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shaselai
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Media and Entertainment Careers 23 Aug 2010, 08:47
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i checked some job postings for pm but seems all of them requires few years of PM experience.What jobs can help ease me in the position to "learn the ropes" or getting an MBA is "good enough" to start PM off the bat?
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Media and Entertainment Careers 23 Aug 2010, 22:31
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shaselai
i checked some job postings for pm but seems all of them requires few years of PM experience.What jobs can help ease me in the position to "learn the ropes" or getting an MBA is "good enough" to start PM off the bat?
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Almost all the PM jobs you'll see will require years of PM experience, but in actuality, if you have a good story to tell (remember your bschool applications and how you convinced the AdCom to accept you?) and can link up your past experience to key skills needed for the job, the MBA will do the rest for you.

Heck, my manager gave me the job description she wrote for my current job, and I was thinking, "um, I'm soooo not qualified for this." :P

In short, getting an MBA is "good enough", if you have the right background or work hard at building credibility (see all my other posts).
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Media and Entertainment Careers 29 Sep 2010, 14:47
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I'm coming a little late to the party here, but GREAT info, kryzak! I'm applying to Haas in part because of its great connections to the tech field. I would love to get a PM job, so this thread was fantastic. I'm sure as I get farther along in the process I'll poke you with some specific questions, but in the meantime, thanks very much.
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Media and Entertainment Careers 29 Sep 2010, 14:55
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heres a great article from wet feet, I worked in entertainment and its right on the money, cant speak on the sports info but it's probably right too.

https://www.wetfeet.com/Careers-and-Indu ... ports.aspx
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Media and Entertainment Careers 07 Oct 2010, 11:19
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Was just talking to some classmates and friends and realized that Haas' placement in tech companies is pretty impressive. Here are some random stats:

- almost 1/2 of last summer's MBA interns at Yahoo were from Haas
- 20% of PMs hired out of school for Zynga are from Haas, higher if you only count the MBA hires (Sloan beats us by 1)

That's all for today. :)
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Media and Entertainment Careers 07 Oct 2010, 11:37
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kryzak
Was just talking to some classmates and friends and realized that Haas' placement in tech companies is pretty impressive. Here are some random stats:

- almost 1/2 of last summer's MBA interns at Yahoo were from Haas
- 20% of PMs hired out of school for Zynga are from Haas, higher if you only count the MBA hires (Sloan beats us by 1)

That's all for today. :)
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any suggestion for people who cant get into haas? any 10-20ish schools you see gaming companies might be interested in? Tepper seems to be a decent tech school. I think easing in Sony/MS/Nintendo is also a great plus since they have their fingers in all aspects of gaming...
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Media and Entertainment Careers 07 Oct 2010, 14:18
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shaselai

any suggestion for people who cant get into haas? any 10-20ish schools you see gaming companies might be interested in? Tepper seems to be a decent tech school. I think easing in Sony/MS/Nintendo is also a great plus since they have their fingers in all aspects of gaming...
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I was going to say Tepper myself... Duke is potentially good, a few Duke (engineering) grads here at Zynga, not sure about MBA. UCLA and USC seems to have some good penetration in the gaming ranks with their MBAs.
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Media and Entertainment Careers 28 Oct 2010, 09:55
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The entertainment industry sure is impressive, especially with the schools listed.
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Media and Entertainment Careers 12 Sep 2011, 22:26
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Hi Guys,
I need your help on my applications.
I know that CBS, NYU, UCLA and USC have strong programs in Media and entertainment.
I am an Indian Male with GMAT 700 and 4 years of IT experience.( An overcrowded demographic)
I want to change track and get into M&E industry.
I have dropped CBS from my list based on my chances and affordability.
I have also heard the Notre Dame-Mendoza school has a very active media club and a good presence in M&E.
Could you please let me know how strong ND, UCI and BU are in Media and entertainment?
Also I came across the MS-MBA in Media Ventures program by BU.
Could anyone please let me know how good the program is?

Your inputs will help me a lot in making my decision.

Thanks
Ganesh
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Media and Entertainment Careers 27 Sep 2011, 23:47
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Hi Guys/Kryzak,
Hoping to get your inputs in time for my applications. :)
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Media and Entertainment Careers 06 Feb 2012, 22:29
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wanted to revive this....

it seems to me that mant of the most compelling post-MBA careers in entertainment are actually crossover jobs with technology. So, how many of you are looking at digital entertainment positions, digital BD or marketing jobs in traditional studios, netflix or amazon creative executive positions, etc? This is a convergence industry now. It's technology meets hollywood -- which is great for MBAs because tech appreciates the degree more than traditional hollywood. I would think this would create opportunities for career switches, wannabe ladder hoppers, and the like..... anyone else in this boat?
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Media and Entertainment Careers 08 Feb 2012, 01:42
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Hi Cole,
I too am on this boat. A career switch is my reason for pursuing an MBA. I am targeting BD positions. What about you?
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Media and Entertainment Careers 07 Mar 2012, 06:03
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Cole - I agree that there should be opportunity going forward with media/tech convergence, and it is definitely an industry that I am targeting (I'm applying for my MBA this fall). I'm privy to this industry due to my current work in equity research (I cover M&E), and it has gotten me really interested in the BD/corporate side.

Can anyone speak to the opportunities available to MBAs specifically in the

1) digital media and emerging distribution platform realm? Are any career services efforts at top M&E schools targeting the likes of Netflix, Amazon, Roku, Hulu, HBO (for its new online platform), etc.?

2) international media space? Pay TV is still a major growth industry overseas, especially in developing countries. US Media conglomerates spend a lot of time and $$ exploring ways to get their networks to new countries, where cable subscriptions are growing rapidly.

I think both of these would be exciting career paths. Though I would imagine it would be hard to find opportunities in either.
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Media and Entertainment Careers 20 Mar 2012, 20:40
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There is a lot of chatter on this thread about "jobs that don't exist" for MBA grads when talking about the film and tv industries. While I agree that this has, and still is for the most part, the reality within the industry, that reality is starting to fracture a bit. I am an actor in NYC and LA - have done over twenty tv shows, films, video games, you-name-it - and the reality is that the industry is changing - fast. The most profitable current model for a film company is Pixar, which is structured almost like a start-up company. Netflix, Hulu, and down the road, Apple and Google I'm sure, are going to start generating their own content. It is currently the wild west for innovative new film/tv business models. Having an MBA going forward may (notice I say 'may') pay off down the road as studios, et al, try and navigate some uncharted tech, distribution, and global market waters. Going to Stanford, Haas and MIT may actually be a better bet than trying for the quant/creative type-thing at UCLA, NYU, USC. One of the big Hollywood agencies just opened up an office in Silicon Valley, and they don't know their tech heads from a whole in the ground. Some tech savvy MBA film geek may actually find themselves a nice home in Hollywood (though I think Hollywood might become Siliconwood pretty soon). Stay tuned ...
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Media and Entertainment Careers 14 May 2013, 12:41
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Where do Sports tie in to these specific sectors of M&E?

I'm really interested in developing, promoting, and building tennis as a more popular sport in the United States and I want to get opinions on how an MBA might help me break into that field so I can help the tennis world!

Thanks for your thoughts
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Media and Entertainment Careers 01 Jul 2013, 01:00
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As far es I know, all of these branches are so extremely popular - just having an MBA without any specialisation in this area or any previous experience in the branch, you don't really stand a chance to get into the big companies. And the small ones don't really care for an MBA - that's at least what I know of the German market.
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Media and Entertainment Careers 12 Sep 2013, 15:10
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AlexMBAApply


The reason is, the majority of the creative or artistic work is done by freelancers and contractors. That's how the industry is structured. Whether it's a film, tv show/program, or music project (live tour, album, etc) -- everyone who works on the creative or production side is employed by the "project" and not by the company or companies funding the project. So the folks who work on the "project" are everyone from producers (some of whom straddle business and creative, depending on the type of producer), to the artists (directors, actors, writers, musicians, etc.) to the production/technical crew (sound engineers, camera operators, electricians, etc.) -- virtually everyone on the production is a freelancer or contractor. And their benefits (health, retirement/pension, wage/salaries, etc.) are taken care of by their respective guilds and intermediaries (agents, managers, lawyers). Moreover, since film/tv/music is so project-driven and is a marriage of freelancers and financiers (studios/labels) on a project-by-project basis, the heart of the "business side" lies with the agents and managers. If you want to be at the heart of the business and where the deals get made, you want to work at a talent agency - the thing is, most MBAs are scared away from having to work their way up from the bottom for next to nothing to do that.
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I think this is probably the most clear cut answer I have seen for this question. So many people make money off selling the idea of working in film (whether its the business or production side) as being glamorous and that the opportunities abound. The bottom line is that could not be further from the truth. There are so few jobs at the higher levels of the industry- and as Alex explained- even the upper echelon are still working on a project to project basis. If you are established and have deep pockets- this might not be a problem. But if you are just starting out or don't have tons of money to live on between projects- I would not recommend entertainment- especially film- to anyone. Pick a more tried and true sector with transferable skills and you will probably be able to write your own ticket.

Just my two cents from working in the entertainment industry for the past 11 years.
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Media and Entertainment Careers 30 Oct 2013, 06:46
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Thanks so much for your advice, Leo1.

I'm actually not scared away from the prospect of working at a talent agency - that's actually my intended career. I've worked at a pretty cutthroat corporate PR/crisis management agency for the past 3.5 years, and want to transition into a role in talent management. Yes, I'm aware that I'll likely have to get coffee and work in the mail room for a while. I'm just wondering if I'll realistically even get a shot at getting the job if I go to a non-LA school, because of networking, etc. Any tips?
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Media and Entertainment Careers 20 Feb 2014, 20:09
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I have spent several years working in the Entertainment Industry (Film/Television). Networks and studios are big companies, that are owned by even bigger parent companies. There are places for MBAs in these structures. The MBA positions are not creative positions, they are typical finance, HR, and strategy positions.

I am applying to UCLA/USC, as I believe these are the best bets for a career in Film/TV.
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Media and Entertainment Careers 13 Dec 2014, 03:18
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Nice post....
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