update from nyc

Hi friends and readers - whoever may still be out there:

I have been hesitant to update this blog since starting school - its been a complete whirlwind.   I feel like I can barely describe everything I have experienced, but I'll try.... 

Orientation was intense. Long days of CBS's IBS and PSI curriculum, followed by evenings of corporate sponsored boozin' - all in the name of networking, of course.  We spent the majority of our time in our clusters.  It goes without saying that my cluster is the best, of course.

Classes are intense.  I had my first midterm last week.  With CBS's new flex core curriculum, several classes were shrunk to half semester courses - so that means midterms happen only 4 weeks into the semester.  The adage is that "grades don't matter," but it is hard to undo 20-something years of nerd guilt.  I spent copious time in the library - the upside was bonding with clustermates in good ol' Watson Library.  I'm also spending quite a bit of time emailing, conference callin' and librarying with my learning team.  (I'm the only female in my team of 5)

Clubs are intense.  I'm applying for AVP positions left and right.  Supposedly there is "leadership inflation" at Columbia ie enough leadership positions so that each person can have multiple.  While that may be true, certain ones are more sought after than others and, at least now, it feels like it is important to try to get one in your professional club of choice.

So there you have it - its been intense.  In summary, I love it here.  I'm busy, barely sleeping, not running (there goes "mbarunnergirl"), not even really eatting appropriately, but I love it.  Everything has exceeded my expectations - the workload (hah), my cluster, my professors, my new friends, the imploding of Wall Street.... I hope to continue blogging, but I am trying to be realistic in terms of my workload.  Those applying to Columbia can reach out to me with a comment or via my email listed on this blog and I'll do my best to respond.

Hi friends in the blogosphere... I didn't forget about you, but in all honesty didn't have anything interesting to post lately. Work is still going smoothly and pretty quietly as well. There have been tons of budget cuts and projects have been delayed. As none of the management team knows of my plans to leave, things are a bit sticky for me. I had a project close last week. There are a few things still open that I can work on that should keep me busy for a bit longer, but there are no new projects expected to open until mid-April. My last day is slated for April 25th. I was hoping to give at least 4 weeks notice, but with not a whole lot going on, I wonder if my manager will just tell me to leave. Thoughts from any of you out there? For those who did not have a current manager write your recommendation, how much notice are you planning on giving before your last day?

I did attend Open House at CBS last weekend. With the vast majority of the admits thus far being Early Decision, most of us were bound to attending, which really excited me since I know I'll be seeing most of these people in August. Initially I was really overwhelmed by the number of people and ongoing events, but after I got acclimated and into a networking groove, I had a really good time.

Moreover, I'm really excited about the changes that are going at Columbia. The entire website has been reskinned; as a software developer, I was pretty frustrated by the design, which could/should have been a lot better. It is now :). Columbia is also starting to write their own cases called decision briefs, which will have less information and more uncertainty which will hopefully mimic reality closer than a detailed case. And the new curriculum will be inaugurated with my class, allowing even those who do not exempt out of core classes, to take two electives second semester. Pretty cool!

The way the cookie crumbles

So time to 'fess up....

I actually got an admit to Columbia the week before I heard from Chicago. Given the timing (per the binding Early decision agreement, I have two weeks to send my deposit to secure my spot at Columbia) I decided to wait it out and see what Chicago said. I was SHOCKED with an acceptance. After last year when I went 0 for 4, I got accepted at my top two choices. I'm still actually flabbergasted at the thought.

For the last week, I've been struggling with whether or not to break my word to Columbia and go to Chicago. I consider myself a very ethical person, even when it isn't always easy. Having just visited Chicago and loved it... it was a big temptation. Several times I thought I had made a decision and then immediately changed my mind. Last night it became very clear to me that I should go to Columbia. I wish I could say it was some major revelation, but it wasn't. It felt like it was the right thing to do for me. (I do realize the impossible situation of making a bad decision in this scenario. I hear the world's smallest violin playing right now.) This morning Columbia got my deposit (with probably no time to spare) and I've secured my spot as a member of CBS Class of 2010.

So, all you GSB waitlisters out there, I hope one of you get my spot. BschoolDiva, you think they'll swap one Texas girl for another? I remember the pain of being on the waitlist; I was waitlisted through two rounds until August before the semester started. Just keep sending those meaningful updates and let them know that you heart Chicago GSB. And if you make it, sign up for a Random Walk for me because that was one of the things I really wanted to do.

columbia interview complete!

I did an alumni interview with Columbia on Monday. Seeing as it was so soon after my Chicago I was a little nervous I would say Chicago instead of Columbia in some of my answers, but luckily I avoided that. Overall, I felt less nervous but lacked a real "connection" with the interviewer. We didn't have much in common, but I enjoyed our conversation. He got a good feeling of my goals, reasons for wanting to go to Columbia and my personality so in that sense it was a success. We met at a Starbucks and luckily I was able to pick up the large corner table so we were able to have something resembling a private conversation. For those of you doing an interview in a public place, I would recommend getting there early to acclimate, get used to the noise level and relax a bit.

I was pretty thrilled to receive the news that Chicago's notification date was moved up to December 19th. I wonder whether they will call admits as they did last year... Two weeks left! The motivation to complete my R2 two applications is low... anyone else feeling me out there?

happy turkey day!

Happy long weekend to all of you out there! I started my time off today and I'm hoping to be very productive with the days off, completing a few drafts of the Michigan essays and prep for my Chicago interview next week.

In update news, I got an invitation to interview at Columbia this morning. I had been told that reapplicants who interviewed the previous year often do not re-intervew so the news was a bit anticlimatic as I expected a final decision. I'm trying not to analyze too much why I was asked to interview again, but see it as an opportunity to ace it.

nail biting...

With only two applications out the door, I'm constantly checking my email in hopes of word from Columbia. I saw a former roommate at a wedding this weekend and she is a first year at CBS. She just got me even more stoked about the idea of going there. NYU is coming along slowly. I should make the November 15th date without a problem, but work has been manic and I come home drained.

I had lunch with a friend and co-worker yesterday. He is considering applying next year, but is very early in the game. No GMAT, no short-term, long-term goals - he just knows that he wants to be doing something else. It was great to coach him a little bit on how to determine his goals and how to approach the MBA application process. I'd like to think I've learned something in the last 18 months about applying to business school.

first update...

I am now under review at Columbia. 10 weeks and I'll have a decision.

columbia submitted!

It feels good to have that one out of the way. I think I went through six distinct drafts of my re-application essay before I got to the final one. I kept re-reading data forms and hitting submit was difficult. Oh well, now on to Chicago :)

Good luck to everyone as we get round 1 finished up.

progress..

In a word: slow

First draft is back with comments. I'm working through them - fairly substantial as I expected. I'm hoping to get through them in the next few days. I want to get Columbia out in the next two weeks and then focus hard on Chicago (ie school that kept me on the waitlist for five months and still wants me to fill out the whole application to re-apply)

The stress is starting to get me. For the last week, my stomach has been constantly churning. I'm going through the same feelings as other bloggers - the roller coaster of confidence and "no one will want me" My piece of advice to all of you out there is to err on the confident side, because lack of confidence will permeate those essays.

To do:
Send out last recommendation packet (yeah, I'm totally late on this)
Finish Columbia essay - draft 2
Email a few more students and alumni
Finish updating resume
Go to a speed dating event (I'm shocked I'm doing this, but my friends and I agreed months ago to go together.)

PS: Did anyone see Britney on the VMAs? I turned in on just so I could catch the performance... and wow, yikes.

some decisions...

I'm still on the research trail. I am putting feelers out for friends of friends who go to the business schools I'm adding to my application list. I like Duke and Michigan a lot so I am pretty sure about those which just leaves one more school for my list.

I think I'm going to attack my reapplications first: Columbia and Chicago. I also signed up for an MBA tour at the beginning of September and then I'll start my Duke and Michigan apps since I'll be better informed at this point. I'm still a bit indecisive on what schools I'm applying to for R1 and R2. Most likely it will be Columbia, Chicago, NYU and Ross R1, Duke and maybe one or two more programs R2.

On a more fun note, I'm planning on prepping for a half-marathon in January. It'll be a nice contrast to the hell that is applying to MBA programs and hopefully a stress reliever.

Feedback!

I had a feedback session last week with Columbia. Like what I heard from some others out there, it was mainly "you were great; we just had a really competitive year." About 10 minutes into the conversation, the admissions officer eventually said that while my transition to my post-MBA goal was believable and defined it would have been more elaborated especially compared to my peers. I was glad to hear that since it is feedback I can use and apply to my reapplication effort.

I'm still researching programs. The maybes include Tuck, Emory, UNC, UCLA, Georgetown, Haas, Michigan and Duke. I only want to apply to six (maybe seven) programs so with Columbia, Chicago and NYU, I only have room for 3 more. Next up, scouring school websites and finding people I know at the maybe schools.

first up...

I have actually not decided whether or not I'm reapplying. The application process is emotional, demanding, and honestly not something I'm sure I want to repeat.

Why, you may ask?
1. I'm not entirely happy at my job and I'm not sure I can last another year there. Finding another job, I believe, would push me back another year at least in MBA terms. (a job switch so close to applying would probably come back to bite me when trying to explain my career career path thing in every Essay 1)
2. Am I that much stronger of an applicant than I was a year ago? Would I fare that much better? Or was I the "victim" of a nervous interview (yes on two accounts) or incomplete essay packages or undefined goals.

I have a feedback session with Columbia this week and I hope that will at least clarify number 2. On the more positive side, I did interview at every school I applied to and am hanging in there on the waitlist Chicago GSB. I think applying round to more programs would help out - as would just knowing the application process.

starting off...

I've decided to join the MBA blogging community because I pity my friends and them having to listen to me discuss MBA admission, ad naseum.

I applied to four MBA programs last year and was rejected after interview from NYU, Columbia, Kellogg. I am actually still on the waitlist at Chicago, but as I am a optimistic realist I have begun preparations for re-applying for Fall 2008. I feel that I have learned a lot in my first application effort and I'm ready to start early and hard-core :)