Monthly Archives: September 2010

Vera Guerreiro, Tuck School of Business

Here at Tuck, one of our first year requirements is to work on a project for an external client. Some projects come in through clients who have business problems they need help with and others come from students who have ideas of projects and companies they would like to work for and so they go ahead and pitch their work.

Alanna Petroff, Saïd Oxford

Many full-time MBA programmes kick off the academic year with fun, outdoor team-building exercises. The Saïd Business School MBA programme is no exception. Our entire class of 250 MBA students just took part in The Oxford Pursuit and the experience was amazing.

Barbara O'Beirne, UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate School of Business

“Don’t be afraid to look silly”… and so began our third day of the full time UCD Smurfit School MBA. Week one is a foundation week and focuses on team building, getting to know each other and also getting to know ourselves and how we function in teams.

Seda Saracer, SDA Bocconi

Regatta is the biggest social event of SDA Bocconi’s MBA programme. It is a four-day event made up of sailing races, parties, business conferences and social events.

Maxime Droubi, IMD

The last two weeks have been a real job-search marathon. A marathon that took place at IMD with the annual career fair and on-campus interviews. Companies set up stands to meet students and discuss potential opportunities. If there is fit, then they interview in the afternoon. Other companies had already been on-campus for presentations and only scheduled their first or second round interviews during the fair.

Needless to say that it was quite stressful for everyone, depending on the news received after the interviews, good or bad. Like training for a marathon, the job search requires mental strength, determination, dedication and focus.

Mental strength to remain sharp throughout long interviews and assessments. Determination to complete the race and get the right job. Dedication, to be 100 per cent involved in this search and focus on the role or industry one is looking for.

And as a way of practising all that, there is nothing better than a real marathon practice. I am currently training to run a half-marathon at the end of November in Burgundy, France. It is a challenge since it will be my first time.

Naveed Syed, London Business School

Yesterday, was my last class of Glam. Glam is a core course at London Business School, the acronym standing for Global Leadership Assessment for Managers. The purpose of the course is to teach students about the core attributes of finding the gaps in where you are and what you want to achieve.

Alex Ferrari, University of Miami

Today’s entry is a speech that I had to prepare for a class. We were asked to identify an area of business that interest us and talk about it. I chose online marketing and why every company should adopt an online marketing strategy that includes a website, SEO/SEM and Social Media.

Wendi Li, Insead Singapore

When one thinks of business school, one imagines classes like finance, accounting, marketing, etc, but rarely do people pay any attention to organisational behaviour (OB).

Pranay Harsh, Wharton School

I never thought I would find myself in this position. That is, I never thought that I would be trying to decide between going on a once-in-a-lifetime expedition to Antarctica or undertaking an intense climb to one of the highest active volcanoes in the world.

Vera Guerreiro, Tuck School of Business

I can’t believe classes only started a week ago! It is definitely nice being back, but it got busy really quickly. I’m taking 4.5 classes this term, that’s 4 full courses plus one mini course that runs for half the term.

Alanna Petroff, Saïd Oxford

Since I arrived in Oxford on Monday, I can’t stop smiling. My heart is feeling all a-flutter. Frank Sinatra’s version of the song It’s Almost Like Being In Love keeps playing over and over in my head.

Thomas Gatley, Tsinghua University School of Economics & Management

中秋节快乐! Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!

We may only be at the start of our first semester here at Tsinghua, but we are already in mid-autumn. The weather certainly testifies to the seasonal shift – just a couple of weeks ago temperatures were regularly in the mid-30s, but this week I’ve cycled to school most days in a chilly drizzle.

Vera Guerreiro, Tuck School of Business

Hello world. My name is Vera and I am a Tuckie, our nickname for students at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, in Hanover, New Hampshire. The choice of where to go to business school is obviously a big step, so I wanted to take this first post to tell you a little bit about how I made my decision.

Chloe Weisberg, Stern School of Business, NYU

Since our return to school as second-year MBA students, my classmates and I have a new identity: we are the big kids on campus. As most of the first-year MBAs find their way through the chaos and confusion of the first weeks, many have started contacting some of us for guidance – and, believe it or not, you will learn more than you can imagine after your first year and your summer internship.

Wendi Li, Insead Singapore

In the last six weeks, I have taken a road trip through Scandinavia, said goodbye to Frankfurt, travelled through Borneo and finally settled into my new apartment with two wonderful roommates in Singapore, to begin my 10-month journey through Insead.

MBA blog

Business students

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Welcome to the Financial Times Business Education MBA blog. MBA students from business schools around the globe are blogging about their experiences.

What is it really like to study for an MBA? How do the students juggle their work load and their personal life? What do they hope to achieve once they have gained an MBA? Read the FT's MBA blog to find out.

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Meet the MBA students

The following students will share their business school experiences over the current academic year

Ernest Gyimah, European School of Management and Technology
Age: 26
Nationality: Ghanaian
Background: Ernest gained a first class degree in banking and finance from the University of Ghana before joining PricewaterhouseCoopers, working across Africa. He is a Kofi Annan fellow and hopes to contribute to growing small businesses in the developing world.

Mark Partridge, Foster School of Business, University of Washington
Age: 28
Nationality: Dual (US & UK)
Background: A British-American citizen Mark graduated from University College London with a degree in modern history before working as a journalist in Seattle. He hopes on graduation to work in a venture capital firm.

Mihai Danila, Insead (Fontainebleau)
Age: 28
Nationality: Romanian
Background: After graduating with a degree in international business from the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest Mihai moved to the financial sector, working with a private equity fund and most recently as an investment banker in the mergers and acquisitions department of a large Romanian bank. He believes Insead will give him the knowledge he needs to have a greater impact in developing his country's emerging economy.

Aushima Thakur, Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University
Age: 29
Nationality: Indian
Background: Aushima is a Fulbright scholar and has experience of both the corporate world and NGOs. She is keen to develop successful sustainable models for the world's poorest societies.

Hajime Sudo, Bradford University School of Management - University of Perugia: Bradford-Perugia joint MBA programme
Age: 30
Nationality: Japanese
Background: Hajime graduated from the Accounting School of Tohoku University, Japan earlier this year. He wants to become an accounting professional and believes an MBA will supply him with a broad and practical management knowledge and enhance his career portfolio.

Al Kennedy, University of Exeter Business School 'One Planet' full time MBA
Age: 43
Nationality: Irish
Background: Al has a masters in visual communication from the Royal College of Art. He has worked with leading companies on environmental projects and is keen to understand how business and brands can create sustainable strategies and innovate for social good.

Kamal Nagi, Stanford Graduate School of Business
Age: 27
Nationality: Qatari
Background: Kamal has a Masters of Engineering degree from Imperial College, London. He hopes to play a senior leadership role in Qatar’s financial and international investment future and is the first Qatari to enroll on Stanford’s MBA programme.

Karenina Loayza, MBA Cass Business School
Age: 27
Nationality: Bolivian
Background: Karenina moved from Bolivia to Wisconsin in the US at the age of 19. She holds a double degree in economics and international relations and has worked in financial publishing. She hopes to make the career switch into the finance industry.

Andrea Nowack, George Washington University
Age: 26
Nationality: American
Background: After studying for a degree in journalism and communication from the University of Oregon Andrea worked for Waggener Edstrom Worldwide in analyst relations. She also has experience as a digital marketing strategist.

Kelvin Chiu, Chinese University of Hong Kong
Age: 28
Nationality: Canadian
Background: A graduate from the electrical engineering programme at Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Kelvin has worked as a project manager for Ontario Power Generation at a nuclear plant near Toronto, Canada. On graduation he hopes to work in consulitng. He is a certified personal trainer and fitness professional.

Julia Steinberg, Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University
Age: 27
Nationality: American
Background: Julia has a degree in communications from Kent State University. She has worked as a public relations manager for a clothing group for several years but opted for an MBA so that she could make a career transition into marketing and strategy.

Lucky Sigbenu, Lagos Business School
Age: 28
Nationality: Nigerian
Background: After graduating from the University of Benin in Nigeria with a degree in electrical/electronic engineering Lucky worked as the business development manager of an IT start-up in Lagos. He hopes his MBA will give him a competitive advantage when running and managing a business in an emerging economy.

Katie Cannon, London Business School
Age: 30
Nationality: British
Background: After studying politics at Edinburgh University Katie embarked on a career in the arts. Aware that her skill set is focused on softer skills she hopes her MBA will give her a broader perspective on business.

Brigitte Roediger, University of Stellenbosch Business School, part time MBA
Age: 26
Nationality: South African
Background: Brigitte has a degree in financial analysis and marketing communications from the University of Stellenbosch. She is the assistant brand manager at Spier Wine Farm near Cape Town and will continue to work as she studies which will allow her to repay her business school loan.

Wesley Cole, Executive MBA Cass Business School, London
Age: 29
Nationality: British
Background: A business systems manager for a recruitment company, Wesley was keen to study for an MBA, whilst continuing to work full time. He hopes to be able to develop his leadership skills and apply them to his career.

Andi Caruso, SDA Bocconi
Age: 27
Nationality: Canadian
Background: Having graduated from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, with a degree in journalism, Andi first studied acting before beginning a marketing career in the hospitality and entertainment industry. She wants to move into business development and strategy.

Suhel Banerjee, Kellogg School of Management
Age: 27
Nationality: Indian
Background: After completing his undergraduate degree in business at Calcutta University in 2005 Suhel joined Google's Hyderabad (India) office in advertising operations, before moving to Gurgaon where he became one of the founder members of the Google India sales team.

Anthemos Georgiades, Harvard Business School
Age: 28
Nationality: British
Background: After gaining degrees from Oxford and Cambridge, Anthemos spent three years as a management consultant at the Boston Consulting Group. He then worked as an economic adviser on the Conservative party's election campaign.

Abhishek Ramanathan, Australian School of Business: AGSM
Age: 29
Nationality: Indian
Background: A graduate in computers and business studies from the University of Warwick in the UK, Abhishek has worked in operations and consulting in the insurance and IT industries worldwide. He hopes to become a management consultant.

Aman Modi, IMD
Age: 30
Nationality: Indian/British
Background: Aman has a BA in accounting and a masters in banking and international finance from Cass Business School, London. With more than eight years of finance-focused experience he wants to move into general management via an MBA.

Ashish Rastogi, Indian Institute of Management Calcutta
Age: 32
Nationality: Indian
Background: For the past 10 years Ashish has worked for Infosys in various capacities in the US and India. He wants to build a career in corporate strategy and product marketing. He is studying on the Full Time MBA for executives (PGPex).

Aurélie Metcheka, Global MBA Essec
Age: 25
Nationality: Cameroonian
Background: Aurélie left her native Cameroon aged 19 to study at San Diego State University in the US. where she gained a BSc in accounting. She then worked in inventory control for an accessory company before opting for an MBA. She intends eventually to work in the audit department of one of the big four accountancy firms.

MBA blog


Welcome to the Financial Times Business Education MBA blog. MBA students from business schools around the globe are blogging about their experiences.

What is it really like to study for an MBA? How do the students juggle their work load and their personal life? What do they hope to achieve once they have gained an MBA? Read the FT's MBA blog to find out. www.ft.com/mbablog

Follow the FT's MBA coverage on Facebook



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