Category: Full-time MBA

“That was awesome.”

The clock struck noon and Investment Banking was done for the day. We had just spend 90 minutes walking through a series of powerpoint slides titled ‘Investment Grade Public and Private Debt’. Prior to business school just reading that title may have made my head explode. I had zero knowledge of finance and could not have told you the difference between Hedge Funds and Investment Banks. All I knew was that they worked a ton of hours and made a lot of money.

But here I was in my Investment Banking class with a couple of prospective students equally as oblivious to Finance as I had been before I came to NYU Stern. When the lecture was over I turned to one of them and asked her thoughts on the class:

“That was awesome.”

I would normally be skeptical because how could someone really be that enthusiastic about a topic so mundane. But here is the thing… it WAS awesome! The reason is very simple: the person teaching the class was Professor Charles Murphy. A former head of Investment Banking at Credit Suisse, Professor Murphy is funny, engaging, and an amazing teacher. I know he is a great teacher because throughout the first 6 weeks of class this semester I have gone from zero understanding of the financial services industry to a deep understanding of investment banking, private equity, hedge funds, asset management, and how they all work together.

The point of this post is not to pat myself on the back. It is also not to heap praise on Professor Murphy (even though I could spend 3000 words doing it without breaking a sweat). The real point I want to make is that we have phenomenal professors here at NYU Stern. I am a marketer who thought finance was beyond my level of comprehension. What I’ve found is that if you have great professors that you can learn anything.

I stand before the community now as a graduate who feels comfortable talking about finance. This is no small feat and I could not have done it without my professors leading the way. I had the pleasure of speaking with an NYU Board Member recently about NYU Stern. When I asked him why he thought we have had so much success he said “anywhere you go at the top MBA programs you will have great professors, but I think what we have at NYU is Seal Team 6.” They are the Navy’s top operational task force and are the best at what they do. I can’t think of a better comparison for our faculty here and am happy to say that I have grown significantly as a student learning from them.

Hi all,

I was asked to give a brief talk today on my favorite Stern professor — so thought I’d share what I have written here on the blog as well. Happy Spring! -Matt

Q: Who is your favorite Stern faculty member and/or what is your favorite course taken so far?

Hi My Name is MATT and I am going to talk today about my favorite Stern professor A MAN A MYTH A LEGEND–who has mastered the mystic art of CONTROLLING THE VOLUME OF HIS VOICE and MODULATING THE PACE of his delivery. Who can turn even the driest material into engaging, dynamic, and–frankly–wonderful lectures.

Professor William L. Silber. The Marcus Nadler Professor of Finance and Economics. White-haired Legend of the core MBA-required Foundations of Finance class. Internationally-recognized scholar of dynamism in securities markets. And First class oddball.

Odd indeed–but in the best possible way. Hilarious, off beat, RANDOMLY LOUD, and more than anything passionate about his specialization.

Finance scared me. I didn’t think I could do it. If the landscape of MBA is organized in a Braveheart style binary between the Poets and the Quants (Or quantitative-leaning students), I am most definitively a poet… I majored in English in college. I worked in media reviewing film script and pitches for six years. I had forgotten almost all the math that once rented tenuous apartment space in my brain. I was worried.

But the most valuable lesson Silber has taught me isn’t about Arbitrage, CAPM, or interest rates, but rather the fact that just because you haven’t been exposed to something…doesn’t mean it has to dominate you. (Like a less risky, more rewarding portfolio would dominate a lesser security as an investment.)

Professor Silber’s PASSION for finance comes through in his lectures–and they are the most engaging I’ve had so far here at Stern. They made me WANT to learn.

And now I’m ready to come out and say it–my deep dark secret — I LIKE FINANCE.

Silber got me here. And that’s why he is my favorite professor. But then again, Thursday is our Midterm. So, depending on how that goes, I’ll revisit this issue next week.

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.

In my last semester at Stern, I want to make sure I take advantage of every possible opportunity to learn as much before I graduate. While I already have a job lined up post-graduation, I am definitely not slacking off – although when I am giving tours at 10 am on Fridays I sometimes wish I were less committed 🙂

I want to become involved with programs that I am interested in, that will allow me to give back to the community, and that will help me develop key skills. Two of my passions are running and women’s health/nutrition. Outside of Stern, I have been volunteering as an Assistant Coach with an amazing program called Girls on the Run (http://gotrnyc.org/). This season I will step up to Head Coach at a new school in Chelsea. Here at Stern, I am VP of Events for the new Stern Health and Fitness Club. I find and plan running events, such as races and half marathon training sessions. I plan to go into consulting after graduation and was looking at various project opportunities with the Luxury Retail Club and Entrepreneurs Exchange Club (EEX) Consulting Corps programs (https://nyustern.campusgroups.com/larc/consulting-corps/ and https://nyustern.campusgroups.com/eex/prospective-student-info/).

My worlds collided recently when I was selected as Project Lead for an EEX Project for the company VROU (http://vrouwomen.com/). Not only is VROU a health brand for women, but it is also a partner with Girls on the Run! I am very excited to be working with VROU founder, Kathryn Moos, and my team here at Stern to develop a complete marketing plan and social media strategy. VROU offers a zero-calorie healthy water for women with tons of multivitamins and nutrients. I wanted to work with VROU because our values and goals are aligned. VROU is committed to positively impacting the lives of young girls – hence the partnership with Girls on the Run. There are many ways to become involved with Girls on the Run: as a head or assistant coach, internships, running buddy for the 5K, or one-off volunteer opportunities at various events. My involvement in the program over the last few years has been incredibly rewarding. It’s amazing to see young girls ages 8-11 embrace the lessons, become more confident, and successfully run 3 miles!

I’m looking forward to strengthening the relationship between VROU and Girls on the Run this semester and helping both organizations be successful!

 *Please note: The opinions expressed here are solely my opinions and do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of Girls on the Run® International.

It is the second week back on campus after a 6 week break and all I can think about was what I did over our vacation. The great thing about being a student is that you have a winter break in the first place. While last year my entire break was consumed with preparing for internship interviews in January, this year I had the entire 6 weeks to myself.

I have had many people that I trust tell me about how incredible their vacations to Thailand were. After a long time of listening to them it was my turn to make the trip myself. I voiced my interest this fall and immediately 3 classmates said that they would travel with me. With 6 weeks to kill we decided to start in Thailand and then make our way to Vietnam, Cambodia, and Hong Kong. In total we would travel 23 days and get back to school the day before it starts.

I could go on about what we did in each city but I will focus on the highlights and what I learned on my trip.

• A speedboat tour of Phan Nga Bay in Thailand had me thinking “this is the most beautiful place I have ever been” multiple times
• Feeding and riding elephants in Chiang Mai, Thailand made me so happy that I now use it as my “happy place” whenever I am having a bad day.
• Being in a cage with live tigers makes you appreciate the power of nature
• You can buy things in Vietnam for cheap… like reaaallllyyyyy cheap
• I will never forget seeing Angkor Wat temple at sunrise. It’s also mind blowing to realize something so grand was built 1000 years ago
• Hong Kong feels like NYC but cleaner and more crowded. I don’t know how that’s possible
• When I go to work as a brand manager I need to figure out how to secure ad space that brands have in Hong Kong. The side of a building (http://www.my-lifestyle-news.com/2013/04/ermenegildo-zegna-wrap-one-peking.html) or an entire subway station (http://www.coca-colaconversations.com/2011/04/the-hong-kong-125th-anniversary-time-tunnel.html) are options for enormous takeovers.

In conclusion I loved my trip. Even the ridiculous week of jetlag was worth it! Unfortunately playtime is over and I have to think about school once again… except for when I’m thinking about elephants.

I am still in shock that my last semester has arrived. How did I get here? There’s a part of me that wishes I could stay at Stern forever, but there’s also a part of me that’s eager to get out there and show the world all that I’ve learned. I recently had the sad, but exciting task of selecting my last classes. The great thing about being a second semester second year is that I received all of my choices! The downside is that there is still so much I would like to take. In the end, I chose Decision Models, Pricing Strategy, Retail Strategy, Managing Growing Companies, New Venture Finance, Luxury Marketing, and DBi Italy. That may seem like a lot, but fear not. It only totals up to 5.5 classes, so a slight, but worthwhile overload, thanks in part to the extra 3 credits Stern allots you. Ultimately, after sitting in on many classes and consulting my friends for insight on their experience in certain courses, I am pleased with my selection. I like the mix of hard and soft skills built into my schedule this semester. During the selection process, I also met with several professors and faculty members to gain their input. I tend to be indecisive, so I figured an extra opinion or two could never hurt. The Stern community has yet to fail.

This brings me to the difficult start I had to my semester. During the last week of January, second year students completed a mandatory course called Professional Responsibility. It is a week-long intensive that covers various topics surrounding ethics. Unfortunately, in the afternoon on the first day of class, I received notice that a friend of mine had passed away from cancer. As one of my fellow GA’s and several friends comforted me while I sobbed, I was assured by the professor that I could take the time I needed. My friends remained supportive and encouraging. I knew I could rely on them for any notes or information I may have missed while I attempted to pull myself together. I ultimately chose to stay for the remainder of the day rather than go home. The decision was simple. I knew that I was better off surrounded by my loving, caring classmates than alone in my apartment. My fellow Sternies never left my side that week. They dragged me to lunch when I didn’t want to eat. They sat with me in silence listening to my reflections. They brought me humor when I cried. They checked in on me morning, noon, and night. Even in the short two weeks that have followed, I have had the undivided support from my friends.

So much of our decision regarding where to attend business school centers on academics and careers. While these are some of the compelling reasons I chose Stern, I ask you to reconsider your priorities. Ultimately, my experience here has been defined more by the people than by the institution. I am touched by their regular generosity and kindness. Needless to say, I’m not sure my two years at Stern would be half of what they have been without the community. It is truly a place that picks you up when you fall down the hardest.

Back in the swing!

Second semester has started and it’s been chaotic — unlike last semester, where there was some time to “ramp up” and learn the ropes before classes really hit full stride, this semester is definitely more intense work-wise much more quickly.

Part of the situation is that most MBA1s have been able to move away form the “core classes” taken first semester and start electives.  Through electives you can craft whatever concentrations (or specializations) you want to in tailoring your MBA.

Mine are far-flung, as I’m not 100% sure yet what my final concentrations will be.  A major challenge for me this semester will be my Regression Analysis class–an advanced statistics course.  What’s interesting about this course is that I’m one of only two full time MBAs in it.  Many of the students are Stern undergraduates or from other graduate programs–a few PhD students, a few Masters, etc.  This diverse milieu is definitely a new experience for me but one that should add a lot to the class.  It’s going to be a pretty challenging class though–so I’ll keep you posted on my survival.

Otherwise I have a full course load ahead.  Helpfully, I secured an internship for the summer ahead-so that takes a bit of the pressure off.  Looking forward to some of this snow melting so the commute to school is a bit easier…but excited for a productive semester.

M

I just returned from a month Down Under and was not prepared for the multiple polar vortexes that met me in NYC upon my return. The saving grace is that I am incredibly excited for my classes and professors this semester. In fact, I think I am over-registered for classes but that is a topic for another time.

One of the best things about grad school, and Stern in particular, is the ample amount of vacation time. I’m serious. And I mean this in a business sense. A lot of learning here at Stern takes place beyond the semester and beyond the walls of the classroom. Stern offers many travel programs (such as DBi classes, Commerce & Cannes, Operations in Panama, Operations in Vegas, etc.) to enrich the overall learning experience. Before arriving at Stern, I was convinced I would do multiple DBI’s, one every semester, and travel the globe. I’m in my last semester and while I haven’t managed to take any DBi’s yet, I have been able to take advantage of the vacation time to travel with Sternies, explore new cultures, deepen friendships and form new ones, and visit amazing places.

This past January, I spent a month traveling throughout Australia, Indonesia, and New Zealand, with a varied group of Sternies. Traveling with Sternies is great because everyone is so open and friendly and willing to travel together even if you aren’t best friends before the trip. Did I mention it was summer there and an average of 80+ degrees? The first stop was Sydney, where I learned how to surf in Bondi Beach and drank some of the best coffee ever (flat white). In the Whitsundays, I snorkeled the great barrier reef while a friend got scuba certified. I crashed the DBi in Melbourne, where we took a tour of the Great Ocean Road and spotted koalas, visited their version of Williamsburg (Fitzroy), sampled kangaroo steak (delicious!) and watched Venus Williams at the Australian Open (for class credit for the DBI’ers). In Indonesia, I wandered around terraced rice paddies, fed monkeys in the wild, ate delicious and cheap food, and explored the temples from “Eat, Pray, Love”. New Zealand has the most beautiful scenery I’ve ever seen. We went wine tasting, hiked a volcano, drove through rolling hills (think “The Hobbit”), hung out with sheep, visited gorgeous public beaches, saw dolphins, and drank more delicious coffee. I’m thankful that Stern gives us over a month off of school in order to take the time to pursue things we really love and that will enhance our lives – whether it’s spending time with family, traveling with friends, studying about business in a foreign country or a combination of all three. Alas, vacation is now over but the learning continues in the classroom!