Thursday, January 11, 2007

The rest of CBS comes back next week from winter break. I thought things seemed busy at Uris Hall but I guess when we add another 800 students into the mix it will get downright crowded. We have a 4-day weekend of sorts due to MLK day and the following day being CBS holidays. I'm going back home with my wife for a couple days which will be nice.

Just got assigned our 1st case for Strategy Formulation (half semester). It's about Ben and Jerry's! Also have our first accounting assignment due in about a week (along with stat). Let me just say there is plenty for me to do outside of blogging :)

Our Cluster also selected our t-shirt design. Apparently, cluster t-shirts are a big deal and always worn by 1st year's to Happy Hour. I guess it all just adds to the bonding!

Actually, that reminds me, I need to explain the whole cluster concept...

For those who don't know, 1st years are split into groups of ~70 students that are called Clusters. Each cluster takes all the core courses together, spends alot of time during orientation together, etc. Plus, your study group is made up of 5-6 people from your cluster. Bottom line, you get to know the cluster pretty well. I guess this is a similar concept to most schools although they call it different things. Regardless, it really helps you get to know a bunch of people really quickly, which is a good thing. The j-term is split into Clusters X, Y, and Z. And yes, X is the best :)

Time to start studying for my Econ exemption exam. Enjoy the weekend!

10 comments:

atypical HBS said...

Hey, glad to hear you started and thing are starting to heat up. Good luck on your courses.

I plan to apply for JAn 2008 entry and would like your advice on a couple of things.

Do you think your Gmat score was instrumental in you getting admitted to Columbia?

Could you say what GMAT score would be sufficient to stand a chance of being admitted?

Did you apply early for the JAn term?

John said...

They look at the whole picture for admissions so I wouldn't get too hung up on your GMAT score. However, I would recommend taking it more than once if you think there is room for improvement. Shows that you're making an effort -- plus they only count the best score.

I did apply very early for the J-term (a couple months before the deadline). I would recommend applying early as admissions are rolling at Columbia and they evaluate apps as they come in.

atypical HBS said...

Thanks!! hope to see you next year.

jinglebell said...

Hi,
Can you please throw light on the placement scene for J-termers? I am an international, J2008 aspirant, have strong experience in IT-consulting sector and I don't want to switch career post-mba. Post-mba I would look for Management, Biz. dev., strategy type roles in IT sector only.
thanks

John said...

We just met with the career placement office on Friday and the picture sounded pretty rosy - especially if you are staying with your current industry. Career switching is also possible as well, although you may have to do more legwork without an internship. This applies quite a bit to the finance fields as I understand it.

Gil Heiman said...

Hi Johnny,
I came across your blog while searching for current MBA student blogs. I work for a company developing free team collaboration solutions and we are currently targeting our solutions to team-intensive MBA programs...
As a fellow MBA alum myself (BU 1999), I felt the teamwork pains first hand.
You would be the perfect fit for introducing our solutions to your peers as you are a fellow blogger and are well aware of the issues involving MBA team work.
Our solutions can really help your study groups/teams, next semester.
Looking forward to your response.
Cheers,
Gil

Anonymous said...

Hello John,

I plan to apply for Jan 2008 intake. I live in Ohio and plan to fly back to Ohio at least 2-3 times a month to meet my wife over the weekends.

My question is that Do you think it is practical (time wise) to travel to Ohio every other weekend.

Do you guys have classes on Friday?

Thanks
Gaspare

John said...

Gaspare --

We have one class on Friday mornings for first half of the 1st semester and then we will have no class on Friday.

However, I would be more concerned with group work. Most of your assignments and projects are done in conjunction with your assigned study group or a subset of it. If you are not around on many of the weekends, you will have to work out with your group how you will collaborate via phone, internet, whatever. Could be challenging if you're gone 3 out of the 4 weekends, but maybe not. The other thing is you will definitely miss out on the social aspect of the experience (if you're gone most weekends) but that may not be important. Totally a personal choice, you know?

John said...

Let me just add to that last comment, Gaspare.

Study groups collectively set goals and norms at the beginning of the semester and discussions about when to meet will be had. Our group said we wanted to avoid weekend meetings when possible, although just due to general availability we have found weekends convenient. But again, your mileage may vary.

Anonymous said...

John, I appreciate your insights. It is very useful information for me. I am leaning heavily towards applying for the 2008 intake.

Thanks a lot,
Gaspare