You Got In! Now What?

The acceptance letter is just the beginning of your MBA experience. Once you’ve been accepted to Stern get ready for the best time of your life to begin! Even before classes start, you’ll face all kinds of new challenges: financing your degree, readjusting to homework, schmoozing recruiters. I am sure there are tons of questions flying around in your head as you question everything from where to live to what the heck should I do to prepare?

Here are some tips for the next few months before you start school this coming Fall:

I made the mistake of not joining the class FB group until literally the day before classes started, only to realize that my fellow classmates had been having conversations and organizing meet ups in different cities for months! Join the group ASAP and you will start mixing and mingling with your future classmates.

This was a fabulous book all about getting back to the grind of becoming a student, how to manage those notorious recruiting networking circles and how to manage classes, social events and everything in between. It was written by former MBAs who draw on their own experiences in a range of situations, from telling the boss you’re going back to school to balancing wine and cheese in one hand while networking. The book even includes a glossary of need-to-know jargon, so you won’t feel lost when classmates start slinging around fancy acronyms.

One of the many questions I am constantly asked by prospective students is about housing. So here is a little run down on what you can expect when re-locating to NYC. It’s no secret that New York is one of the most expensive cities on the planet, but despite that fact that you won’t be making a salary for the next two years there are affordable options out there.

The majority of the students in my class live in or around the East Village. We spend most of our waking hours somewhere around the Stern campus whether in the building, going to events or hanging with friends at local bar, so it is a logical location and one of the more affordable neighborhoods. There are plenty of people (myself included) who live all over this great city from the upper west side to the financial district to Brooklyn and the neighborhood I call home, Hell’s Kitchen.

Living with a roomie is a great way to help ease the financial burden of rent. Tons of my fellow classmates live together or with other roommates outside of Stern. Pre-View weekend and the class Facebook group is a great way to get in touch with other classmates on the roommate hunt. Some great sites to check out for NYC listings are http://streeteasy.com/ and of course there is always http://newyork.craigslist.org/.

On campus housing is an alternative to finding an apartment on your own. The Palladium is by far one of the nicer dorm buildings I have seen, has a full gym and pool. Not to worry, there is a separate floor for Graduate students so you won’t be mixing with the undergrads. If you know you want to live in campus housing I would recommend applying for that as soon as possible.

Recruiting for summer internships starts up just about the minute you enter school in the Fall. If you have some time to research companies you are interested in working for and the type of position you want, you will have a huge leg up once the recruiting season starts and your calendar is filled with corporate presentations and networking events.

This is by far the most important and something I wish I had taken more advantage of. I worked up until the beginning of August and really wish I had taken the time off to travel or do just about anything else! The next two years are going to be the busiest time of your entire life, so take the summer to catch up with friends and family and enjoy yourself before the madness begins. (Don’t worry, it’s the best kind of madness there is).

If you have more questions, definitely contact our MBA Graduate Ambassadors at mbaga@stern.nyu.edu who are happy to speak with you all about getting ready to join the NYU Stern community!

Until next time,

Kristin