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MARCH 2002 MBA JOURNAL: YEAR TWO Tangwena Nelson: Academics, the Placement Process, and More "While we often complain about how difficult business school is (and it is in many respects), it is still a relatively sheltered haven when compared to the demands of working in a corporate environment." Smarting from the stamina testing pace of my summer internship, I retreated to the relative peace of business school with a greater appreciation for being able to dictate my own schedule. While we often complain about how difficult business school is (and it is in many respects), it is still a relatively sheltered haven when compared to the demands of working in a corporate environment. At the end of the day, it's our choice not to show up to class without having to explain ourselves to anyone. It's our choice to take four-hour lunches if we want. And it is our choice if we want to surf the net all day. Funny, how you value these small things more after a summer internship in banking. That being said, the return to school was dampened by the events of September 11. I would prefer not to dwell on this, but suffice it to say it had a personal impact on me, especially coming from the New York area. And as if the declining economy weren't bad enough, the events of September 11 exacerbated an already discouraging job market. While we knew going in to our respective internships that this would be a tough year, we hadn't anticipated the rounds of layoffs that took place during the summer, especially in investment banking where people who had a hand in us being hired or not were themselves let go. The situation was further crystallized by the diminished number of students who returned with full-time offers. Entire industries, such as consulting, virtually suspended MBA hiring. The on-campus recruiting season for second years began just as gloomily as company after company announced they would forego hiring second-year students this year. A number of companies still followed through on corporate presentations, though making it a point to temper expectations. Talking to friends at other top business schools, it became evident the downturn had not been discriminating about where it hit. Rather, it had an impact across the board. In light of the economic environment the school became even more proactive in its career services efforts. The Career Services Office (CSO) implemented several action groups and mobilized a large number of alums to assist second year students in securing interviews even at firms that rarely recruited MBAs. Fortunately, the effort seems to be paying off as the number of students with offers has risen significantly over the last few weeks. Following my summer internship, I was fortunate to be offered a permanent position with Banc of America Securities (BAS) in New York. And after taking some time to think through my long-term goals and evaluate my other opportunities, I elected to accept the offer from BAS, this primarily as a result of my experience there this summer. SECOND YEAR DRIVE. The job concerns aside, I was able to focus on enjoying my last year. "Second year is a breeze." "Your final year at school is all about partying." "There really is no work in the second year." These were all comments I had heard from folks at various times that I can unequivocally say -- without hesitation -- are all hogwash! Not only were classes just as challenging as the first year's, they were just as demanding in terms of deliverables. Granted, I took 17 credits (admittedly a bit much), however, the work was just as demanding as in our first year. And though I am sure our lack of motivation did not help, we still did not expect be busting our @#?#!. Of course if one elected to take only the "soft skills" classes and the bare minimum of 12 credits, it would have been decidedly easier, but then what would be the purpose of going to school. A big part of what made it challenging for me personally was the fact that I was taking six classes, which for the most part were all financial courses. There was however, a method to my madness. I knew I would be spending my final semester abroad and as such wanted to ensure I took the classes I really needed so that I could truly enjoy the last semester of my academic career. Nonetheless, the semester completed I headed home where I spent a couple of days, then spent the rest of my break traveling to Australia, Singapore, India, and England before ending up in Spain in January where I began my exchange program at IESE Business School in Barcelona. Though I selected IESE for the practical reasons of further building an international network in preparation for my long term goals and all that other good stuff, blah, blah, blah... I also really wanted to enjoy my last semester of B-school. And as such, where better to go than arguably a party capital of the world, Barcelona. Having now settled in, I am really enjoying my experience here. In many respects the school is similar to Cornell in that it is relatively small with a tight-knit student body. However, it's different in three noticeable areas: (1) The diversity here in terms of countries represented is striking. With only a handful of Americans it has been interesting to see how others from so many cultural backgrounds evaluate management styles and tackle problems; (2) The school is case oriented, which required a bit of adjustment; (3) Most striking has been the fact that there is a bar at school that opens at 8 a.m.! A bar where beer only costs 75 euro cents! Of course I shouldn't be singing the virtues of alcoholic beverages. However, I am a second year after all, and as such believe I am entitled. Between the varied "Bar of the Week", Barcelona's nightlife and the inexpensive (but, excellent) food I am intent on making my last quarter of B-school an absolute blast. I'll keep you updated on my progress in this area.  Get BusinessWeek directly on your desktop with our RSS feeds.  Add BusinessWeek news to your Web site with our headline feed. Click to buy an e-print or reprint of a BusinessWeek or BusinessWeek Online story or video. To subscribe online to BusinessWeek magazine, please click here. Learn more, go to the BusinessWeekOnline home page  | | MARCH Learn about your online education options |
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