25% Done

Happy Holidays!!

I'm not sure if its a sign of me getting older, or how busy life gets at school, but time is zooming by a ludicrous speed. My MBA experience is already 25% complete and I feel like we're just getting started. Summer Internship recruiting has kept me busy but I'm looking forward to catch up with all resume drops during winter break. As I apply for these summer jobs, I'm reliving the anxiety I felt last year applying to different MBA programs. Writing cover letters is just like writing application essays and some companies actually ask for GMAT/SAT scores! I am going to be so relieved when I eventually get an offer.

There was an interesting article that quoted some of my classmates talking about the international experience portion of the new curriculum. I'll be heading over to Hong Kong on Wednesday and am trying to figure out how to pack 3 weeks worth of clothes and suits into one suit case and one carry on. For the trip, we got these nifty chinese business cards and learned some basic phrases to get by. For those that will be in Hong Kong this Friday, a small group of 1st year students including me will be hosting a winter break social. This will be a fun opportunity to meet prospective students and I encourage everyone applying to Yale to attend their local winter break social.

Alliances

Last week in our Competitors class, we learned about coopetition and alliances. Coincidently, Carlos Ghosn spoke at SOM on Tuesday, describing the Nissan-Renault alliance. It was an amazing experience to learn about the automobile industry from the CEO's perspective and to see a real example of the material we're learning in class. He spent most of the time answering well prepared questions and overall, I was very impressed by how smoothly everything ran.

The difference between the second part of the new curriculum and the first part is the amount of group work assigned. This week alone, I have the following group assignments: Industry Analysis for the Int'l trip to China, Competitor company analysis, Competitor group assignment, Customer project, State & Society project, and a mentorship meeting. The hardest part isn't completing the assignments, but scheduling a time where everyone can meet. I don't want to sound like a complaining 1st year (ahem JB), but I definitely can't wait till winter break!!

On the recruiting front, I finished my first cover letter and have started bidding for interview spots. Time definitely flies when you're in school, but I hope to land some interviews in January. Fortunately I have a little time because I'm not pursuing ibanking, but I definitely don't want to miss any of the consulting deadlines. One thing I realize is that I'm severely behind on practicing case interviews. Even though I should've been practicing all semester, I hope to do some major catch-up over the next few weeks.

Lastly, I'm SUPER excited about going to Hong Kong and China. I got all my vaccinations from YHS last week and my passport/visa is all good to go. There has been some complaining among the China travelers that our pre-trip work (15-20 slides + 10 pg paper) is excessive compared to groups going to other countries, but at the end of the day I guess it's a good way to learn more about the fastest growing economy in the world. This will be my first new years experience outside the USA, and I expect nothing but ridiculous, crazy fun.

23 Days left till Hong Kong


PS - I have mixed feelings about UCLA upsetting USC, but at least the Rose Bowl will be a classic Big 10/Pac 10 showdown