Hello dear readers. Are you still out there? I recently decided to check up on my blog and I've found that I have not posted since the end of first year! So disappointing. So much has obviously happened since then that I can't attempt to summarize it all. So how about just an update on where I am now?
I am still living in Philly. My post-MBA job will have me bouncing around a bit location-wise, but my first stop is right here in the city of brotherly love. Hubby and I moved out of the Wharton dorm we were living in (not really a dorm, just a popular Wharton building) and headed to another part of the city where Wharton students only occasionally trek for a restaurant or bar. Works for us - it's hard to remain in the city where we spent two fabulous years now that the majority of my Wharton friends have fanned themselves out all over the world. It would be much harder if I still had to see the students everywhere, dressed in whatever crazy costumes they've devised for the 80's Party, Walnut Walk, or Wharton 54. And know that I'm no longer one of them. Now I have to work on Fridays and weeknight drinking just makes me feel old when I try to get up in the morning.
We've upgraded to a two bedroom apartment. Such a luxury! I have to admit that getting that paycheck every two weeks still hasn't gotten old. During school it felt like we were hemorrhaging money. Which I guess we were. Now that I am paying back my loans I am constantly reminded of how much money we went through during those two years. I wouldn't trade it for the world, but it is nice to have a bit more normal cash flow situation these days.
We got a dog! We adopted him from a rescue and he is adorable and fun. He is such a joy to have in our lives. I don't want to get on a soapbox, but if you are ever thinking of getting a pet, please consider adoption. You'd be surprised how many wonderful dogs and cats of all ages are out there, many already trained, many still puppies if that's what you want, even purebreds. Every time you adopt, you save the life of your new best friend AND another pet who you make room for in the shelter. Ok I'm done preaching.
I still don't know what I want to do when I grow up. Yes I do have a job and it's what I wanted and I'm learning a lot. But I was also exposed to so many other things in school, I am constantly scheming what I might do next, or 10 years from now. If you are a fellow MBA grad you know what I mean. Those of you in the middle of your b-school journey or just starting your research, you should know- the journey doesn't end when you sign that full time job offer. It's really just the beginning. But now you have those fancy letters to add to your business card- M.B.A. Has a nice ring to it!
Showing posts with label Wharton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wharton. Show all posts
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Friday, March 27, 2009
Quarter Four Insanity
I just got done one of my craziest weeks ever at Wharton. So many things converged at once that I literally couldn't find an extra half hour for a meeting. Quarter four classes are definitely a big work load. There is a ton of reading every week, and professors seem to be a little more intent on doing little things to make sure we read everything before class. And this quarter we have sabre, which is a marketing simulation. Sabre has been really fun. It feels similar, at least theoretically, to what brand management will be like. You have your product portfolio, market segments, market research, and forecasts. And you have to make decisions wisely to try to increase your company's profits in the face of changing tastes, competitors' actions, uncertainty, and a limited budget. Reminiscent of first quarter Marketing cases, my team spent about 14 hours on sabre this week. Supposedly it will get easier in subsequent weeks since we won't have to get ramped up again .. I hope that's the case! At least, as opposed to case write-ups, working on sabre is actually fun :)
Oh yeah, and last night was Wharton 54. Totally insane.
Oh yeah, and last night was Wharton 54. Totally insane.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Take a DIP in the Self-Doubt Pool
We've just completed the dedicated interview period (DIP), which is a two-week period when all core courses are cancelled to give first-years the chance to "dedicate" themselves to interviewing for internships. Most companies therefore come to campus for first rounds during these two weeks. To say that we have been dedicated to interviewing is a gross understatement. I swear my life has transformed into one long interview. I answer all questions in the STAR format, my wardrobe has consisted of nothing but 2 interview suits and 3 dress shirts, and I have memorized the artwork on the walls of every waiting area the McNeil interview dungeon.
For months we've been building to this point. We've been feeling good about ourselves for so long. We are here at Wharton, one of the most elite schools in the world, and we are proud. We are leaders, strategic thinkers, highly desired by recruiters from every industry and function. Despite the economic disaster that is palpable all around us, we were confident that our hard work, preparation, and passion would get us fabulous summer internships, which would lead to full-time offers.
Two weeks later, what a difference. We've all experienced rejection - whether it was a "you have not been invited to interview" or a "we will unfortunately not be able to move forward with you in the second round process, but we hope you will keep in touch with us" or a "while your qualifications and experience are certainly impressive, we regret that we are not able to offer you a position." Even though we knew it would happen, its still pretty tough to know that the company you've been building a relationship with over the last 4 months is just not that into you. It's a harsh switch - for months the companies have been inviting us to get to know them better, feeding us, inviting us to their offices, and generally wining and dining us. Then suddenly in that little interview room it is now us trying to prove ourselves to them. And they are interviewing 17 people for 2 spots. One single 45 minute conversation decides your fate.
There is definitely some good news to go around, but there has been a lot more disappointment. A whole lot of people are not going to be working in their first choice industry over the summer, let alone their first choice company. It's been quite a reality check. I am exhausted, but I am one of the lucky ones. I got an offer, one I really wanted! But so many of my friends didn't.
For months we've been building to this point. We've been feeling good about ourselves for so long. We are here at Wharton, one of the most elite schools in the world, and we are proud. We are leaders, strategic thinkers, highly desired by recruiters from every industry and function. Despite the economic disaster that is palpable all around us, we were confident that our hard work, preparation, and passion would get us fabulous summer internships, which would lead to full-time offers.
Two weeks later, what a difference. We've all experienced rejection - whether it was a "you have not been invited to interview" or a "we will unfortunately not be able to move forward with you in the second round process, but we hope you will keep in touch with us" or a "while your qualifications and experience are certainly impressive, we regret that we are not able to offer you a position." Even though we knew it would happen, its still pretty tough to know that the company you've been building a relationship with over the last 4 months is just not that into you. It's a harsh switch - for months the companies have been inviting us to get to know them better, feeding us, inviting us to their offices, and generally wining and dining us. Then suddenly in that little interview room it is now us trying to prove ourselves to them. And they are interviewing 17 people for 2 spots. One single 45 minute conversation decides your fate.
There is definitely some good news to go around, but there has been a lot more disappointment. A whole lot of people are not going to be working in their first choice industry over the summer, let alone their first choice company. It's been quite a reality check. I am exhausted, but I am one of the lucky ones. I got an offer, one I really wanted! But so many of my friends didn't.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Guest Post: Bad Dancer gives it the old college try
In my 1st, and only, post, I talked about how much fun pre-term was and how I was getting fat from drinking so much beer. Well, needless to say, 1st semester wasn’t quite the same party as pre-term, at least for her.
Now don’t get me wrong, the social scene at Wharton has been fantastic - between half-dressed pub crawls, happy hours, Thursday night parties and the Wharton Prom (at least I called it that), I had a great time. The major difference was how freakin’ hard Tiny worked, day-in and day-out. Not only was the rigor of schoolwork quite overwhelming, but between extracurriculars (Tiny has joined an MBA record 38 clubs), applications for internships, a variety of other random activities…man she worked her a$% off.
For example, Tiny and I are die-hard Phillies fans and we’ve been waiting for a season like this past one for almost 30 years. During our World Series run in October, it took everything in her power to take a 3 hour break from studying to watch each game. Tiny was even studying at a local bar before game 3, with dozens of other hammered Phillies fans around screaming and yelling and carrying-on! (note: she did take a few extra hours off to drink champagne on Broad Street when we won).
So, let’s get to me. Even though Tiny was working herself into a frenzy, I had a great 4 months. I played football with her Cohort and felt really welcomed by her classmates, we went to some great parties, had couples dinners with a lot of really interesting old, married people like ourselves, and I even started hanging out with a few of Tiny’s friends, even while she was home studying.
My experience was so good, I decided to apply. Last Wednesday, I hit submit and sent in my application for Fall 2009 admittance. Of all the great things I witnessed about Wharton these past few months, I’m not totally sure what made me decide to apply. Of all the excellent aspects of Wharton I’ve seen, #1 has to be the quality of people that Tiny is in school with. The amazing variety of personalities and diverse backgrounds, the good nature and intense bonding between classmates and how ridiculously brilliant most of them are, were all inspiring reasons to try and be a part of that culture (disclaimer: I am geographically challenged since Tiny will be in Philly for at least 1.5 more years and our long term plans are to stay in Philly, I couldn’t exactly explore the similarities of other great programs).
Now unfortunately, my GMAT score is nowhere near what Tiny’s was and falls slightly outside the Wharton middle-80th percent. Maybe I have a 5, 10, 15% chance of getting in? But I’m not worried – If I get in, amazing. If not, I’ll still get to share another year and change at Wharton with wifey and personally get a ton out of it.
By the way, the other reason I want to get in is so I can go on the Antarctica trek. I don’t give a crap about Finance, I want to hike across our southern pole and bring home a penguin as a pet. I’m sure it’d do well in the bathtub of our Center City apartment
Now don’t get me wrong, the social scene at Wharton has been fantastic - between half-dressed pub crawls, happy hours, Thursday night parties and the Wharton Prom (at least I called it that), I had a great time. The major difference was how freakin’ hard Tiny worked, day-in and day-out. Not only was the rigor of schoolwork quite overwhelming, but between extracurriculars (Tiny has joined an MBA record 38 clubs), applications for internships, a variety of other random activities…man she worked her a$% off.
For example, Tiny and I are die-hard Phillies fans and we’ve been waiting for a season like this past one for almost 30 years. During our World Series run in October, it took everything in her power to take a 3 hour break from studying to watch each game. Tiny was even studying at a local bar before game 3, with dozens of other hammered Phillies fans around screaming and yelling and carrying-on! (note: she did take a few extra hours off to drink champagne on Broad Street when we won).
So, let’s get to me. Even though Tiny was working herself into a frenzy, I had a great 4 months. I played football with her Cohort and felt really welcomed by her classmates, we went to some great parties, had couples dinners with a lot of really interesting old, married people like ourselves, and I even started hanging out with a few of Tiny’s friends, even while she was home studying.
My experience was so good, I decided to apply. Last Wednesday, I hit submit and sent in my application for Fall 2009 admittance. Of all the great things I witnessed about Wharton these past few months, I’m not totally sure what made me decide to apply. Of all the excellent aspects of Wharton I’ve seen, #1 has to be the quality of people that Tiny is in school with. The amazing variety of personalities and diverse backgrounds, the good nature and intense bonding between classmates and how ridiculously brilliant most of them are, were all inspiring reasons to try and be a part of that culture (disclaimer: I am geographically challenged since Tiny will be in Philly for at least 1.5 more years and our long term plans are to stay in Philly, I couldn’t exactly explore the similarities of other great programs).
Now unfortunately, my GMAT score is nowhere near what Tiny’s was and falls slightly outside the Wharton middle-80th percent. Maybe I have a 5, 10, 15% chance of getting in? But I’m not worried – If I get in, amazing. If not, I’ll still get to share another year and change at Wharton with wifey and personally get a ton out of it.
By the way, the other reason I want to get in is so I can go on the Antarctica trek. I don’t give a crap about Finance, I want to hike across our southern pole and bring home a penguin as a pet. I’m sure it’d do well in the bathtub of our Center City apartment
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
What a Year
Wow. So much has happened in the last year that I can't believe how far I've come. Last year at this time, I had just found out I'd been admitted to Wharton. I was trying to figure out what to do with myself for the next 6 months. Today, I'm savoring a much-needed break and trying not to worry about whether I will score an internship offer and how hard the next semester will be academically. Night and day. Let's do a little year in review, shall we?
Wharton: Since I didn't post much about Wharton at all this semester, it's difficult to sum up. But I'll try to summarize the highlights:
I drank a lot. Maybe even more than I did as a Penn State senior. And I dressed in silly outfits more than a person probably should.
I passed MGEC and Accounting! Still waiting on a lot of grades, but I think I managed not to fail anything (fingers crossed).
I dropped 13 resumes and so far have 1 interview (that I won in bidding).
I became hyper-involved. So much so that I probably overdid it, but I wouldn't change a thing.
I challenged myself to step out of my comfort zone.
I blew off way more than I'd typically be comfortable with. Being that busy meant a lot of things just didn't fit in. Like sleep. And laundry.
I discovered Zipfizz
.
I realized that even a somewhat scaled back social life is still pretty expensive.
I finally started to get the hang of this networking thing.
I learned a lot about business, which is what I am here for in the first place!
Sports: This year has been, by far, my best sports year ever. My co-ed softball team won the championship for the 3rd time last summer (although I missed the championship because I was taking the math test!). My cohort won the flag football championship. I won in fantasy football. Penn State finally beat Michigan and won the Big Ten Championship and is playing in the Rose Bowl tomorrow. The Eagles, despite a somewhat wretched season, managed to pull off an unlikely historic win against Dallas to sneak into the playoffs (and send the Cowgirls home). And of course, the Philadelphia Phillies ended a 25-year drought for Philadelphia to become the world champions of baseball. Ah, I loved 2008!
P.S. Hi Arthur!
Wharton: Since I didn't post much about Wharton at all this semester, it's difficult to sum up. But I'll try to summarize the highlights:
I drank a lot. Maybe even more than I did as a Penn State senior. And I dressed in silly outfits more than a person probably should.
I passed MGEC and Accounting! Still waiting on a lot of grades, but I think I managed not to fail anything (fingers crossed).
I dropped 13 resumes and so far have 1 interview (that I won in bidding).
I became hyper-involved. So much so that I probably overdid it, but I wouldn't change a thing.
I challenged myself to step out of my comfort zone.
I blew off way more than I'd typically be comfortable with. Being that busy meant a lot of things just didn't fit in. Like sleep. And laundry.
I discovered Zipfizz
.
I realized that even a somewhat scaled back social life is still pretty expensive.
I finally started to get the hang of this networking thing.
I learned a lot about business, which is what I am here for in the first place!
Sports: This year has been, by far, my best sports year ever. My co-ed softball team won the championship for the 3rd time last summer (although I missed the championship because I was taking the math test!). My cohort won the flag football championship. I won in fantasy football. Penn State finally beat Michigan and won the Big Ten Championship and is playing in the Rose Bowl tomorrow. The Eagles, despite a somewhat wretched season, managed to pull off an unlikely historic win against Dallas to sneak into the playoffs (and send the Cowgirls home). And of course, the Philadelphia Phillies ended a 25-year drought for Philadelphia to become the world champions of baseball. Ah, I loved 2008!
P.S. Hi Arthur!
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Finals
I just don't have the motivation I used to have for taking finals. I feel similar to maybemba, who said exams feel juvenile at this age. I definitely feel too old to be doing this. I am trying not to stress too much. I reached a high level of stress last week when I finally reached the end of my resume drops, only to realize that it was 7pm and I had an Accounting final at noon the next day (and had not studied at all yet). From that point I realized that stressing is not going to help me. Truthfully, grades mean little to me now with grade non-disclosure. I came here to learn and proving I've done so on an exam is just not important to me. So I'm just trying to do enough to pass. Or at least, I'm trying to get myself to treat studying that way, but I invariably stay up too late or start to get upset at points when I realize how much work I have to do ...
The nice thing is all my hard finals (accounting, linear programming) were last week. The remaining ones are open book or take home, so I just need to make sure I understand the concepts and get organized enough to be able to find stuff in my notes during the exam. My biggest obstacle is just getting myself to sit down and do it! I want to watch football and drink hot chocolate!
The nice thing is all my hard finals (accounting, linear programming) were last week. The remaining ones are open book or take home, so I just need to make sure I understand the concepts and get organized enough to be able to find stuff in my notes during the exam. My biggest obstacle is just getting myself to sit down and do it! I want to watch football and drink hot chocolate!
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Applications
Wharton has a cool system that allows us to apply to jobs online. Unfortunately, there are only a few days when applications are due, which means that they tend to clump together. Plus, many of the applications require filling out another application on the companies website. And we all know how un-fun those are. Ugh, I am not happy right now!
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Long Time ....
... no Blog! Dear readers, I am so sorry to have abandoned you, as I am sure you missed hearing about my exploits here at Wharton. Well, I can only say that I have only been this crazy busy once in my life (during one particular consulting project), but this time it is a lot more fun. I've had an amazing semester. I learned a lot, met amazing people, made wonderful friends, and experienced a few inspirational victories. At the same time, I've experienced a lot of stress, wasted countless dollars on un-read bulk packs and text books, wondered why the hell I am doing this to myself, and thanked the Wharton gods for grade-nondisclosure. It has truly been a roller coaster ride, but I regret none of it.
I can't really express how busy I've been. A coworker warned me that a friend of his virtually disappeared for 2 years when he went here, but I figured it couldn't be that bad. I had majored in engineering, that was hard. This might be a lot of work, but it wouldn't be hard, right? Wrong! It IS a ton of work and it IS hard. The only reason I have time to write right now is because I should be working on a cover letter (ah, procrastination). But somehow, I have found a little time for "networking" with my classmates and, hopefully, my career activities will get me a summer internship. Of course, that assumes that the sky is not falling and employers will actually be hiring. Not a given these days. I've learned to ignore the bail-outs and the bank failures and the doom doom doom coming from the news. All I can do is keep my fingers crossed that I'm not flushing $150K down the drain ...
No, no, of course it is worth it even if I don't get a job. I think.
I can't really express how busy I've been. A coworker warned me that a friend of his virtually disappeared for 2 years when he went here, but I figured it couldn't be that bad. I had majored in engineering, that was hard. This might be a lot of work, but it wouldn't be hard, right? Wrong! It IS a ton of work and it IS hard. The only reason I have time to write right now is because I should be working on a cover letter (ah, procrastination). But somehow, I have found a little time for "networking" with my classmates and, hopefully, my career activities will get me a summer internship. Of course, that assumes that the sky is not falling and employers will actually be hiring. Not a given these days. I've learned to ignore the bail-outs and the bank failures and the doom doom doom coming from the news. All I can do is keep my fingers crossed that I'm not flushing $150K down the drain ...
No, no, of course it is worth it even if I don't get a job. I think.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Guest Post: Three's a Crowd?
Just call me BadDancer - Tiny Dancer's 'partner'
Nine months ago, when Wifey got into Wharton, I had a bunch of comments thrown my way by friends and family that gave me pause:
From my brother - "Ohhhh, now you'll have a Sugar Momma"
My friends - "You going to be a stay at home Dad?"
My grandmother - "What about grandkids? I'm not going to be around forever"
My parents - "How are you going to pay for this???"
While TinyD's post-Wharton salary would certainly surpass mine, I was totally cool not being the breadwinner. I also liked the thought of stay at home Husband, raising TinyDancer, Jr., with days full of watching SportsCenter, teaching TinyDancer, Jr. the minutia of a curve ball and learning to cook. (Just replace Sports Center with Oprah and I figured that's what stay at home Mom's do).
But as the start of pre-term at Wharton drew near and I learned more about our next 2 years of B-School, I got a little nervous. Move from our 2,000 sq ft house into an 850 sq ft apartment in Center City, full days of classes, hours and hours of group work and studying, tons of extracurricular clubs, interviewing for internships and full-time jobs, guest speakers, learning team retreat, winter break global treks, etc. etc, etc.
Holy crap. When again was I supposed to see my wife? Would she ever be home for dinner? How many frozen burritos could I possibly take? Would I be included in any of this stuff or would I want to be involved? How in the hell would we be able to afford $150G's in just two years??? It was a little scary.
I was beginning to think that three's a crowd. Wifey and I had a great life together and Wharton was going to be the third wheel. Yeah, long term benefits aside...the next two years might really suck and we'd be in major debt to boot. Then after graduation, Wifey would get some crazy cool job and we'd be up and moving again to a far away place and I'd just be along for the ride. Maybe I'd be the third wheel since she'd be spending most of her time with Wharton.
Now don't get me wrong, TinyD and I talked about this quite a bit. She told me it wasn't going to be that bad, she'd try and come home and make dinner, I could be involved in some of the fun stuff and she wanted to stay near Philly after graduation. I also was told about the Wharton Partner's Club and I could make friends with some of the other 'partners' (that word gives me chills, probably the subject of a future guest post if TinyD lets me write again). But going into pre-term, I wasn't convinced.
Well, I can say, Wharton passed the 1st test. I know pre-term is much less of a time commitment than the 1st Semester, but I had an absolute blast. TinyD worked really hard, but we went out and partied with her classmates ALOT, met some great people, did some really fun activities and loved living in the city. Honestly, I haven't drank this much or stayed up this late since College...and overall, it was great. It actually got to the point where I needed Friday or Saturday night to recover from parties from Tuesday through Thursday.
I'm sure my opinion would be different if I was a partner moving to Philly from far away or internationally, but not all that much.
To all potential future Wharton husbands - don't spend too much time feeling bad for yourselves that your wives are smarter, going to be more successful, etc. Enjoy the next two years for all that they are...and try and meet a really smart Wharton grad to hook you up with a sweet job and maybe Philadelphia Eagles club box seats.
Sidenote - I do need to start going to the gym. I'm going to get a major beer gut unless I start working off the extra liquid carbs.
Nine months ago, when Wifey got into Wharton, I had a bunch of comments thrown my way by friends and family that gave me pause:
From my brother - "Ohhhh, now you'll have a Sugar Momma"
My friends - "You going to be a stay at home Dad?"
My grandmother - "What about grandkids? I'm not going to be around forever"
My parents - "How are you going to pay for this???"
While TinyD's post-Wharton salary would certainly surpass mine, I was totally cool not being the breadwinner. I also liked the thought of stay at home Husband, raising TinyDancer, Jr., with days full of watching SportsCenter, teaching TinyDancer, Jr. the minutia of a curve ball and learning to cook. (Just replace Sports Center with Oprah and I figured that's what stay at home Mom's do).
But as the start of pre-term at Wharton drew near and I learned more about our next 2 years of B-School, I got a little nervous. Move from our 2,000 sq ft house into an 850 sq ft apartment in Center City, full days of classes, hours and hours of group work and studying, tons of extracurricular clubs, interviewing for internships and full-time jobs, guest speakers, learning team retreat, winter break global treks, etc. etc, etc.
Holy crap. When again was I supposed to see my wife? Would she ever be home for dinner? How many frozen burritos could I possibly take? Would I be included in any of this stuff or would I want to be involved? How in the hell would we be able to afford $150G's in just two years??? It was a little scary.
I was beginning to think that three's a crowd. Wifey and I had a great life together and Wharton was going to be the third wheel. Yeah, long term benefits aside...the next two years might really suck and we'd be in major debt to boot. Then after graduation, Wifey would get some crazy cool job and we'd be up and moving again to a far away place and I'd just be along for the ride. Maybe I'd be the third wheel since she'd be spending most of her time with Wharton.
Now don't get me wrong, TinyD and I talked about this quite a bit. She told me it wasn't going to be that bad, she'd try and come home and make dinner, I could be involved in some of the fun stuff and she wanted to stay near Philly after graduation. I also was told about the Wharton Partner's Club and I could make friends with some of the other 'partners' (that word gives me chills, probably the subject of a future guest post if TinyD lets me write again). But going into pre-term, I wasn't convinced.
Well, I can say, Wharton passed the 1st test. I know pre-term is much less of a time commitment than the 1st Semester, but I had an absolute blast. TinyD worked really hard, but we went out and partied with her classmates ALOT, met some great people, did some really fun activities and loved living in the city. Honestly, I haven't drank this much or stayed up this late since College...and overall, it was great. It actually got to the point where I needed Friday or Saturday night to recover from parties from Tuesday through Thursday.
I'm sure my opinion would be different if I was a partner moving to Philly from far away or internationally, but not all that much.
To all potential future Wharton husbands - don't spend too much time feeling bad for yourselves that your wives are smarter, going to be more successful, etc. Enjoy the next two years for all that they are...and try and meet a really smart Wharton grad to hook you up with a sweet job and maybe Philadelphia Eagles club box seats.
Sidenote - I do need to start going to the gym. I'm going to get a major beer gut unless I start working off the extra liquid carbs.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Hello, My Name Is
One of the best things about Wharton so far is the large number of name tags for different events I've accumulated. I haven't yet found a use for them, but I'm sure I'll come up with one soon. Ideas are welcome. Here's the list:
Explore Wharton: Diversity in Action (This is my favorite one because I wasn't sure if it was going to be the only time I had my name on something that said Wharton. Aw.)
Wharton Winter Welcome
Wharton Welcome Weekend
Wharton Health Care Conference
Wharton Pre-Term
Wharton Learning Team Retreat
And my fav ...
My shiny new professional Wharton name tag that make me look like I work in a hotel.
EDIT: Yes I know that I just identified two as my favorite. I can have two favorites if I want! It's my blog!
Explore Wharton: Diversity in Action (This is my favorite one because I wasn't sure if it was going to be the only time I had my name on something that said Wharton. Aw.)
Wharton Winter Welcome
Wharton Welcome Weekend
Wharton Health Care Conference
Wharton Pre-Term
Wharton Learning Team Retreat
And my fav ...
My shiny new professional Wharton name tag that make me look like I work in a hotel.
EDIT: Yes I know that I just identified two as my favorite. I can have two favorites if I want! It's my blog!
Saturday, August 2, 2008
What are Wharton People Like?
I feel like now that I've been here for a week+, I should comment on some of the things I've read about Wharton in the past. I guess every school has a reputation for what it's like, based on truth or perhaps not. I think a lot of what is said about a school can be true to some extent, but there's always more to it when you look closer. For instance, Wharton is known for being a Finance school. For sure, it is excellent in that area. But I feel like people decide not to apply there because they are not interested in Finance, and I think that's a shame. Wharton is so good at so many things, it's just that Finance tends to overshadow the rest and people don't hear about it. But I think "the rest" is actually still worthy of the Top 3 designation. I have zero interest in Finance, other than the necessity of learning what I need to know to be a good businessperson, yet I feel that there is no better school for me than Wharton.
Another thing that perplexes me is the tendency for people to say that Wharton people are a certain way. We are supposedly all "quant jocks" ... that is news to me judging by how many of us seem to be thoroughly confused by logarithms in our basic math class, but I digress. Also many of us are supposed to be super-competitive ... I'm also scratching my head on that one since the vast majority of students favor grade nondisclosure because they don't want to be competing with their classmates for grades. Oh, and many of us are a-holes. Seriously, I must be at the wrong Wharton. Yeah, anywhere you go, there will be some crappy people. But I am just not feeling an a-hole vibe here AT ALL. Everyone I've met is incredibly nice, rather humble, and eager to learn about their classmates. I have never felt that anyone was "sizing me up," as I read on a BW post. More often people are too busy commenting that they don't know how they got in with all the incredible students here.
I'm not trying to be a cheerleader for Wharton in this post. I just feel that I need to counter some of the stuff out there that might discourage some people from applying. If you have heard any of the above things about Wharton and you were turned off, I encourage you to take another look. Come visit us. See what our culture and students are really like. Do the same for other schools. I think there is much more to all of them than what you might expect.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Wharton and Math
I spent a lot of time this summer trying to brush up on calculus. Wharton has a math test during Pre-Term, which mainly includes calculus concepts applied to business problems. You have to pass in order to matriculate (but you get 2 tries). So I read a business calculus book because I last looked at calculus about 10 years ago, and I never had word problems. Then I did the assessment test on the web, which helps you decide which math review class to take to prepare for the test. My score was pretty horrible, so I was kinda worried. But then I asked around and found out that most people hadn't even looked at the assessment test. So I felt better, but also a little like a nerd. I need to chill a little, lest I become one of those poor souls who cares too much about grades!*
*At Wharton, and I suspect other schools that have grade non-disclosure (Wharton doesn't have GND as a policy anymore, but the student association votes to have it as a student policy), you will often see 2nd years advising 1st years not to worry too much about grades. As long as you pass, your grades really don't matter because they won't be a factor in recruiting. Of course, you want to learn, but there is no need to go for a super-high GPA for any reason other than an ego boost. GND fosters a sense of community and cooperation among students, because it theoretically stops people from scratching and clawing their way to #1 in the class. It also, theoretically, gives you permission to pry yourself away from academics enough to socialize and participate in clubs. But there are always some students who care very much about grades (many would argue too much) and end up studying way more than everyone else. These people miss out on stuff. I don't want to be one of those people. But as your standard-issue-overachiever-Wharton-admit, I have a feeling it will be hard to really convince myself "that grades don't matter."
*At Wharton, and I suspect other schools that have grade non-disclosure (Wharton doesn't have GND as a policy anymore, but the student association votes to have it as a student policy), you will often see 2nd years advising 1st years not to worry too much about grades. As long as you pass, your grades really don't matter because they won't be a factor in recruiting. Of course, you want to learn, but there is no need to go for a super-high GPA for any reason other than an ego boost. GND fosters a sense of community and cooperation among students, because it theoretically stops people from scratching and clawing their way to #1 in the class. It also, theoretically, gives you permission to pry yourself away from academics enough to socialize and participate in clubs. But there are always some students who care very much about grades (many would argue too much) and end up studying way more than everyone else. These people miss out on stuff. I don't want to be one of those people. But as your standard-issue-overachiever-Wharton-admit, I have a feeling it will be hard to really convince myself "that grades don't matter."
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Forecast
Hooray! The weather for Welcome Weekend is supposed to be fabulous! Looking forward to seeing my future classmates and NOT carrying an umbrella around on the tour. I think the campus looks a lot better in the sun :)
Thursday, April 3, 2008
I've Received a Grant from Wharton!
It is so small (I mean tiny) that I started to wonder if it's something everyone gets. I must admit that I was hoping for more, but hey, it's something right? The letter is short on details so I'm not sure who or what sponsors the grant, but I suppose I will find out soon enough!
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Wharton Penn Key
I got my letter to set up my Penn Key yesterday. The Penn Key is basically your login authentication for Penn systems and is also your email ID. So I go to the site and input my setup code. The system gives me a list of letter combinations that I can choose for my key. Nice, except my name is apparently really common because my choices were all horrible!
I'll give you a hypothetical example. Say your name is Sarah O. Johnson. Your choices for your prestigious Wharton email ID would probably look like the following:
sarjo
joso
sarojoh
josar
ojs
ojsa
And that's it! You can't even try to make up one that maybe makes more sense. Seriously, who's going to remember that Sarah Johnson's email address is joso@wharton??
Ugh. I picked the best of the list but I still hate it. Consider yourself lucky if you have a unique name.
UPDATE: So, it seems the Penn key is NOT your Wharton email address. I stand corrected. Remains to be seen if choices for Wharton email address are better than Penn Key. Fingers crossed.
UPDATE: I was right! Your Penn Key user ID is also your Wharton email ID. Hopefully we'll have the ability to create an alias or something, but I'm not holding my breath!
I'll give you a hypothetical example. Say your name is Sarah O. Johnson. Your choices for your prestigious Wharton email ID would probably look like the following:
sarjo
joso
sarojoh
josar
ojs
ojsa
And that's it! You can't even try to make up one that maybe makes more sense. Seriously, who's going to remember that Sarah Johnson's email address is joso@wharton??
Ugh. I picked the best of the list but I still hate it. Consider yourself lucky if you have a unique name.
UPDATE: So, it seems the Penn key is NOT your Wharton email address. I stand corrected. Remains to be seen if choices for Wharton email address are better than Penn Key. Fingers crossed.
UPDATE: I was right! Your Penn Key user ID is also your Wharton email ID. Hopefully we'll have the ability to create an alias or something, but I'm not holding my breath!
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Ode to Philadelphia
I'm sure there are many of you out there that may be considering Wharton but aren't sure if you want to live in Philly for 2 years. Others may be wondering whether to apply for the same reason. I'm a believer in fit being one of your biggest reasons for choosing a business school, and certainly location is a factor in fit. You probably know that Philly is a short drive or train ride from New York and DC, and Boston's not to far away either. I guess people tell you that in case you're thinking you'll want to leave every weekend to go somewhere cool. Well you can, but I happen to believe Philly is pretty cool, and if you go to school here you may just want to stick around most weekends. So I would like to take this time to tell you why I think Philly is a great city, and why I believe you'd not only survive for two years here, but you might just love it too.
I have lived in Philadelphia for most of my life. Scratch that, I've lived around Philly, but never actually in the city limits (until July that is!). I did work and stay in hotels there for about 6 months. So this probably doesn't make me quite an expert, but I believe I'm qualified to give you my opinion on the city. Now I have a lot to say, so I think this is going to end up being a series of posts. I'll try to give you a good picture of life in the City of Brotherly Love: the good, the bad, the ugly, the quirky, and anything else I can think of.
If all you know about Philly is Rocky and that Eagles fans are crazy and eat too many cheesesteaks, well you have a lot to learn my friend. Back in October 2005, National Geographic Traveler declared Philadelphia the Next Great City (Next Great City: Philly, Really). Many people probably thought that was strange, but Philadelphians have been noticing for awhile that the city is becoming cool again. People are moving back into the city, big beautiful condo complexes are going up, retail is moving in, fringe neighborhoods are up-and-coming cool, and the restaurant scene is getting really good. And we got Live 8, how awesome is that? (I went, it was incredible). Read the article, it will tell you more.
Here are some things you might not know about Philly:
-Philly is relatively cheap. Wharton students mostly live in Center City near Rittenhouse Square. Guess what, this is the nicest part of the city. How many other urban business schools can you attend where you can actually afford to live in the nicest part of the city?
-Because of PA's arcane liquor laws, it is difficult for restuarants to get liquor licenses. Therefore many of them are BYOB. So you can bring your own bottle of wine to many nice places, and it really reduces the cost of a night out.
-Philly has Fairmount Park, which is one of the largest urban parks in the country. It's great for running, especially along Kelly Drive near Boathouse Row.
-Jon Bon Jovi is a part-owner of the Philadelphia Soul, the arena football team. Richie Sambora is too and just bought a sweet pad in Philly. Imagine that! Potential star sightings in Philly!
-Compared to other schools not in the South or in California, the weather here is actually pretty good. It's typically about 5-10 degrees warmer here than Chicago or Boston (people from those cities will tell you that's not true, but I've lived in all three. Trust me, they are colder. Or don't, check the statistics yourself!). Philly also doesn't get as much snow. What we do get are a lot of wintry mix storms where are not fun, but it's a lot easier to get to class in than snow.
-You probably aren't going to bring your car to Philly, which is fine because you won't need it and parking is a nightmare anyway. But maybe you want to take a trip to Ikea or to visit someone in the burbs? You can rent a car for cheap from Philly Car Share or Zipcar!
-And finally, Philly just recently declared itself the nation's best beer drinking city. Maybe you disagree? Well it will be fun to find out for sure won't it?
I have lived in Philadelphia for most of my life. Scratch that, I've lived around Philly, but never actually in the city limits (until July that is!). I did work and stay in hotels there for about 6 months. So this probably doesn't make me quite an expert, but I believe I'm qualified to give you my opinion on the city. Now I have a lot to say, so I think this is going to end up being a series of posts. I'll try to give you a good picture of life in the City of Brotherly Love: the good, the bad, the ugly, the quirky, and anything else I can think of.
If all you know about Philly is Rocky and that Eagles fans are crazy and eat too many cheesesteaks, well you have a lot to learn my friend. Back in October 2005, National Geographic Traveler declared Philadelphia the Next Great City (Next Great City: Philly, Really). Many people probably thought that was strange, but Philadelphians have been noticing for awhile that the city is becoming cool again. People are moving back into the city, big beautiful condo complexes are going up, retail is moving in, fringe neighborhoods are up-and-coming cool, and the restaurant scene is getting really good. And we got Live 8, how awesome is that? (I went, it was incredible). Read the article, it will tell you more.
Here are some things you might not know about Philly:
-Philly is relatively cheap. Wharton students mostly live in Center City near Rittenhouse Square. Guess what, this is the nicest part of the city. How many other urban business schools can you attend where you can actually afford to live in the nicest part of the city?
-Because of PA's arcane liquor laws, it is difficult for restuarants to get liquor licenses. Therefore many of them are BYOB. So you can bring your own bottle of wine to many nice places, and it really reduces the cost of a night out.
-Philly has Fairmount Park, which is one of the largest urban parks in the country. It's great for running, especially along Kelly Drive near Boathouse Row.
-Jon Bon Jovi is a part-owner of the Philadelphia Soul, the arena football team. Richie Sambora is too and just bought a sweet pad in Philly. Imagine that! Potential star sightings in Philly!
-Compared to other schools not in the South or in California, the weather here is actually pretty good. It's typically about 5-10 degrees warmer here than Chicago or Boston (people from those cities will tell you that's not true, but I've lived in all three. Trust me, they are colder. Or don't, check the statistics yourself!). Philly also doesn't get as much snow. What we do get are a lot of wintry mix storms where are not fun, but it's a lot easier to get to class in than snow.
-You probably aren't going to bring your car to Philly, which is fine because you won't need it and parking is a nightmare anyway. But maybe you want to take a trip to Ikea or to visit someone in the burbs? You can rent a car for cheap from Philly Car Share or Zipcar!
-And finally, Philly just recently declared itself the nation's best beer drinking city. Maybe you disagree? Well it will be fun to find out for sure won't it?
Friday, March 7, 2008
I'm on a Roll!
I submitted the FAFSA last night. It was so easy compared to Need Access! I also submitted the matriculation form. All I have to do now is send in the deposit check, the first of many checks I will be writing to Wharton. Then it's another waiting game to get my letter from the Fellowship Committee.
Later I'll have to go through the whole loan application thing, but I don't want to think about that right now!
Later I'll have to go through the whole loan application thing, but I don't want to think about that right now!
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Dear Wharton, Please Please Please May I Have Some Financial Aid?
I finally faxed my resume and fellowship essay to the Financial Aid Office. I don't know why, but I had so much writer's block for the essay. Once I got going I pounded it out within a day, edited the next day, and then sent it off. I wish I had gotten the inspiration to do that months ago! Hopefully it's not too late to get some money (if they deem me worthy). It shouldn't be since R2 isn't finished yet. But less than half of the class gets something so I'm not getting my hopes up too high.
In case anyone did not attend Wharton Winter Welcome and is wondering, the amount for the financial need grant is less than the range of amounts for fellowships. So if you feel like you have true financial need, you might still want to make a case for merit in your essay. I believe they consider you for fellowships first, and then grants if you don't get a fellowship. You can't get both.
Also, you can use estimates for the 2007 financial numbers required in the Need Access form if you haven't done your taxes yet. If the numbers change I think you just need to tell the financial aid office. It's better to get the forms in rather than wait until you are absolutely sure about the numbers.
In case anyone did not attend Wharton Winter Welcome and is wondering, the amount for the financial need grant is less than the range of amounts for fellowships. So if you feel like you have true financial need, you might still want to make a case for merit in your essay. I believe they consider you for fellowships first, and then grants if you don't get a fellowship. You can't get both.
Also, you can use estimates for the 2007 financial numbers required in the Need Access form if you haven't done your taxes yet. If the numbers change I think you just need to tell the financial aid office. It's better to get the forms in rather than wait until you are absolutely sure about the numbers.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Another Check Mark Complete!
I finally finished the financial aid paperwork for Wharton last night. The form is used for both determining financial need for grants and for inputs to fellowship decisions. I am still reeling from the amount of information they asked for. It is far more than the FAFSA! I spent a lot of time adding up medical expenses for my husband and me for 2007 and then estimating for 2008. You have to estimate nearly all your financial numbers for 2008 which wasn't easy. I also had to call my mom and see if she remembered how much I received in scholarships for undergrad (11 years ago!) Somehow, she remembered. I certainly didn't. I'm surprised they didn't ask what I am planning to name my future children, when I expect them to be born, and how much I expect them to cost between birth and college.
I know I really shouldn't be complaining, because this part of the process is easy compared to the applications. And it's good that they are very thorough with this process to ensure that it's fair. I just didn't anticipate that it would require so much legwork to complete.
Now, time to write the essay! (No, I haven't started it yet).
I know I really shouldn't be complaining, because this part of the process is easy compared to the applications. And it's good that they are very thorough with this process to ensure that it's fair. I just didn't anticipate that it would require so much legwork to complete.
Now, time to write the essay! (No, I haven't started it yet).
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Wharton Health Care Business Conference
I attended Wharton's Health Care Business Conference last week. The Thursday night keynote was Jim Yong Kim and Michael Porter from Harvard. Yes, THE Michael Porter! It was a really interesting talk on how applying business skills of strategy and execution can help corral the hugely fragmented landscape of world health initiatives in developing countries. Fascinating. Michael Porter's enthusiasm on the topic kinda reminded me of Quentin Tarantino when he talks about movies. The event made me think I may want to consider an international trip that has something to do with world health while I'm in school.
The next day had many more speakers and panels, including the Commissioner of the FDA. The overall theme was Innovation, and many of the speakers talked about how health care needs to evolve to be more personalized or segmented based on DNA, not just demographics. Depending on the speaker of the moment, the industry will be going through a revolution, an evolution, or a revolution of evolution (huh?). A highlight for me was the Focus on Innovation session. Health care related start-ups gave brief presentations on their companies' products and research and why they need and deserve venture capital investment or partnerships. I realized that a lot of the companies operate in the Philly area. In fact, 2 are located in my town! I had not really thought about focusing on the start-up route for my MBA recruiting, but now I think I may at least leave it open to exploration. Surely it will be a vastly different experience than the big pharma world, but the added risk may be worth it with the added excitement.
Finally, I have noticed a few other bloggers mentioning the swag they have received from their schools. I admit I have been a little disappointed to have received nothing swaggy from Wharton, just glossy brochures and informative packets*. That's no fun! But the Health Care Conference came through. We got a nice gym bag full of goodies, including a nice coffee mug (which my husband stole right away), various pens, and a strange t-shirt with a skeleton on it. Very fun :)
*Yeah, they did provide several lovely meals, cocktail parties, a bowling party, etc. I guess if I had to choose, a good party beats branded swag. ;)
The next day had many more speakers and panels, including the Commissioner of the FDA. The overall theme was Innovation, and many of the speakers talked about how health care needs to evolve to be more personalized or segmented based on DNA, not just demographics. Depending on the speaker of the moment, the industry will be going through a revolution, an evolution, or a revolution of evolution (huh?). A highlight for me was the Focus on Innovation session. Health care related start-ups gave brief presentations on their companies' products and research and why they need and deserve venture capital investment or partnerships. I realized that a lot of the companies operate in the Philly area. In fact, 2 are located in my town! I had not really thought about focusing on the start-up route for my MBA recruiting, but now I think I may at least leave it open to exploration. Surely it will be a vastly different experience than the big pharma world, but the added risk may be worth it with the added excitement.
Finally, I have noticed a few other bloggers mentioning the swag they have received from their schools. I admit I have been a little disappointed to have received nothing swaggy from Wharton, just glossy brochures and informative packets*. That's no fun! But the Health Care Conference came through. We got a nice gym bag full of goodies, including a nice coffee mug (which my husband stole right away), various pens, and a strange t-shirt with a skeleton on it. Very fun :)
*Yeah, they did provide several lovely meals, cocktail parties, a bowling party, etc. I guess if I had to choose, a good party beats branded swag. ;)
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