Author: Adrea

Where Sternies live

What are the benefits and drawbacks of living near or far from school? What about dorm life? I set out to answer these questions as comprehensively as possible and ended up with a great set of insights from my fellow students, which are shared in this post. I think you’ll see that the biggest lesson in choosing where to live is to figure out what lifestyle and conveniences matter the most to you and start searching from there. The vastness and diversity of NYC means that there are neighborhoods to accommodate just about any set of preferences. NYC is more expensive than most other American cities, but based on your choice of neighborhood and amenitites you can find a place to accommodate your price range. Living within a 20 minute walk from Stern puts you in some vibrant neighborhoods like the West Village, Union Square, Gramercy, Chelsea and the Lower East Side. A 20 minute train ride gets you to some really unique places like Harlem, Queens, Long Island City, and various parts of Brooklyn, like Fort Greene.

I chose to live in Harlem because it has some great benefits, which I think are shared among most people who chose to live a 20 minute or more train ride away from Stern. Among the greatest perks are more apartment space and a more residential neighborhood feel compared to lower Manhattan. I have found that the price per square foot is cheaper than more dense areas of Manhattan, like the Lower East Side, and in general the apartments are larger. Likewise, I think its easier to find buildings with amenities, such as in-unit or in-building laundry, a doorman to receive packages, and a fitness center, which are not usually available for the same cost of rent in other parts of the city. I also love Harlem and other further away neighborhoods because they have a different vibe than the rest of the city. Harlem is slightly more mellow, there’s less foot traffic and quite frankly, more sun. Plus, while the restaurant and bar scenes are lively and diverse, they are not overwhelmed with reservations and large crowds. Access to large grocery chains and street parking or cheap garage parking are also things that I cherish about my location. And secretly, I find the train ride provides the perfect amount of time for me to catch up on reading or to plan my day.

Of course, there are also downsides to living further off campus. The biggest one is the pain of waiting for the train late at night or on weekends. During those hours, trains are fewer and further between and there is often construction, which results in a miserable wait time of up to 20 minutes. Second, if you choose not to take a train, then taking a cab can be costly. Usually these issues become relevant after late night study sessions or social events around campus. However, I find that the pain is often assuaged by the companionship of other students headed in the same direction who are either willing split cab fare or engage in lively conversation during the 20 minute wait for the train.

Based on their feedback, it appears the advantages to living close to Stern often outweigh the negatives for Sternies who choose to do so. Perhaps the biggest benefit is that there is virtually no commute. It’s easy to walk to school and cheap to take cabs late at night if you prefer. If you elect to take morning classes, it’s also great to get a few extra minutes of sleep. Plus, most social activities happen around campus. The neighborhoods near Stern are lively and filled with popular and diverse bars, restaurants and shopping as well. It’s hard to get bored with the vast set of choices.

However, the heavy foot traffic at virtually every time of day can sometimes be intense and make it tough to relax. The smaller square footage and higher rent can also be tough to adjust to and amenities that are readily available in apartments further away often cost a lot more around the Village. Many students living in the area choose to have roommates, which helps mitigate the high cost of rent. Plus, there are Laundromats on just about every corner so doing laundry, while not as convenient, is also not too tough. Perhaps one of the most painful things cited was the lack of full grocery stores nearby, which means an overreliance on bodegas or a longer commute to more robust chains and places like Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods.

The Palladium is the NYU dorm that houses some Sternies. The dorm is located a short fifteen minute walk from Stern in Union Square. The biggest convenience of living in the Palladium is that everything is taken care of: rent is added to your Stern fees, utilities are included, laundry is in the building, and there’s also a cafeteria and a very nice fitness center. The biggest drawback is that the Palladium comes with all the quirks of dorm life. The bedrooms are small and include an extra long twin and a small hot plate, microwave and fridge. You have to go to the lobby to check guests in and out, you answer to a Resident Assistant (RA) and, perhaps worst of all, undergrads live on the majority of the floors. However, if you want the ultimate in convenient living, the dorm is still the best option.

So how does living near or far impact involvement in Stern? In my opinion it enhances it. While sometimes I think twice about staying an extra hour at a bar when it’s getting pretty late, I have found that living far away has little impact on my student life. Whether participating in clubs, events, social activities, or even night or morning classes, I continue to be heavily active in all of these areas. I would venture to say the same for most other commuting Sternies as well. There is a vibrant community around campus at any time of the day and virtually any time at night as well. It goes along with the family vibe that’s truly present here. People living close by have the opportunity to run home between classes, but I’ve found that many students choose to hang out and go to lunch together between classes, have happy hour at one of the many nearby bars, and attend club events, among other things. I’d argue that the diverse living situations of Sternies have made student life more interesting. In the last semester alone I attended a house party in Brooklyn, a potluck in Hoboken, brunch in Harlem, a bar crawl on the Lower East Side and a picnic in Central Park, to name a few activities. Sternies use the city to our advantage, making our events just as fun and diverse as our student body. Plus, I can truly say that I’m now familiar with many different parts of the city, not just the neighborhoods where I live and go to school.

Over the past few months I have talked to many prospective students who are interested in various careers in tech. Without fail I get the following question in all my conversations: Why should I choose Stern if I’m interested in tech?

Needless to say I also asked this question when I was deciding whether or not to consider Stern. So, I thought I’d blog about my Stern experience in regards to tech in order to perhaps provide a little insight to those wondering the same thing. Below are three reasons why I think Stern provides unparalleled access to some of the best resources for tech minded students.

First, Stern is in the Silicon Alley. In New York, fondly known in the industry as Silicon Alley, tech has taken off in various forms across various industries and all of them are a quick subway ride away. As a result Stern students have a broad range of opportunities to explore first hand while just about any day of the week. I recently read a report in Business Insider that does an excellent job of outlining the diverse and growing tech industry here in the Silicon Alley. Among some of the things the author, Steve Schlafman, points out about why he loves the tech industry in NYC is that it’s “welcoming: people new to tech can integrate quickly,” and “open: the community is accessible via Meetups, Twitter, and blogs.”[i] I would second that, and as a Stern student I have taken advantage of the discounted access we receive to Meetups and industry conferences around the city. One of my favorites was an EdTech Meetup where I networked with post-MBAs from various companies in the industry. Equally exciting was a digital music industry conference where I met executives and employees throughout the industry, and participated in a company crawl to Pandora, Spotify, and Youtube offices, among others. I have also participated in day treks led by our Entertainment Media and Technology Association (EMTA) and Entrepreneurs Exchange to the New York offices of large tech companies like Google, Facebook and smaller tech companies like Etsy and Rap Genius to get to know the New York City tech scene and its opportunities better.

Second, tech reaches all major industries and so does Stern. More than ever before tech is permeating every company and every industry. It’s no longer centralized to a few companies of a certain type and in a specific location. The article referenced above lists many of them in New York, such as publishing, advertising, commerce, healthcare, fashion, finance, education and mobile. I would also add media to that list. Technological innovation is a pivotal part of media, banking, and mobile, in particular, and it will play a critical role in their ability to differentiate and remain competitive. I’m excited for the possibility to participate in that. Through various industry club activities, like panels, knowledge management sessions, and treks and classes, including Managing Change, Digital Strategy and Advanced Strategy I have gained a much broader view of tech and how it impacts these industries. I have also been able to learn more about these companies and industries by leveraging our Office of Career Development to reach out to alumni that work within them. Stern students and alum embrace tech semester internships, summer internships and fulltime roles, like digital marketing, business analytics and product management at companies, like HBO, Etsy, American Express, Sony, Spotify and the New York Times, which area all nearby. The unique opportunity to participate in internships during the semester, in addition to the summer, is cherished among career switchers who want to explore various roles and get additional experience to build their resumes.

Fourth, Stern is connected to the valley. I was interested in pursuing some of the more traditional tech companies for my summer internship and Stern did not disappoint. Stern has a wealth of corporate partners, alumni and contacts that I was able to reach out to and network with. During the EMTA Trek to the Bay we visited and met with recruiters and alumni at places, such as Google, Facebook, LinkedIn and Paypal where I made a variety of connections, some of which turned into internship offers. At a mixer in the valley, I also met with an alumnus who has since served as a great resource on various opportunities off the beaten path in the Bay. Stern’s corporate partners, like Google and Amazon, work with the Office of Career Development to visit campus regularly to conduct corporate presentations, lead case study competitions and provide other networking opportunities. As my summer internship decision approached I got to choose from great companies located in New York, New Jersey, Washington and California.

You probably noticed a common theme of relationships and location threaded throughout the three reasons I provided above. I think Stern has a unique mix of both that empowers us students to get a comprehensive view of the tech world and opportunities within it. For me, the biggest payoff has been that through both relationships and location Stern has broaden my perspective on tech, shown me the forefront of innovation in various arenas and given me opportunities to pursue a wide number of industries that weren’t previously on my radar.

While I was applying to Stern I remember spending time thinking about how I could leave a lasting legacy at such an established institution. I didn’t realize it at the time, but all my ideas were miniscule compared to the actual impact I’d be able to have during my time here. Stern challenges us to think big about all facets of our experience here and to be bold in our contributions. Almost daily I see examples of how influential the voice of the student body is. Here are a few examples that have struck me.

Last semester, as a result of student voices, Stern enacted a Grade Non-Disclosure policy. This is a hot topic for many institutions and was for Stern students as well. In honoring our voices the student government held several town halls for us to share our opinions. This led to a student vote where a 2/3^rd majority voted in favor of GND. The policy was enacted immediately with the support of our administration.

Last week, I sat in on a presentation made by a group of fellow students that challenged Stern faculty and administrators to rethink the way the school delivers education. The students freely voiced both negative and positive critiques about key areas of the school and boldly proposed a new vision for the school, as well. Their audience included the Dean of Innovation and several administrators and professors who sit on the board of Stern’s Center for Innovation in Teaching and Learning. The board was eager to hear all of the insights presented and dug into a lively discussion about them. They embraced the ideas shared and developed next steps to explore some of them immediately.

In a couple of weeks, forty of us will spend Spring Break in Cuba as part of a new Business and Society course, Cuba: Sanctions, Reform, Opportunities. This course is a result of a petition made by students in Stern’s Association of Hispanic and Black Business Students.  We decided to request the course because, as a club, we appreciate Stern’s openness to business and cultural insights from a variety of different societies and feel there is much to be learned from the story of Cuba. We are excited to participate in the inaugural class, which became an official part of our course selection less than six months after we petitioned for it.

I have come to cherish Stern’s faculty and administrators who are committed to embracing the student voice. I am proud of the lasting legacy that our class continues to create and am excited to see what future class will bring to the school.

The one thing about January that all Stern students have in common is no class for almost a month. That leaves room for literally a world of possibilities when it comes to leveraging all this “free” time. For me, the month of January means spending three weeks in sunny Rio followed by one week in Peru hiking Machu Picchu.

For many MBA1s, January will be used to prepare for interviews and secure summer internships. Those vying for consulting internships will spend much of their time in study rooms on campus for the first half of the month sharpening their casing skills for interviews later in the month. By the end of the month, students recruiting for banking will know which companies they’ll be working with over the summer. Those interested in tech or media will likely be found in LA or San Francisco visiting companies like Pixar, Disney, Google and Facebook as part of weeklong treks held by our Entertainment Media Technology Association.

Those of us who are not recruiting in January will likely be somewhere on the other side of the world, shaping our perspectives on global business. Some students will be embarking on the first few weeks of a spring semester abroad, at places like London Business School or HEC in Paris. Another large percentage will be in Israel, Singapore, Australia, Brazil, Costa Rica or other places for one to two weeks as part of the Doing Business In (DBI) program. These students will be learning about industries abroad that are relevant to Specializations, such as Tech, Luxury and Retail, Social Innovation or Finance.

Another group will be learning about, business, culture and society in India through the Social Problems Based Entrepreneurship course. I, and thirty others participating in Stern’s International Social Impact Strategies (ISIS) class, will be in Rio consulting with small companies and nonprofits. We will spend two weeks helping solve business problems, like how to expand a company’s revenue sources or restructure them for growth.

One of the most exciting parts of these trips abroad is the social travel that accompanies them. DBIs, study abroad and other classes are great launching pads for travel to neighboring countries during off weeks. For instance, many of us will spend new years in Rio and explore other countries, like Argentina, Venezuela and Peru, after our ISIS project is complete. Other students, who are not participating in specific courses, are also planning their own group trips around the world. I’ve heard chatter about group trips to Vietnam, Thailand, Bali, South Africa and India, among other places.

As we wrap up finals, January is the hottest conversation topic these days. As you can imagine, students are anxiously anticipating it the month for many reasons. The question, “what are you doing in January?” probably holds just as much value to us as “what are you doing for the summer?” I think of it as a month for great progress, where we have the opportunity to reflect, regroup and explore…and of course find jobs. What better way to start the new year?!

Hey there! It’s great to meet you. This is my first time blogging about my Stern experience. My name is Adrea and I’m a second year MBA specializing in Leadership and Change Management, Business Analytics and Strategy. I’m also heavily involved in many of the academic and social activities here at Stern. A few of my favorites right now are participating in Stern Consulting Corps, being a Teaching Fellow and serving as president of the Association of Hispanic and Black Business Students.  Because of that I wasn’t sure just what topic I was going to choose for my first blog post, but now, as I write this, I know exactly what I want to discuss: specializations at Stern.

The topic of specializations has been a huge area of discussion for me and many others as we prepare for our last semester at Stern and actively recruit for full time roles. This topic became especially relevant two weeks ago when we entered lottery submissions for Spring classes, our last time doing this. In a week or so we’ll find out which classes we’ll be taking. If you’re worried for me, don’t be! The lottery system actually works really well – taking into account our status and preferences to make sure that students with one semester left have the opportunity to take the classes we most want to take before graduating. But anyway, the bigger conversation is around specializations.

As I was choosing my last set of classes I began to reflect on my academic journey at Stern and whether or not my classes reflected the specializations I had originally decided on at the beginning of my first semester. The short answer: not at all. I’m incredibly happy about that! So a couple of points here–first, specializations at Stern are not set in stone. You don’t have to officially declare them and they don’t appear on your diploma. You can share them on your resume and leverage them to guide class selections if you’d like, but there is no binding commitment to them. As I look back on the classes that I have chosen to take, I am so thankful for that. Why? Because the process of getting an MBA is a formative one and if you let it be, it’s a great time for self-reflection. Likewise for me, it has been a great opportunity to learn even more about my values and explore new interests. Not having to declare and remain true to a specialization supports that process.

While I was updating my resume the other day, I took a look at the specializations that I originally listed during my first semester here. Those specializations were Product Management, Strategy and Marketing. In case you didn’t catch my current specializations at the beginning of this entry, they are now Leadership and Change Management, Business Analytics and Strategy. Only one remains standing. So how did that happen? Am I completely indecisive and illogical? Despite what you may think and what I sometimes think, no.

Like many Sternies, I decided during my first semester that, for my remaining three semesters, I wouldn’t rely on my Specializations alone when choosing classes. Instead, I chose classes that reflect my interests, or that have amazing teachers that I would be honored to learn from, or that would challenge me in an area where I previously struggled. In some cases those classes aligned with my previously prescribed specializations but in many others they led me down new avenues I previously had no clue would appeal to me. Now, as I reflect on my academic career and begin my job search, I can truly say that I have taken a set of classes that resonate much more closely to who I am. Accordingly, I feel confident that I will leave Stern with a new career that I’m passionate about, not just a job that I sort of like.