Tag: NYU Stern

Demystifying Tech in the Tech MBA

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Shriram HS is a current Tech MBA student specializing in strategy, marketing, and product management. He moved to New York City from Bengaluru, India. At Stern, he is the VP of Tech MBA at the Stern Technology Association. Prior to Stern, he worked at Cisco, leading product development for 5G and cloud networks. He holds a bachelor’s in electrical engineering and a master’s in computer engineering.

“Know what’s weird? Day by day, nothing seems to change. But pretty soon, everything’s different.“

-Bill Watterson, through the fabled comic strip Calvin and Hobbes.

That quote elegantly encapsulates the predominant theme of present-day reality, especially in business and technology: Disruption. It conveys a rather simple but sweeping idea that swift disruption is the new norm. What’s in vogue today is unlikely to be so in a few months. And it does not spare anything: technology, business models, or even entire firms. So how do you thrive in this new age?

Until a few years ago, the traditional MBA would set you up nicely for any target industry. But today, when you specifically want to pursue tech/tech-adjacent leadership roles:

  1. It has at most a peripheral focus on tech, which is now a primary driver of this disruption 
  2. It has a high time cost of two years

When I began exploring business schools, I had strict considerations:

  • Its program had to build on or complement my tech background
  • It mustn’t be longer than a year
  • It had to be welcoming of international students

Any tradeoff here would severely affect its value to me. As you’d expect, only a micro list of options fulfilled all these criteria. Yet, I insisted on assessing the details under the hood of each option, and that showed why the Stern Tech MBA experience stands out in this new age.

I’ll start with oft-asked sets of questions I’ve come across:

What exactly is the Tech MBA? Is it an executive program? Is it a joint degree? Is it a specialization?

It is none of those. I’d dub it an accelerated MBA focusing on technology.

Is it for someone with a tech background? Is it only for someone who wants to move to the tech industry?

It could be for anyone, with no binding restrictions on either prior background or outcome. In fact, its chief tenet is flexibility, which I’ll expand on in further detail below. I found ample preparatory content within the course for folks who didn’t work with tech before. As for outcomes, its structure allows you to specialize in any of Stern’s 27 specializations. The latest program reports would help you note this diversity, both in roles as well as industries. Given that any product or service in any industry could have a substantial digital component, the Tech MBA’s literally designed with that flexibility. Here’s precisely how.

My good friend and classmate John Bennion shared his specifics to facilitate this collation to give you a clear view of this program’s flexibility. For quick context, he worked at the US Air Force, leading product management before coming to Stern.

Core Classes

The business core comprises all foundational MBA classes at 2x the pace. Among that, a subset (strategy, entrepreneurship) is specifically tech-focused. On the other hand, the tech core comprises grad-level classes on data, modern tech stacks, and DevOps. Through these, you’d have everything you need to manage tech operations, understand systems architecture, or even build your own application. While I waived those classes in which I had proficiency, John added more electives in this space, taking advantage of both Courant (NYU’s Institute for Mathematical Science) and Steinhardt (NYU’s School of Culture, Education, and Human Development).

Electives (Selected Sample)

One highlight of tech management coursework I must list here is innovation strategy taught by Prof. Melissa Schilling. Many business school classes embody some combination of traditional/layered concepts, case studies, and professional practice. However, this class is a fine example of how primary research and years of teaching have resulted in a distinctively compelling study. Her single coherent strategic framework for innovation management seamlessly decoded any and every example brought up in class.

Experiential Learning

A fun aspect here is the near-weekly sessions hosted by alumni and visiting business leaders as a built-in part of this course. What makes it fun is their remarkably candid spirit while sharing their incredible experiences. For our cohort, these ranged from cutting-edge tech, such as pre-release 5G solutions from Verizon, to high-impact initiatives involving predictive AI at Lyft.

Another memorable class I took this fall was the Consulting Lab, engaging with J&J’s self-care division for branding and innovation. Starting out, I had no expertise in the function or the industry. But over the semester, the 10x learning in this class prodded me to advanced levels. On its concluding day, our client’s leaders commended my team, asking us to present our recommendations further to J&J’s senior global leadership. In no small part, it is a reflection of Prof. Fran Gormley, whose mere preparation for every meeting astonished me. As a result of this experience, not only did I add new skills, such as go-to-market strategy, to my repertoire, but I also feel inspirited to take on new challenges. Such felicitous experiences help you develop a refined perspective that immensely boosts your range, which is key to this new age. And no other place is primed for better exposure to this ecosystem, embracing Silicon Alley, Wall Street, and a multitude of marvels in this city that never sleeps.

 

 

 

 

Build More Than Your Resume: Build Connections through Club Involvement!

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Christy Kim is a MBA candidate at NYU Stern’s Andre Koo Tech MBA program, specializing in Business Analytics and Product Management. Prior to Stern, she worked at Deloitte Consulting, driving large-scale data and analytics transformations for clients across various industries. She additionally brings a background in product marketing, alliances, and tech sales and graduated from Duke University. At Stern, she serves as the VP Tech MBA – Business Analytics Club (BAC), VP Conferences & Flagship Events – Gaming & Esports Management Society (GEMS), AVP Events of Asian Business Society (ABS), and member – Stern Technology Association (STA).

You often hear that the greatest ROI of an MBA is the connections. There is no doubt that our fellow Tech MBA classmates are connections for life, but how do we assimilate into and build relationships with the greater Stern MBA community – especially when 2-year MBAs return in the fall? 

The short answer? Get involved in student clubs!

The long answer? Join a club, participate in opportunities to lead your peers, and grow your network while dialing into a business topic you’re passionate about.

Here is a quick ‘Stern MBA Clubs for Dummies’ on how to maximize your club experiences as a Tech MBA student:

PICK A CLUB. ANY CLUB.

As early as orientation, you will have the opportunity (i.e. virtual Club Expo) to explore the 40+ clubs at Stern and express initial interest for follow up/kickoff in the fall:

  1. Professional clubs (e.g. Stern Technology Association, Business Analytics Club) help you navigate industries and prepare for recruiting 
  2. Affinity, sports, & special interest clubs (e.g. Adventures Club, Asian Business Society) give you an opportunity to meet people with similar interests or explore new areas of interests
  3. Student Government (SGov) offers leadership opportunities to plan and execute school-wide events; for Tech MBAs, we have a dedicated role (SGov Tech MBA President – shoutout to Reggie Greathouse, our leader!) to serve as the liaison between 2-year MBA and Tech MBA students

With so many amazing club options, it was difficult to not join all! Maximizing involvement over quantity, I decided to join the following 4 clubs (if you have any questions regarding the clubs below, feel free to reach out):

  1. Business Analytics Club (BAC)
  2. Gaming & Esports Management Society (GEMS)
  3. Asian Business Society (ABS)
  4. Stern Technology Association (STA)

GET INVOLVED: BECOME A MEMBER, ALLY, OR EVEN A LEADER.

In the beginning of the fall semester, clubs will conduct kickoffs where students can learn about the club as well as the membership options (e.g. member, ally) and leadership opportunities across the clubs’ verticals (e.g. Marketing, Finance, Events, Academic). For each vertical, Tech MBAs can run for 2 types of leadership positions:

  1. VP Position: Intended for 2nd year MBAs – including us, the Focused MBAs! A number of clubs have reserved leadership roles just for Tech MBA students (e.g. I am currently VP Tech MBA for Business Analytics Club).
  2. AVP Position: Intended to prepare 1st-year MBA students for leadership roles as a VP or President; it is recommended that Tech MBAs serve in this role with another 1st-year MBA student to ensure club continuity and transition into a VP role for the subsequent year.

I found that being a board member has been one of the most rewarding experiences in my MBA journey. It provides the opportunity to intimately collaborate with the 2-year and part-time MBA students as well as the alumni network. Whether it’s spontaneously grabbing dinner together after a board meeting or a scheduled karaoke night, it is an excellent way to develop deeper relationships with those outside of our Tech MBA cohort! 

From brunches to dinners to board game night to comic cons… infinite fun with Stern BAC, ABS, and GEMS board members.

 

GONE CLUBBING: ATTEND (OR RUN) THE CLUB EVENTS!

In the fall and spring, club events will be in full swing. All events are made available on NYU Stern CampusGroups, which serves as a fantastic platform to learn about the different types of events (e.g. social, academic, alumni) that a club will be hosting or has previously hosted. As a board member, you also get the opportunity to drive the club events! Over this past fall semester, I’ve had a chance to:

  • Co-lead the ‘Paramount Games Case Competition’ with fellow Tech MBA classmate, Nick Imbriglia, for Gaming & Esports Management Society (GEMS)
  • Plan the ‘Board Dinner & Korean Pocha Night’ as well as ‘End of Semester Rooftop Happy Hour’ for Asian Business Society (ABS)
  • Participate as a panelist for ‘Analytics 101’ session (led by fellow Tech MBA classmate, Cody Ipapo) and attend the ‘H&M Office Trek’ for Business Analytics Club (BAC)
Case competitions, knowledge management sessions, company treks, and even NYC Koreatown outings… club events cover all!

CHANCE OF A LIFETIME

In our accelerated 1-year Tech MBA program, the greater ROI potential comes at the expense of time. As I reflect on all the incredible student-driven events from this past fall semester, there is only one thing that I wish I could have done better: having further optimized my time to participate in everything I wanted to do! I am grateful for Stern’s seamless process for Tech MBAs to integrate into the 2-year and part-time MBA community through clubs and organizations. The onus is up to us to take full advantage of the available opportunities in the provided time frame.

The Tech MBA vs. the Two-Year MBA

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Zoish Pithawala is a current Tech MBA student, specializing in Tech Product Management. Prior to Stern, Zoish worked as a Solutions Architect focused on startups interested in using cloud technologies. Post-MBA, she plans to move into a technical product management role specifically focused on data analytics. 

 

 

 

 

When you say MBA, most people typically think of a traditional two year program, however there is a rising popularity in more specialized, accelerated programs like the Tech MBA. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to what program makes more sense for you, but there are some key differences to keep in mind as you evaluate these options. 

Curriculum 

NYU Stern’s Andre Koo Tech MBA program is a one year (May – May), 52 credit program. The Two Year Full-time MBA program runs over the span of two years (September – May) and students earn 60 credits to graduate. Both programs have the same selection of courses for electives, but with the Two Year MBA, you have the opportunity to take more elective classes and experiential courses since you have more credits to earn and more time. The core curriculum in the Tech MBA includes classes like Foundations of Networks and Mobile Systems and DevOps and Software Engineering, which are not typically offered in the Full Time MBA program. Both programs give students the opportunity to select up to 3 specializations from a list of over 25 options. The Tech MBA curriculum is catered towards specializations like Entrepreneurship and Innovation or Technical Product Management, however students can specialize in any of the available options.

For me personally, I felt like the curriculum in the Tech MBA fit my needs perfectly. There’s a great balance between the technical classes with the business core classes to give a good overview of everything. There are also more than enough elective credits where I felt like I could branch out and try electives that were really interesting to me. Some of the classes I found to be really interesting as part of the curriculum were Leadership, Tech Solutions, and Tech Product Management.

Class Profile

NYU Stern has a diverse student population throughout all their programs, but there are some differences in the class profile between the Tech MBA and Two Year MBA. The biggest difference is the size of the class. The Tech MBA has a smaller cohort of around 50 students, whereas the Two Year Full-time MBA has a class size of around 330 students. Amongst these students, the Tech MBA tends to have a higher average for years of work experience, with a majority of students coming from a STEM background. In contrast, the majority of students in the Two Year MBA have a background in business and prior work experience in various industries.

I love having a smaller cohort because it gives me the opportunity to really connect with everyone in the program and get to know each other really well. I find it’s also really valuable to have classmates with similar interests and backgrounds so we can work on projects together and discuss recruiting strategies for similar roles.

Internships 

The Two Year MBA gives students the opportunity for a summer internship in between their first and second year. This can be very beneficial for students pivoting to a new industry or students looking to gain work experience. Many prospective students choose to do an MBA program to gain new skills, and summer internships provide them with the opportunity to apply what they have learned. For most students, a full-time job offer is the ultimate goal of the MBA program and a good summer internship can often lead to a return offer with the company. Since the Tech MBA is an accelerated program, there is no time for a summer internship, but the valuable experiential course offerings throughout the year can help students build work experience through company project partnerships.

Personally, I enjoyed the Tech Solutions experiential course that is part of the Tech MBA curriculum. This gave me an opportunity to work with a large tech company on a semester-long project. This project helped me develop skills that would be incredibly useful for my future career and acted as an internship for my resume. 

Return on Investment 

MBA programs can be quite expensive, so everyone wants to maximize their investment. When looking at the numbers, the Tech MBA program has a lower cost of tuition compared to the Two Year MBA . Another large part of the equation is the amount of time you spend in the MBA program in lieu of working and earning a salary. While you will have a summer internship to make up some of the cost, you will be out of the workforce for two years with the Two Year MBA, whereas you are only out of the workforce for one year with the Tech MBA. 

With the tech industry changing so rapidly, it was really important to me to only be out of the workforce for one year. I wanted to be able to jump back into the workforce without feeling like I missed out. This way I would be getting the value of an MBA program without having to pause my career for too long.

There are a variety of different factors that play into the decision to apply to a specific MBA program and, for me, these were some of the most important factors when deciding on the Tech MBA. The ROI of a one year accelerated program aligned perfectly with my career goals and I valued having a smaller cohort with a background that aligned with the Tech industry. In the end, both the Tech MBA and the Two Year MBA are amazing programs, so it really comes down to what makes the most sense for you!

Joining the Tech MBA as an International Student

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Alina Vrsaljko is a current Tech MBA student at Stern. Within Stern, she is part of the Stern Women in Business Club‘s board. Before starting her MBA, Alina gained professional experience in Digital Strategy Consulting at McKinsey in Europe and in multiple roles at Hewlett Packard Enterprise in Germany and Singapore. She holds a BSc in Business Informatics and a MSc in Management. 

 

In May 2022, the day finally arrived. I loaded my suitcases onto the luggage belt in Frankfurt, Germany and got on the plane to start a new chapter of my life – the Tech MBA at NYU Stern in my favourite place, New York City. 6179 kilometres away from my hometown in Germany. 

Moving to New York for the Tech MBA can come with a few unique challenges especially for international students. But once those are overcome, it gives you the opportunity to have an amazing experience that you wouldn’t get at home! To make the transition a bit easier, I’ll give some insights on my personal experience during the last 7 months.   

Finding a NYC family to celebrate holidays with is amazing

After you have found a place to live in New York, you obviously should make sure that you feel at home in the city. An especially lonely time for international students can be the holiday season, especially if you usually spend this time with your family at home. 

Fortunately, your NYU community will have you covered. My most favourite experience during the last few weeks especially leading up to our Thanksgiving break was celebrating “Friendsgiving” with the Tech MBA class (see picture below). Even though your family might not be there for the holidays, you’ll be able to celebrate with your classmates and especially with your international classmates – more than half of the Tech MBA students are from abroad so you will have friends who are in the same boat as you and will be able to support you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Early visa application is everything

Especially international students should ensure to start preparing early on as there are a few things to look out for. One of the major processes you’ll have to go through is the visa application process, which varies based on your home country. One amazing resource NYU provides is NYU’s Office of Global Services (OGS). Even before you’ve officially started your MBA, OGS is by your side and will provide you with step-by-step guidance for the visa application, and can even take 1:1 meetings for specific questions. The process can take up to several months, so it is highly recommended to start applying for your visa as early as possible after being admitted. Further things to read up on are US health insurance and work authorization – here again the OGS provides a lot of material to read up on and assists with personal advice. 

Finding a home in the city from abroad might be challenging

Finding an apartment while living in New York can already be challenging – from abroad, with a potential time difference, it might be even harder. Thus, I can recommend two different but very effective strategies on how to pursue the apartment hunt for internationals.

1) Rent a sublet until the end of May to ensure you’re covered but have enough time to look at apartments in person. A lot of international students choose this way to find an apartment to make sure their new apartment is exactly as it’s advertised and to allow a stress-free move from their home country to the US. Since the full MBA experience anyways requires you to rent a place for 13 months (beginning of May Year 1 to end of May year 2), this can be a great way to rent an apartment with a regular NYC contract that runs for 12 months.

2) You can rent an apartment from abroad, but it’s helpful to have a friend go check out the apartment first. It’s important to do your due diligence and rely on the current MBA students to guide you through the process! Stern will send out a spreadsheet that can help you find a roommate in the program, and you can even rent apartments from graduating students.

Perks of having a large international community: International potlucks!

And last but not least – while it can be a bit more challenging to come to NYU as an international student, there are also amazing perks that come with it. The most important aspect for me is that you get to meet classmates from all over the world with different backgrounds. In our case, our full class benefited from all our differences, and we enjoy discussing different cultural backgrounds and learning from each other. One great way to learn about one another obviously is food! We regularly have international potlucks within our class, where everyone brings a dish from their home country and we have a delicious meal together. In the picture below you can see a few of the national dishes from our current Tech MBA class – Brazilian cheese bread, German cheese pasta, French apple pie, Austrian pancakes, Ukrainian pancakes & fish, Brazilian chocolate cake and of course Indian Samosas!

 

 

Benefits of a Tech MBA in NYC

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Aafiya Jamal is currently an MBA Candidate in the Tech MBA Program at the NYU Stern School of Business. She recently moved to New York City from Dallas, Texas. Prior to Stern, Aafiya worked in technology consulting and supported clients in the financial services space, from traditional, global banking institutions to FinTech companies. Outside of the classroom, Aafiya serves as one of the Cohort Leaders for the Tech MBA and is involved in the Stern Technology Association and Stern Women in Business. 

As you explore your business school options, you may find yourself wondering whether New York City is the right place for you – especially if you’re very interested in pursuing a career in technology and torn between Stern and options on the West Coast. Trust me, I’ve been in your exact shoes and can tell you what drew me to NYC:

Breadth of Professional Opportunities

  • New York City offers a broader range of professional opportunities, which holds especially true for tech. Companies in any industry or domain, from financial services to fashion, require technically fluent individuals; what differentiates New York City over the West Coast is the pure breath and scale of these opportunities. Given that a majority of firms are either based in or have a major presence in New York City, this lends itself to even more opportunities at your disposal – far more than the West Coast can offer. For example, I had the opportunity this semester to engage in a client project as part of the Tech Solutions course, where I partnered with Roku to build a solution to better leverage product analytics data to support the company’s ad-tech strategy. Roku sits at the intersection of media and entertainment and technology, while the project gave me exposure to the advertising and product management domains – an opportunity I would not have had without Stern. 
Stern not only offered us the opportunity to work alongside Roku this semester, but also spend time with our project sponsor, in-person, in the New York City office!

Overlap of Existing Network

  • There is no doubt that Stern’s brand is very strong; however, there is a certain degree of comfort associated with reaching out to a familiar professional connection rather than a pure cold call (which can feel transactional in nature). Prior to Stern, I worked in consulting, and New York City is where my prior employer is based. As a result, I have a number of professional mentors and connections within the city, which enables me to keep up with trends in the workforce and broader market. These existing relationships, coupled with my Stern MBA, open doors to additional professional connections and employment opportunities in technology. It is likely that you, too, have personal and professional connections in the city, and I highly recommend that you capitalize on this.

Culture of New York City

  • Finally, New York City is unlike any other place in the world. As cliché as this sounds, I have never been around such ambitious, gifted, and hard-working people – both at Stern, as well as in the broader city. Engaging in this kind of environment pushes me to hustle and expand outside of my comfort zone in a way that no other business school could have. New York is arguably the most exciting place to live, and I’ve tried to make the most of my time here, from exploring incredible and diverse cuisine, to picnicking in Central Park, to attending sports games to celebrating the holiday season – all with my cohort. While one year is certainly a decent amount of time to experience the city, I hope that your chapter here extends beyond the length of the program. 

    Despite the busy schedule of the summer semester, we always made time to picnic throughout various parks in New York City! Central Park is cliche, but certainly a personal favorite!
Celebrating Friendsgiving with the cohort was definitely one of the highlights of my holiday season.

Networking with Alums & Current Students

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Steven is a current Tech MBA student, specializing in Financial Instruments & Markets and Management of Technology & Operations. He comes from a background in tech consulting at Deloitte where he was implementing financial software to complete full cycle digital transformations. He is involved on campus with many clubs including OutClass and Management Consulting Association.

At my last job, my coach told me when we first met, “Networking is part of work,” and this insight has always stuck with me. Networking is so important in all of our interactions because it open doors and leads to so many opportunities. I started my networking with Stern Alumni and current students about a year before I came to NYU. I wanted to get a feel of what the experience was going to be like, both from an education and social perspective, and to see where their MBA took them. These interactions led to so many lasting friendships and great professional relationships. 

At the end of the day, people like to help other people when you reach out. I would say don’t be afraid to ask others for a quick call or coffee chat, because you don’t know where this will lead. In part of my networking, pre-NYU, I learned about so many great opportunities that Stern had to offer such as specialized courses, clubs and recruiting. Now that I am at Stern, I have been able to broaden my network with so many clever aspirational classmates that have come from a wealth of industries. Having these friends with so much experience across different business backgrounds feels like I am being set up for success to easily and effectively execute professional dealings in the future as my career grows.

Through networking with current students and alumni, I realized that so many of us come to NYU without a clear understanding of what we want to do post MBA and how so many of us fluctuate with what will do professionally throughout our time at Stern. I was able to get insights into so many different industries and hear what others did through these connections. When I decided that I wanted to pivot careers from all of these chats, I was able to leverage my relationships with current classmates that came from the industry to help set me up with what I needed to do to be successful in this transition and actually get me ramped up for the career change. I was then able to lean on alumni to help connect me with leaders in the industry that would support me and be willing to take me under their wing. Ultimately, it has led for an easy transition into a new role. 

Overall, networking is important! You never know who can help you or who you can help one day. Be confident in reaching out to others because this will lead to so many lifelong friendships and professional relationships that will always be part of your network.

Moore’s Law & the Tech MBA

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Nicholas Imbriglia is a Tech MBA candidate specializing in Tech Product Management and Sustainable Business & Innovation. Prior to Stern, Nicholas worked as an engineer and engineering manager at companies such as Siemens, athenahealth, and Intel. He is passionate about technology’s ability to improve lives and, upon graduation, plans to return to the tech workforce to help deliver novel solutions with a positive impact for society.

Moore’s Law (admittedly, more of an observation than a law of nature…) states that the number of transistors that can be fit onto a microprocessor doubles about every two years. Every 18 months, if we’re being technical. And we ARE being technical. This is the Tech MBA, after all! But nitpicking aside, Mr. Gordon Moore’s famous doctrine is meant to illustrate just how fast technology can progress in a short period of time.

I didn’t want to play catch up

It was this thought that was going through my head as I considered my options for business school. After over 10 years of working in technical roles, ranging from semiconductor development to healthcare SAAS products, the prospect of going back to school for two years seemed excessive… extravagant, even. Especially for someone old enough to remember using floppy disks and playing with tamagotchis (look them up). And with the way things move in tech, I wondered if I wouldn’t be falling behind while getting my MBA. Could I afford to be out of the tech scene, not to mention without a salary, for such a length of time? Would I be playing catch up when I returned? As someone who planned on going straight back to the tech industry after business school, there were parts of me that wondered if it was worth it, both from a financial and a developmental point of view. 

Beyond the standard

That’s where the Stern Tech MBA really shone through for me. I’ll admit, when I first started researching NYU Stern, I didn’t even know they had a focused, one year MBA program. When I found information about it on the Stern website, I recall thinking “huh, that’s interesting,” and quickly brushing it aside. At first blush, it seemed too different. It deviated too much from what I considered the “standard business school” experience. But as I went through the application process (at Stern and elsewhere) and the reality of two years out of the workforce hit me, I realized I didn’t want the standard. In fact, I wanted a program catered more towards the tech industry, with an immersive curriculum, a quicker turnaround, and a superior ROI. And that’s exactly what Stern’s Tech MBA offered. When the moment of truth came on my Stern application, I selected the one year program and never looked back.

Staying in the game

And, in many ways, it’s not just the shorter program length that ensures you are “back in the industry” quicker. If anything, the Tech MBA curriculum ensures you are at the cutting edge of it. Regular visits to tech offices (Google, Uber, and Pfizer to name a few) and guest speakers from a range of tech fields (fintech, healthcare, smart cities, Web3, etc.) guarantee you have your finger firmly on the pulse of the tech scene in New York. NYU also has a history of offering classes that focus on the newest trends in technology and business. Many of my classmates are taking electives on blockchain and extended reality. I myself am enrolled in a renewable energy markets course.

So, with all that in mind, I was able to rest easy with my decision to enroll in the Stern Tech MBA. The focused experience has been an enlightening one so far and our cohort has been having a truly wonderful time. The irony of it all may be that, come graduation in May, we won’t want it to end. But when we wrap up our one year and enter back out into the wider working world, we will do so armed with new tools and insights, ready to supercharge our careers after a fraction of the time of a traditional business school offering. After all, Moore’s Law waits for no one.

Community within the Tech MBA

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Alina is a current Tech MBA student at Stern. Within Stern, she is part of the Stern Women in Business Club‘s board. Before starting her MBA, Alina gained professional experience in Digital Strategy Consulting at McKinsey in Europe and in multiple roles at Hewlett Packard Enterprise in Germany and Singapore. She holds a BSc in Business Informatics and a MSc in Management. 

 

How quickly can you bond with 54 other Tech MBAs? Well, apparently it only takes days after meeting them. The first time I got in touch with my classmates was even before the official start of the program. One bold classmate decided to invite all of us over to her building for a party which turned out to be one of the first nights we bonded as a class (see picture below).

Now, the community within our Tech MBA can be described as especially close. Our class profile is made up of 55 individuals with different backgrounds, from over 15 different countries, with between 1-15 years of work experience, different personality types from very introverted to especially extroverted, and with an age difference of more than 12 years between our youngest and oldest class members. Still, we have similar values – we truly embrace Stern’s emphasis on community which is one of the essential reasons why our class climate is especially welcoming and friendly. 

To me, the community within the MBA class was an important factor in deciding on a grad school. I came to New York as an international student from Germany with only a very small network in the city. Especially when leaving family and friends behind on a different continent, the strong bond within a class was particularly critical for me. The Tech MBA at NYU Stern was the perfect choice as the MBA community was there for me from Day One. A few highlights have been finding roommates on our class Slack channel, apartment search hacks and personally curated restaurant / bar lists shared with the class from our NYC-based classmates (New Yorker’s equivalent to gold), and finally, that we got to know each other through our Slack channel even before the start of the program. 

As we are a small cohort of 55 students, it is possible to get to know your classmates quickly. Additionally, as classes start in the summer semester, it is incredibly effortless to connect within the Stern buildings as it’s only Focused MBAs on campus. During the summer months, we had an intense syllabus with 19.5 credits – but this also allowed us to get to know each other through numerous group projects and more intimate MBA events. Of course, we also got to explore New York City after class and on the weekends.

Besides classes, the community within the Tech MBA offers tremendous support to help prepare  for recruiting. As all of us already have strong backgrounds in different industries and roles, we regularly take the time to share our experiences within our classes, and there are even several interview practice groups where classmates help each other with interview prep. 

The summer months created a strong bond within the Tech MBA. Besides connecting in class and during group projects, our incredible social committee organizes regular class events as well as a class trip to the Finger Lakes during the summer months. 

In the fall, club activities pick up again which will allow us to connect with 2-year MBA students. We get to choose a range of electives and have more space in our syllabus, so this time can be used to connect within the wider Stern network. 

For the spring semester, we already have the next class trip planned – this time we will explore the home country of one of our classmates, Colombia!

All those small but valuable things make up the strong community within the Tech MBA as part of the bigger, incredible NYU Stern network. This community made the first months of the program especially fun and helped me to create a home in the city.

Tips for Prospective Tech MBA Candidates

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Carina is a full-time MBA candidate in NYU Stern’s Andre Koo Tech MBA program, specializing in Product Management and Strategy. Prior to Stern, Carina lived in Boca Raton, FL and has 6 years of experience in account management at a hospitality tech company. Upon graduation, she wants to utilize her passion for great UX and years of customer-facing experience within the technology space to pursue a product management role. 

Applying to business school can be daunting. There’s a lot to do between preparing for the GMAT/GRE, keeping track of the various application components, and juggling everyday life! You spend a lot of time in self-reflection: What are your goals? What have you accomplished professionally? What direction do you want your career to take? To help you kick off this journey, here are my top 10 tips for prospective candidates when applying to business school:  

 

  1.     Do Your Research

An MBA is an investment in your future self, it’s important that you take the time to do research about the program you are applying for to ensure that it’s the right fit for you. What electives interest you? What clubs would you be interested in joining? Does the program curriculum align with helping you achieve your post-MBA goals? 

Take your time to walk through the Stern Tech MBA website to read about the specific components of the program, watch videos and check out resources like this blog to read about student experiences.

When doing my own research, the Tech MBA program stood out to me because it provided exactly what I was looking for: a one-year program in a city, a strong tech-focused curriculum, and resources that would help me develop the skills to transition into product management. For me, the reading about the tech-focused curriculum with classes like Tech Product Management and Dealing with Data combined with several experiential learning opportunities helped solidify that the Tech MBA made the most sense for me.

  1.     Attend Admissions events

The Admissions team hosts a variety of events throughout the application season. One of my favorite events I attended was the mock application session. It helped me tremendously as I worked through the application and set a clear expectation as to what the AdCom was looking for! Another favorite was an event organized by the Stern Women In Business club – hearing the passion and excitement from the students about their time at Stern really helped solidify my decision to apply. Keep an eye out for Stern club-hosted events that align with your interests to get a feel for the student body at Stern.

Coffee Chats are another student-hosted event that provides you with the opportunity to hear about their experience and ask questions!

  1.     Reflect on Your Why

Research and attending events helps you craft your “why” behind why you’re applying to NYU. But it’s also important to know why you want an MBA, why Stern, and why, specifically, a focused one-year program. This will not only help you with your essays, but your interview as well!

  1.     Ask Questions

Based on your goals, your research and your why for business school – ask any dire questions you may have! Utilize Coffee Chats, Admissions events or even reach out to a current student. Clubs are also a great resource to learn more about the student experience. This all works towards helping you make an informed decision and crafting your message throughout your application.

I leveraged the Coffee Chats I attended to ask questions about students pursuing product management roles to see how they shaped their Stern experience. The students I talked to not only gave me ideas about clubs to join and electives to consider but also explained how specific required courses supported the building skills key to pursuing product management.

  1.     Be Authentically You

You’ll see throughout Stern admissions events and the websites the mention of “EQ” – how you represent your emotional intelligence is so important and the best way to demonstrate that is to authentically represent yourself. The best essays and answers are the ones that truly represent who you are as a person – your passions, your goals, your experience, your personality. This is seen throughout your application components, but nothing can duplicate the uniqueness you demonstrated in your Pick 6 essay! Take the time to brainstorm how you can best represent this throughout your application and do not stress about what you think the admissions team wants to see!

  1.     Your contribution to Stern

What clubs do you want to join and how do you see yourself getting involved? How can you leverage your previous experience and contribute to your class? The Stern community? What resources do you strive to utilize while at Stern? Community is such a large part of Stern, I can say with certainty that it is the greatest part of my experience so far. 

The summer semester of the Tech MBA dives into the business core and technology core classes, it is intense, but it was also a time where the Tech MBA community leaned on each other to succeed. There was always a fellow Sternie willing to spend extra time talking through a topic if that meant their knowledge could help you develop a better understanding – I saw this throughout the summer as we jumped from classes like Dealing with Data to Finance. Outside of class, we are always arranging social gatherings. Moving to New York and starting business school was certainly a transition, but this community has tremendously impacted my experience so far! 

  1.     How will you benefit from your time at Stern?

Beyond an MBA degree in hand, how will the Tech MBA at Stern help you achieve your goals? 

In the short time I have been at Stern, I’m already working toward goals I have set for myself: continue to build technical skills, explore areas of tech I’m unfamiliar with and prepare for recruiting for a product manager role. This summer, I continued developing SQL and Python skills during Dealing with Data, and I’m excited to take Data Visualization this fall to continue developing data-related skills. While the Fall semester has just started, the Stern Tech Association has already begun hosting helpful sessions like a knowledge management session about full-time recruiting for tech roles and highlighting job postings in their weekly newsletter. 

  1.     Organization is Key

Create a plan to ensure you have all required paperwork, letters of recommendation, essays and your application completed and submitted by or before the deadline you are aiming for! Choose a deadline and use that as your guide as you work to complete all application requirements. I personally found maintaining a Google Sheet and calendar alerts helped keep me on track! Make sure to ask your recommenders with plenty of time before the deadline so that they’re not rushed, and allow yourself plenty of time to write the best version of your essays.

  1.     Ask for a second set of eyes

As I finalized my essays, one of the most helpful things I did was ask friends I trusted to read through them. This helped me catch anything I may have missed, and they provided good insight as well! As you work through this process, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and a fresh perspective is so helpful! Whenever I got stuck, I found brainstorming with someone and talking it out helped as well. Lean on your community!

  1. Brag about yourself

This is your time to show everything that’s great about you! Show it off with pride and confidence. 

Immersion Programming in the Tech MBA

Posted on by cjp449

Kaitlyn Murdock is a Tech MBA candidate, specializing in Healthcare & Strategy. Prior to Stern, she worked at Deloitte, supporting strategy and analytics engagements for Life Sciences & Health Care clients. Kaitlyn is passionate about improving care outcomes for patients with technology and data. 

 

 

 

The Tech MBA is an incredible opportunity that packs all the classes a traditional 2-year student would take into 12 months. When evaluating MBA programs, one major reservation I had about the Tech MBA is the lack of a summer internship. However, the curriculum and programming is designed in a way that exposes students to many companies around New York City, setting us up to build our network and transition into a post MBA role. One of the hallmark classes of the program is the NYC Tech Immersion course, an all-day, once a week class during the summer. The NYC Tech Immersion consists of two main parts: 

  1. A real-life consulting project for a New York-based company, and
  2. Guest speakers and company site visits 

In today’s post, I’ll focus on the latter. Over the summer, our class heard from product managers and professionals in Digital Health, FinTech, EduTech, and more, and had the opportunity to visit the offices of Google and Uber. 

NYC Tech Landscape

In our very first session, professor J.P. Eggers gave an overview of the New York tech scene. He explained how a successful startup ecosystem requires strong talent (universities), desirable employers (to retain that talent), and sources of funding. Over the last decade, New York’s tech and start-up scene has boomed. It’s a very exciting time to attend school in such an active ecosystem. Hearing from guest speakers like Andrew Chang and Christophe Gillet helped me better understand what New York has to offer and how to break into the start-up scene.

Understanding Tech Trends

By speaking with experts in the industry, we got a glimpse into which emerging technologies businesses really care about. Given the technology landscape changes daily, it’s important to stay current and be able to speak to technology trends in interviews. Joshua Ness from Verizon’s 5G Labs explained the history and importance of 5G-enabled distributed computing and its relation to Web3 technologies. As technology progresses, public policy does too; in another session we had Mike Posner and Paul Barrett from the Center for Business and Human Rights speak about ethics and the responsibilities of a tech company to protect its users.

Networking & Company Culture

Each guest speaker offered a valuable chance to connect with someone in the industry. In addition to visiting Google and Uber, we had guests from Amazon, Goldman Sachs, Facebook, Pinterest, Skillshare, and BCG to name a few. Each guest was willing to chat with students to offer advice and be a resource in the future. These sessions also provided a ‘peek behind the curtain’, giving our class a better understanding of the operations and culture of each business. 

Drawing Connections 

In hindsight, perhaps the most valuable part of our Tech Immersion programming was the ability to draw connections with our other summer classes. We went through a real-life marketing case for Skillshare’s rebranding, and applied what we learned in Entrepreneurship to give a mock pitch to a speaker from Goldman Sachs’ incubator, GS Accelerate. Fitz Maro, a specialist in Design Technology at Amazon, taught us how to make better decisions as a leader, reinforcing what we learned in our Leadership course. We also had the opportunity to utilize the skills we developed in our Strategy course to a case on Uber’s product expansion. Making these connections across courses enriches the MBA experience and helps us appreciate the value of what we learn.

I LOVED our NYC Tech Immersion class. Many of my peers connected with our speakers on a personal and professional level. For me personally, our session with Dr. Sarah Zweifach, AliveCor product manager, illuminated that joining a mid-size digital health startup could be an exciting career path. I’m currently pursuing part-time internships in this space. 

This class was a fantastic way to get to know New York’s tech landscape and is just one of many reasons to pursue the Tech MBA at Stern!