At the end of my spring semester as an MBA 1, I had the opportunity to travel to Milan, Italy with thirty other classmates. We were in the heart of the fashion capital of Europe for our one-week DBi course on Luxury Retail. I had been hearing about this DBi since I first applied to Stern, but the actual experience far exceeded all of my expectations.
The course was a mix of classroom lectures and experiential learning. I would say that the split was about 30/70, with the majority of our time spent visiting flagship retail stores, clothing factories, professional tailors, and other similar venues. You think you’ve shopped luxury before but 5th Avenue is nothing like Milan. In my opinion, comparing the two experiences could not have been more like day and night.
The attention to detail and level of service at the Milan stores was unparalleled to anything I had ever previously encountered. Store employees strived to build a genuine long-term relationship with every customer that walked into the store; at Dolce & Gabbana, we were told this was because shoppers may stroll in and out on multiple occasions before committing to a purchase, and they wanted these customers to feel just as attended to as the regulars.
Aside from the experiential aspect of the DBi though, the lectures were equally as engaging. In spite of our long days walking around the city, each morning I was excited to hear what the professors at Bocconi University would be sharing with us that day. Their firsthand experiences in the industry, as well as their anecdotes about customer shopping habits, trends, and the economic status in Italy, kept us all hooked throughout our time in the classroom.
While the course itself was certainly fascinating and educational for me, I also really enjoyed the fact that I was traveling with so many classmates, many of whom I had not previously known prior to the trip. What’s interesting about the DBi is that since it’s an actual course, students lottery for it just as they do for all other courses at Stern. That said, it’s a great opportunity to meet both full-time and part-time students. I don’t have too many opportunities to interact with the latter so this was a unique situation in which we were able to get to know one another while exploring a new country together.
Whether you are an experienced jet setter or alternatively, just eager to get that first stamp on your passport, a DBi has something for everyone. In Milan in particular, I felt I received the perfect mix of academic, cultural, and social experiences that truly made it an enriching and unforgettable experience for me. Especially given my interest in the Luxury Retail industry, it has been by far my favorite course I’ve taken at Stern, and one I would highly recommend to other MBAs with similar professional interests.
It seems like just a few days ago that I was finishing up my summer internship at McKinsey and getting ready for classes to begin but here we are now almost done with the first semester… It is truly amazing how quickly time flies during business school.
Myself and Stern classmates who also worked at the New York office of McKinsey on a sunset sailboat cruise around the Statue of Liberty after work one night.
Some of the most common questions I receive from prospective students considering Stern are about how to prepare for recruiting. One of my favorite aspects of Stern is that everyone in the Stern community works incredibly hard to make sure you are prepared for interviews. As someone heavily involved with the recruiting process for consulting, I thought it would be helpful to share a taste of what I am currently working on to give back to first year students.
In my official capacity as a career mentor with the Office of Career Development, I host many helpful events for students. Before school was really underway I worked with students during the IGNITE workshops to write, practice and perfect their 30 second elevator pitch to employers. I reviewed the resumes of 12 students who are recruiting for consulting, then met with them one-on-one to help them wordsmith their points to make the strongest skills stand out. Right now I am working with other MBA2’s to host sessions on recruiting topics like how to navigate the corporate presentations and what to do during informational interviews. Before interviews start in January I’ll work with another group of students one-on-one to do practice interviews so they will be completely ready when on-campus interviews begin.
As a board member of the Management Consulting Association, I co-lead MCA’s weekly casing bootcamp session with another MBA2 student Michelle. Bootcamp happens every Wednesday afternoon and we teach how to do the technical part of a consulting interview, the case, from start-to-finish. From the framework, to the conclusion, with all the brainstorming, charts, and math you will ever need in-between, the eight interactive weekly sessions will get anyone ready to crush their case interview. If the promise of succeeding in the interview isn’t enough, we also provide awesome snacks like empanadas, cookies, and cannolis, to get your brain moving.
Students enjoying the last session of bootcamp with amazing Greek pastries.
Over 20 MBA2’s, including myself, help prepare first year students interested in consulting through MCA’s mentorship program. Every Tuesday morning I meet with five first years to help work through the topics from bootcamp in a smaller group setting as well as answer any questions about the recruiting process. It is an opportunity for first years to get an honest perspective on tough questions like how to request an informational interview as well as a chance to get to know their classmates better. As the application deadline approaches I’ll review their cover letters, help fine tune resumes, and give one-on-one case coaching so they’ll be as prepared as possible for their interviews.
There are many more examples of peer-led preparation I work on including the two for one casing initiative, corporate case competitions, informal coffee chats, and much more. Stern is really an amazing community where everyone invests in the success of their peers; feel free to reach out if you have any questions!
One year ago today, I was where you are. I was writing essays, studying for the GMAT in my spare time and avoided every single person that I knew. I get it – no social life, but it was time I wanted to focus on myself. After 4 years of working, I always knew that I wanted to go back to business school and I was going to do whatever it took. As the year went by, the stress levels only got higher as I received waitlist after waitlist, but I’ll tell you, my persistence and determination to come back to school helped me. I received acceptances up until July, hearing from NYU Stern last. Dropping everything to stay in New York was the best decision I could have made, and getting the acceptance letter with the digital confetti was probably one of the happiest moments of my life. I didn’t have to say goodbye to the place I call home and was getting the opportunity to pursue a career in Luxury Marketing, something that Stern especially is known for and something I would have had to give up going somewhere else.
Starting at Stern at the end of August was truly a dream come true. From LAUNCH to today, there have been countless occasions where I’ve stopped to think about how lucky I am to be here, and how truly proud I am to be a Sternie. One of my personal goals coming to business school, in addition to pursuing a career in Luxury Marketing, was to break out of my shell and be able to command a room. Granted, I’m a social person, but I’m not a loud person, and in a career going forward, I want my voice to be heard, literally. As you know, Stern divides the class into sections of ~65 that you take all of your core classes with. These people become your first network, and your closest friends over the next two years. In the first few weeks of class, I was making a speech in front of these 65 new classmates, explaining to them why I wanted to be their “Block Leader.” I was elected to represent Block 6, a great way to know everyone in my block and a chance for me to pursue my own personal goal.
Photo credit: Farah Karim
Another reason why I came to NYU was for the various experiential opportunities that the program allows. I applied to and was accepted to the Luxury Retail Immersion, a chance to work on a consulting project for a small boutique retailer. The project started about a week ago and goes up until December (only a few weeks). I’ve had one meeting so far, but it was definitely the “aha!” moment I was looking for in business school. This hands on learning is one of the reasons why I chose to come back to business school, and it’s definitely great to have that opportunity to follow your passion.
I’m a firm believer that it all works out in the end. Regardless of the stress that you are going through now, there’s no doubt that you will also have the opportunity to make your dreams come true. With NYU, the opportunities are endless. With Stern, your network is endless. No matter what you’re looking to do, there’s a person somewhere that is doing exactly that. The network, the brand will help take you places, and I am grateful for this experience.
When I first made the decision to apply to business school, I considered several factors—reputation, location, faculty, and level of focus on my profession of choice. The quality of the student body was certainly a consideration, but a slightly lesser one, as I generally felt that no matter where I ended up going, I would meet like-minded driven individuals, form relationships, and grow to call them my good friends. Now just over a year into the NYU Stern MBA program, I realize this last factor has the greatest impact on one’s experience in business school, and feel I personally could not have made a better choice.
Beginning with the first day of the LAUNCH orientation program, I have continually been blown away by my peers. Each of them comes from such a fascinating and diverse background, both professionally and personally, and challenges me in a way I never thought possible. I find myself working to be more knowledgeable and educated on an array of topics, so as to contribute to our discussions and their experience in a valuable way.
Aside from their intellect though, my peers here are truly warm and generous individuals. Throughout the business school research process, I often heard at each program I visited, that its students regularly put others before themselves, and that they go to great lengths to help one another to be successful. Though at the time I assumed this was something quite generic all schools simply say, I have now had the opportunity to see this actually manifest itself here at Stern.
About a week into the start of my first semester, I was casually chatting with a new friend about plans for recruiting. Immediately upon expressing my interest, he stopped me to tell me he knew someone at a company I might want to learn more about and asked if I wanted him to make a connection. I was floored in that moment that someone I had met so recently was already so eager to help me.
More recently, I was working on a job application for my top choice company. I must have drafted my cover letter five separate times, but my nerves continued to get the best of me. I frantically texted another friend, who promptly calmed me down and instructed me to send my completed cover letter her way for a final once-over. This is something we all frequently do for one another of course, but to have a friend say she could drop everything she was doing on a couple hours notice meant so much in that moment of stress and panic.
These are just a few of the countless instances when I have felt supported by my friends in the Stern community. Being within the walls that make up NYU Stern has frequently pushed me outside of my comfort zone. However, I am finding that this is a place I now quite enjoy being, as I know I can count on the inspiring individuals I have met here to be right there with me.
Last Spring, Sarada Anne, one of my best friends at Stern, had the opportunity to take part in what she lauds as her favorite class to date. Sarada is originally from Hyderabad, India. She received her degree in industrial engineering and has a background in consulting and real estate. This summer she interned in investment banking at Barclays, and she will be returning there for full-time.
Sarada and four other Sternies participated in one of the Stern Signature Projects (SSP) that have a specific focus on urbanization. SSPs are organized around specific interests like human rights and film distribution. They cover diverse topics, and the projects themselves tend to vary semester-to-semester.
This urbanization SSP took Sarada and her team to Ethiopia to help the city of Hawassa plan for a more sustainable future. Though the NYU Stern Urbanization Project has worked with Hawassa on a number of urbanization initiatives before, Sarada and her SSP team were tasked with formulating a conservation plan for the lake amid rapid urban expansion and industrialization. They worked closely with Patrick Lamson-Hall, an urban planner and research scholar at the NYU Stern Urbanization Project. The Urbanization Project itself was founded by Professor Paul Romer, who recently went on leave from Stern to take on the role of Chief Economist at the World Bank.
Here’s what Sarada had to say:
What attracted you to this project?
So I come from a real estate background, which is why the urbanization project was very interesting to me, because I was a private real estate developer. In India at least, the residential projects that people are doing are far outpacing the initiatives that the government is taking to plan for infrastructure. So that was one of the things that attracted me to the project. The problem was very interesting. I also wanted to take a class that let me work on a real world initiative and was unlike any school experience I’ve had before. The team was also fantastic. I didn’t know who my team would be going in, but the other students who the Office of Student Engagement (OSE) brought together were the most highly functional team I’ve worked with. We all had very diverse backgrounds and skills, but maybe because of that it was smooth from day one, and they really helped make the project enjoyable.
What was your impression of the issue at hand?
The national government is trying to build up the city, as it’s one of the cities identified for their development plan. So it’s a small city now, but they have big growth plans. That’s basically the problem for the urbanization project. They do believe urbanization is a good thing—urban density, population density, brings a lot of amenities and all that good stuff—but at the same time, there’s a lake in the middle of the city, and they’re setting up industries like textiles, which has already affected the lake. So if there’s more industrialization, the lake could suffer. So that was the project. Hawassa has to grow, so how can we do that and save the lake?
How much of your project was new compared to what was already being done?
Patrick has already been working with Hawassa. He’s been there. He knows the city. So with his help, we didn’t have a lot of issues. But this was a new prompt. In the past, the Urbanization Project worked with the city government on multiple projects. This [SSP project] was going to be the new big pitch that we were going to give the mayor of the city. So we did a lot of research, and most of it was done here [at Stern] since we only had a week there [in Hawassa]. We had a basic idea in mind. We knew what the lake was, what the issues were, so a lot of the brainstorming, a lot of the research, and the solution generation happened here. That was maybe 70% of it. Then it evolved when we were actually there. We talked to the government officials and continued to learn more about what they wanted. Then Patrick really helped us out with designing the boulevards, the lanes, the road systems, things like that. Ultimately we were able to create a modern urban infrastructure plan that also incorporated elements of conservation.
The SSP group with the Mayor of Hawassa
Your proposal was for “Adare Park,” a linear park around the circumference of the lake that provided “ample urban greenspace for the city” and was “complete with a wide boulevard to facilitate future urbanization,” as well as buffer zones to “prevent erosion and help the lake’s ecology recuperate.” What was it like presenting this to the mayor?
I was a little nervous. We actually presented it to him in his office. He was really quiet and was taking notes, and he had a lot of questions for us, but at the end he was very receptive. His attitude was, “Yes, we want to do something for the city. This is very important to us.” Mind you, this is a small city in a developing country, and sustainability is one of their main issues. So this was a very mature way of thinking. I think that’s one of the reasons why we were working with a city like Hawassa, because they’re more aware of their path going forward, and the mayor started talking about how he wanted to work with us to do that. So there wasn’t even a question of “I don’t know, let me think about it,” because the conversation immediately went on about funds, how we’re going to raise them, if we can form a public-private partnership, how Stern can help. I was very surprised because there’s the difference in position between public officials and students, but he was very, very nice. I also credit the Urbanization Project with building up that relationship and trust.
What did you like best about this experience?
I’ve never felt as invested in a project or course as I did with this project. We went to this place where the lake—it gives its name to the city. People chill there, people gather by it, there’s a lively fish market on the shore and an airport being built on the other side [of the lake]—the whole city revolves around the lake, and you get to impact it in a positive way. On a project like this, you feel more ownership. You can see that something you’re doing can actually be nice for someone. It sounds cliché, but because of this, all of us were really invested, especially the week that we were there. It was also just a very different experience. On one day we went up to the mountain in the city, where you can get a 360-degree view, and Patrick was showing us the roads that were being laid, and the roads were the result of what Patrick and his team have done in the past.
What other resources at Stern did you use to help you accomplish this project?
OSE really helped us out, and not only in terms of getting the project done. We decided a week before [we left] that we were going to go there the week after. The five of us then had to coordinate, and OSE just hustled through everything, and we got everything booked in less than a week, from deciding to go to actually going. So I think that they really helped us out. It wasn’t necessary for us to visit, but we knew we wanted to go at some point, and we didn’t know at what point. Should we go at the end to present [our plan]? We were having troubles initially because we couldn’t really get in touch with the city government officials. They were in touch for work, but on a day-to-day basis it was more difficult to reach them, so we actually had the most interaction with them once we went there. This was an issue, but Patrick knew the lay of the land, so we were still able to get things moving. Anyway, we knew we had to go there before the project was over, so we really had to hustle and get it done, and OSE really helped us out there.
How do you think this experience influences what you do moving forward?
I have a takeaway for students, which is that they should try to be part of things that may not necessarily fall in line with their immediate career goals—I’m going into finance, so I would have never done this if I had thought about that. It’s too early to tell what influence it’s had in my life, but it’s definitely changed the way I look at the world. It’s the best course that I’ve had at Stern, and when I think about my MBA and look back at my top experience this is what I’ll think about.
The SSP group stops for a photo op on the way from Hawassa to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital.
Sternspective is a new series of interviews with Sternies about the diverse paths they are taking in the classroom and beyond. Check out our previous post about marketing here.
It’s been a month since 13 of my fellow MBA2s and I started as MBA Admissions Graduate Ambassadors, and I must say that I’ve really been enjoying the experience of interacting with so many prospective students over e-mail, over the phone, and in person during our class visits, coffee chats, and tours.
As a Graduate Ambassador, I also have the privilege of fielding many of the questions and concerns applicants have while applying. Because I’ve begun to notice some trends, here’s a new series of blog posts to help answer your questions.
This time I have with me Nevena Georgieva. Nev and I met at LAUNCH, where we discovered that we were in the same block (Block 2!) and bonded over our liberal arts backgrounds. Ever since then we’ve taken a handful of classes together, gone to many Beer Blasts together, and traveled as far as South Africa together. Nev is originally from Bulgaria before she moved to the U.S. to get her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in English. Prior to Stern, Nev was Associate Digital Marketing Manager at Penguin Random House here in New York, where she worked on digital advertising and promotional content for the books of many celebrated authors, including Margaret Atwood and Haruki Murakami. She interned at Bayer in brand management over the summer and will be returning there full-time after graduation. Here’s what she had to say:
Thanks for joining me, Nev! Let’s jump right in. What do you think makes Stern a great place for marketing?
For me, it was all the great companies that recruit on campus. As someone who recruited for CPG marketing, I was able to take advantage of all the companies that came for corporate presentations and interviewed us right here on campus. A lot of these companies are sponsors of the Graduate Marketing Association (GMA)—Bayer, Colgate, Dannon, AmEx, Mars, J&J, and RB—and there are other awesome companies that recruit here, such as Phillips, Verizon, Hasbro, Pfizer, and more. A lot of them are also in the tri-state area, so if you want to stick around post-Stern, this is a great place to be.
Getting an early start—a summer morning at Bayer, where Nevena and a handful of other Sternies interned. (Photo credit: Nevena Georgieva)
Can you elaborate on the opportunities available for non-CPG marketing?
At Stern we have the advantage of being at the center of New York City, so you can really easily recruit on campus but also on your own time. There have been classmates of mine who have landed internships at places like ESPN, Spotify, Salesforce, and Interbrand. Usually those opportunities are available in the Spring, so they come after the CPG marketing recruiting season in the Fall. Through LinkedIn and the Office of Career Development (OCD) you can also get in touch with alumni and learn more about non-CPG marketing and other opportunities in NYC that interest you.
How else does being at Stern and in NYC work to one’s advantage?
As I mentioned, a lot of the CPG companies that are our sponsors come to multiple events on campus, but they also often have “Days in the Life” that are held at the companies’ offices. So students get the opportunity to have an immersive day at the company and meet with alumni and senior marketing executives, learn about what CPG marketing is like at the company, and gauge whether the company would be a great fit for them. And so the proximity to these companies is a great advantage because students can easily fit that into their schedules, instead of flying to different companies around the country. The people at Stern have also been a great resource. First-year MBAs can take advantage of the GMA’s mentorship program, which pairs first-years with second-years who have been through the process, and over the winter break in January I participated in what we call Mock Madness, which is a week of marathon-like interview prep [between classmates] that I highly recommend.
On that note, what has been your personal experience with these opportunities?
Last year, my mentor was instrumental in helping me translate the work experience on my resume into terms that CPG marketers would best understand. Bayer also had a Day in the Life, and that’s one of the ways I knew that I really wanted to work there. I was able to see the offices. I was able to learn about specific marketing campaigns, what it’s like to work with advertising agencies, and I had a really excellent experience that led me to my internship with them. Their Day in the Life was also a really great representation of my internship, so I really think it’s important that students have the opportunity to engage with companies as much as possible and attend as many events as possible to really get a sense of what the best fit for them would be.
How about the marketing classes at Stern? Any that stand out to you?
Of course. We have one of the best marketing professors in the country, Professor [Scott] Galloway, and he has a class [Brand Strategy] in which, as a group, you create and present a brand strategy for an existing company. It was a really interactive experience, and a lot of groups went above and beyond in his class to engage with the rest of us during their presentations. Some groups brought in their company’s products like yogurt and beer, and a group came in dressed in Athleta clothing provided by the company. Also, I would say that this class was really great preparation for what I experienced during my summer. It really helped me build these important strategic and analytical skills, and taught me how to think like a marketer, so I recommend the class. Professor Galloway is also a really incredible speaker, which you might be able to experience by visiting the class.
Professor Russell Winer’s Spring 2016 core marketing classes invite Eataly’s Co-owner and CFO to Stern for a visit. Clockwise from top left: 1) Chef Mario Batali holds a Q&A with Professor Winer. 2) Eataly CFO Adam Saper talks with students about running New York City’s most popular “living market.” 3) Mr. Batali and Professor Winer chat with students before class. 4) Mr. Batali draws a packed Stern class for a discussion on restaurants, the food business, and how Eataly found success. (Photo credit: Keith Riegert for the Stern Opportunity)
And have you found other classes at Stern helpful to your interests?
Absolutely. CPG marketing is not really your traditional marketing job. It’s very much about general management, so I would really recommend for students who are interested in marketing to take a number of classes in different areas, including finance, strategy, and management. I really recommend classes like Leadership in Organizations taught by Professor [Dolly] Chugh, Strategy by Professor [Sonia] Marciano, Corporate Finance by Professor [Aswath] Damodaran, and Managing Growing Companies by Professor [Glenn] Okun. Being in CPG marketing is really about being the CEO of a brand. As a brand manager, you make decisions about your brand every day—pricing, advertising, retail decisions—and so you need to be well-rounded in your knowledge. Stern helps with that.
I want to remind our prospectives that you can actually visit some of these classes by signing up for them on our Visit Stern page. Meanwhile, I hear you have a conference coming up.
Yes! So actually the GMA Conference [on November 11] is one of the best events that a prospective student can attend to learn about marketing at Stern and in general. This year, I’m the Co-VP of Conference, so I’m in charge of organizing it. If prospective students would like to attend, they can reach out to our VP of Admissions Megan Sirras (gma@stern.nyu.edu) and attend the conference for free. There will be two amazing keynotes, so students can hear from VP of Strategy at Squarespace Andrew Bartholomew, who will be conversing with one of our amazing professors here at Stern, Luke Williams, Executive Director of the W.R. Berkley Innovation Lab. There’s also going to be a recruiting event for MBA1s, but running concurrently will be a “Beyond CPG Marketing” panel, where prospective students can learn about what the marketing function is like in industries outside of consumer packaged goods. Prospective students can then participate in a networking lunch and talk to current students and alumni, so it’s a great networking opportunity for them. In the afternoon, there will be multiple panels, where students can learn about topics like “The Rise of Visual Marketing” and “Digital Natives of Generation Z,” and there will be brand representation from companies such as GrubHub, Google, Uber, Facebook, POPSUGAR, Estee Lauder, and others. This year we’re launching a new segment called “3×15,” where we really want to give attendees a sense of what it’s like to put together a marketing campaign, so we’ll have different case studies from different speakers: a Creative Director at Razorfish (a digital advertising agency), the founder of Baked by Melissa, and we’ll hear about multicultural marketing from Shabnam Rezeai, who’s the Co-Founder and President of Big Bad Boo Studios and Oznoz.com. And then we’ll end with our afternoon keynote and networking reception where prospective students can continue to meet sponsors, alumni, and current students.
Thanks, Nev! As a parting note, can you tell prospective students what to do if they wish to learn more about marketing at Stern?
I really encourage them to engage with the GMA in general. So look for the GMA website, and you can contact Admissions VP Megan Sirras and schedule a phone call with her. She can answer many of your questions about marketing at Stern and even connect you with other students who can talk to you about specific companies and their experiences at Stern.
With the sudden drop in temperature this past week, it’s as if the city is reminding us that fall is here and school is back in session full swing. It’s crazy to think that just a little over a year ago I was moving halfway across the world from Asia settling in this beautiful city. And what a crazy, busy, fun-packed year it’s been!
I haven’t really been active this summer as I’ve been busy completing my summer internship with Spotify here in NYC that ended a few weeks ago. I was part of the newly created Client Relationship Management Team (CRM) team, in charge of internal marketing strategy, and had an absolute blast.
The cutest welcome sign that my team made me on my first day & our orientation swag.
As some of you may know, I came to Stern to explore the entertainment media and technology sphere. As a non-traditional industry, I didn’t really have the set timeline and structure that many fellow classmates of mine followed. Instead, I had gotten my internship through one of the many company treks that the student clubs host on Fridays.
Since my team was super new, I had a pretty atypical summer in the sense that I didn’t really get put on one intern project per say, but rather jumped right into the fray. I worked on about 5-10 global marketing campaigns at a time on average, all at a variety of stages: from strategic planning, customer insight result analysis to operational fixes.
Spotify, like many companies, also had an established MBA internship program. This included a speaker series, an intern weekend, and a summer project. Interns are also invited to all social events at the company, such as building and being part of the company’s Gay Pride Parade float, our Father’s Day special events, and of course, Open Mic and Karaoke night (we are a music company after all). At the conclusion of the internship, every intern also had the opportunity to present their project to the entire NYC office. The program allowed me to gain a better understanding the company as a whole, as well as network and make friends across the different verticals.
(failed) Selfie featuring some of the amazing Summer 2016 Spotify USA interns. (Photo Credit: Travis Robinson)
As many MBA students are career switchers, this helps you decide whether or not this company, or perhaps industry, is indeed what you want to pursue full-time. The summer internship is safest time to try this out, as there is always the opportunity to re-recruit once you’re back in school to complete your second and final year.
Personally, I’ve had such an amazing time this summer that I actually haven’t left yet! Like many entertainment media and tech companies, Spotify alas does not extend full-time return offers post summer, but I’ve been lucky and honored enough that my team has asked me to stay on part-time during the fall.
The sun is shining. The air is hot. The open area in front of Stern that is Gould Plaza is once again a concrete quad where hundreds of students cross paths daily, colliding at will—conversations shared, smiles exchanged, waves projected from afar.
Through the familiar swoosh-swoosh of the revolving doors is a hive buzzing with activity. Students run to and from class, meetings, and meet-ups. The first-years are rushing to their core classes and club kick-offs, as they feel the pressure to dive in and take in as much as the school has to offer (which can certainly feel like too much at times!). The second-years happily reconnect after three months of time apart, before breaking away themselves, away to their elective classes, away to lead the club meetings for the first-years, away to find full-time jobs.
As a second-year, things are a bit different, of course. I miss the ex-MBA2s who I looked up to as mentors. I miss taking classes with my block. I miss my dual-degree classmates who are off fulfilling requirements at their other NYU schools this semester.
Yet I love having another 400 people to meet and talk to. I love being able to offer my time and experiences to them. Even within my year, while our disparate schedules sometimes mean that my usual friends and I see each other less, I love that it is allowing me to continue to meet people who I had not yet had the chance to meet before.
Of course, it is a lovely feeling to be able to return to school with rich relationships already in place. Just this summer, I had the chance to meet and become closer with dozens of Sternies. If you’ve read my earlier post about the Cannes Film Festival class, you would know that I spent a week running around the French Riviera with 25 of my classmates, only five of whom I would say I knew well before the trip. Then right before school started, along with 20 Sternies (and seven Stern Partners), I attended the wedding of one of my best friends at Stern (despite having met him only a year ago!). In this case, almost all of us knew each other well already because we recruited with each other and/or are in the same block, but I still came away from that weekend feeling that I had taken part in something special with my classmates, something that will connect us for life.
Unofficial photo of the wedding of our dear friend Pranav and his amazing wife Jignya, whose gregariousness we joke makes her a better Sternie than he is (it’s true).
Indeed, every time I reflect on my network I’m amazed at how much it has grown, how quickly it continues to grow, and how strong and healthy it is. I imagine that if one’s network were a wholly tangible thing, watching it grow would be like watching an oak tree grow from a sapling to maturity in two years.
And the growth continues. So far, I’ve had the chance to interact with the MBA1s at LAUNCH (orientation), where I met about a fifth of the class at the Club Expo and another nine on their LAUNCH Day of Service.
MBA1s (and myself) volunteering at St. Peter’s Pantry for the NYC Food Bank, just one of the many options available to the first-years as part of the service portion of LAUNCH.
Also, this past Saturday I had the chance to chat with even more first-years at our MBA1/MBA2 mixer. While I was there, another MBA2 and I were especially delighted to run into the new MBA1 roommate of one of our dear friends, who was not present at the time. We promptly sent said friend the following message:
To show our friend that her new MBA1 roommate (center) was being cooler than she.
And so we’re back! A new year. New connections. New possibilities.
Over the course of last semester, I was fortunate enough to meet a handful of prospective students and take them out to lunch at a couple of our many neighborhood haunts. In case you didn’t know, having lunch is just one of the easy ways you can interact with current students on your visit. While you can also go on a tour, attend a class, and sign-up for coffee chats, the lunches are excellent due to their casual environments and small group sizes, which in my experience have always led to enjoyable conversation among everyone.
On my visit as a prospective student, I managed to participate in the tour, class, and coffee chat all in one afternoon (I probably could have squeezed in the lunch too but admittedly didn’t know its value at the time). I found the experience as a whole incredibly informative and highly useful when writing my admissions essays, but in general, for any school, I also think that being in a given environment can offer some powerful insights—say, an inexplicable sense of belonging or, more simply, a personal feeling of fit—which can be helpful in guiding your choices later down the road (or before you put in the time and effort to apply!).
ATTENDING A CLASS
I remember my visit relatively clearly. Shortly after arriving at the admissions office, a few other prospective students and I were escorted to a class by an MBA1. There are a number of classes that you can choose from based on your interests and schedule (and availability—don’t forget to sign up ahead of time online!). Having never taken an economics class before and wishing to sample the core curriculum, I chose to attend a Firms & Markets class taught by the amiable and dedicated Professor Larry White. For those with more exposure to the traditional topics (or not!), I would certainly recommend trying to get into a class that really piques your interest, as Stern’s breadth of courses is truly remarkable. (Note that the schedule of available classes to visit will be available in the Fall!)
PARTICIPATING IN A COFFEE CHAT
After the class visit, a few MBA2 Graduate Ambassadors escorted us downstairs to the Sosnoff Lounge to grab cups of coffee and then out to the lobby where we could converse among the usual goings-on of MBA life. This was perhaps my favorite part of my visit, as I loved being around the movement and sounds of students gathering together to work or chat, and I easily pictured myself in their place. Meanwhile, the other prospectives and I had the opportunity to hear these MBA2s share their backstories and to ask them any questions we wanted. In particular, I remember connecting with one student who had a nontraditional background like myself, and I found my sense of belonging vindicated as he continued to share with me the opportunities Stern had allowed someone with his background to find and take.
TAKING A TOUR
My visit concluded with a tour of the building. This part continued to be informative, as two of the Graduate Ambassadors not only took us through the various study areas scattered throughout the building but also continued to answer our questions and chat with us about student life and the valuable learning experiences they were having. For example, one spoke highly of her Stern Signature Project, an experiential course where she was able to work closely with her professor and a small group of classmates to tackle a real-world issue. The other highlighted his fall internship with NBC, which was made possible not only because he was attending school in New York but because a fellow Sternie who had interviewed for the position had no qualms about sharing the job lead with him as well.
In sum, if it’s possible for you to visit the school ahead of applying, I definitely recommend you do. Interacting with current students is the best way to get a sense of the community you’re trying to enter, and you never know who you’re going to meet along the way—the Graduate Ambassador I connected with gave me a lot of inspiration for my essays that I might not have had otherwise, Professor White became my genuinely affable Firms & Markets professor when I arrived in the Fall, and the then-MBA1 who escorted me to that class ended up being an MBA2 who would give me incredible advice during the throes of the investment banking recruitment process.
So come down to 44 West 4th Street in the Fall, and see if Stern might be a great fit for you!
Our backyard—Washington Square Park, taken April 2016. (Photo credit: Amit Chaube)
I remember where I was two years ago—out in Los Angeles, still working, rather cheerless but resolved to make the changes in my life that I felt I needed to make. By this point two years ago, I was slowly withdrawing from the industry that I had worked so hard and had been so fortunate to break into, and I registered on the official GMAT website on June 16, 2014.
It was not an easy decision for me to start quitting the things I was doing, and I spent the following year assuring myself that I was not giving up or selling out but pursuing things that were better suited for me. I was not in the group of people who needed an MBA to continue forward in their job path; rather, I needed an MBA because I needed change (a sentiment that, I was relieved to discover later, was not uncommon among my peers).
July 2014—after spending a couple weeks on the East Coast having heart-to-hearts with family and friends, I returned to L.A. and got to work. With my preference for structure, I signed up for GMAT prep classes, which I attended every Saturday morning that summer. I also attended MBA fairs and school events, where I was able to meet admissions representatives and alumni and get a sense of the schools prior to making the larger commitments of visiting and applying. Having started the application process in the summer, I did miss out on some diversity and field-specific pre-MBA opportunities, but I decided that I would not wait another year to apply, and I used my shortened timeframe as motivation for me to focus on achieving something that I knew was going to alter the course of my future.
I completed my GMAT course at the end of September. Meanwhile, I finalized my list of target schools and visited them, taking advantage of diversity events if I could (for example, Stern hosts a terrific “Opening Doors for Women” breakfast every Fall). Under this timeline that I had decided for myself at the start of the process, I took my GMAT as soon as I thought I would be ready (in my case, late October) so that I would have time to focus on my application essays and retake the exam if needed. I applied to my list of schools in January, and after my interviews, I constantly had to remind myself that it was out of my hands until I got my first acceptance—I remember the wave of relief that washed over me when I received it, this letter that was my ticket to a new life.
July 2015—I had said my goodbyes to everyone I knew in L.A. and was driving across the country with my father. With the move back to New York a reality, I remember feeling for the first time in a while that my future was as open as the road ahead of me.
July 2016—After a whirlwind year, I’m working at my internship and amused at the fact that my classmates were correct—I indeed have transferable skills, despite my constant half-joking that I would not given my creative past. So far, I’m quite pleased with my internship at a media consulting agency, and along with that pleasure is my growing disbelief that I was lucky enough to land at a firm that really does seem to fit who I am and what I want to accomplish this summer. Having spent the year wondering about how my non-traditional background would be perceived by employers (as I did when applying to b-schools), I never expected to find a firm that would simultaneously value my creative background and allow me to grow in the professional direction that I wanted. Yet it happened because a Stern alum at the firm thankfully saw potential in me, much like how Stern itself saw potential in me a year before.
I’m prone to reflection, so I often think about all of this and feel that it’s really quite bizarre how far I’ve come and how different my life is from then to now. I’ve moved cities, met hundreds of new people, forged dozens of true friendships, and I no longer feel the ennui that I used to feel. I’m so grateful for Stern, so grateful for my classmates, so grateful for the alums who got me my internship interviews—so grateful that they’ve all changed my life for the better.
On June 16, 2014, this was all just a dream, an imagination to serve as motivation for seeking change. I never thought that two years later, in the process of earning my M.B.A., in this energetic city and at this wonderful school, I would actually live a life better than what I had hoped for.
With two of my best friends at Stern, taking joy in a photo a classmate sent us of his infant son (pictured here at 2-months-old).
