in to my accommodation at Rewley Abbey Court last night and my flatmate and I are happy with the location of my flat. The view from our bedrooms is of the magnificent school campus, and on the other side our living room makes for a nice hangout place with the Castle Mill stream flowing by. It feels good to have a nice cozy place to come back to at the end of the day.
I took some time out from my unpacking to meet a few batchmates and also grab a quick dinner with some of them at a joint closeby. From the looks of it, I have a fantastic batch with a great mix of people, almost everyone I met so far has been warm and welcoming. It was great to finally have faces to all the names I had been interacting with over social media in the past.I was quickly filled in with stories of the previous evening’s invasion of the the Turf Tavern by the batchmates (a rite of passage for the incoming MBA class, I gather). This evening I also got a chance to attend the introductory session on the Oxford Women Leadership (OWL) community by the outgoing chairpersons and a co-founding alumna. The room was abuzz with women (and a decent representation from the men as well) from diverse backgrounds. There is so much to learn from each person and her story – one thing I am incredibly proud of for being in an international cohort.
I went for dinner to Jericho Tavern with an alumnus who also happens to be a senior from my undergrad college. It was interesting to hear about his experience of the program and the university as a whole. One thing that I strongly agreed with him was on making a conscious effort to explore the university and get involved with activities outside of the business school that interest me.
While walking back towards my accommodation, I was mentioning to him about how awed I am of the place and intend to make the most of the time that I have here. He patiently heard me out and what he said to me in the end left me thinking about it for long. He told me – exactly in a year from today, you will look back and realise how it would seem like it was only yesterday that it all began, yet you will find a completely different person in you.
If the first day is any indication of the times to come, I can assuredly say that this is going to be a phenominal year. Said Business School, Class of 2016 – let’s do this!
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ForumBlogs - GMAT Club’s latest feature blends timely Blog entries with forum discussions. Now GMAT Club Forums incorporate all relevant information from Student, Admissions blogs, Twitter, and other sources in one place. You no longer have to check and follow dozens of blogs, just subscribe to the relevant topics and forums on GMAT club or follow the posters and you will get email notifications when something new is posted. Add your blog to the list! and be featured to over 300,000 unique monthly visitors
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Re: Current Student Blogs &nbs
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20 Sep 2015, 19:02
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