Jillian Adler: Back to Reality

As I prepared to write the journal entry reflecting on my overall MBA experience, I was struck by the challenge of summoning the right words. It seemed difficult to limit myself to just a few pages and yet impossible even to write the first paragraph. Looking back on the past two years, I have to ask, what have I gained? What have I been able to achieve that I otherwise wouldn't have? And of course, the age-old MBA-worthy question: Was it worth it?

My second year has been a whirlwind. Back in September, I made a decision to travel as much as possible and gave myself the goal of seeing a new country every month. For those of you who are wondering how I can afford such a costly initiative, rest assured that your tax dollars financed my every jaunt. Just kidding of course! I paid for these trips by being a frugal B-schooler and taking out the maximum possible amount of loans. This undertaking was going swimmingly . . . right up until last month, when I got a rather thick envelope from Sallie Mae requiring an obscene amount of money. In under two months, my perception of Sallie Mae has transformed dramatically — from generous benefactor to demanding loan shark.

Aside from the fact that I'm now subsisting on ramen noodles and Ye Olde English beer, in B-school I was living quite large. Within nine months, I went from Argentina to Ireland to Hawaii to Monaco to India and the grand finale . . . a month in Greece this summer, part of a seven-week tour of Europe. Without Columbia Business School, I would never have been able to take such amazing trips with such a fabulous group of people. I'm not just saying that because most of my non-B-school friends are fiscally responsible and couldn't travel with me due to having jobs. The CBS people with whom I traveled this year were exceptional, and it's because they took the time to organize such endeavors that I was able to benefit.

How else have I benefited from B-school? Aside from the rather obvious response that it has directly contributed to a situation in which I receive a paycheck, I believe I will be able to bring some knowledge to the table in my new job. When I began my summer internship a little over a year ago, I had taken only one class that could be described as directly relevant to what I will be doing. This year I've taken classes in fixed-income markets, derivatives, earnings quality and securities pricing, among others. And while no amount of classroom learning can amount to what one discovers on the job, when my colleagues discuss the specifics of trades with me now, I can respond intelligently and not with a vapid, ever-inquisitive stare (hopefully).

The B-school life is a fantastic one, and no swan song would be complete without considering the two-year time span in which I was divorced from reality. I was able to drink for free with my classmates every Thursday evening and not have to worry about waking up early in the morning the next day. I was able to participate in the audience for presentations by CEOs, economists, politicians, reality-TV stars, and sports-franchise owners. I had an idea for launching my own accounting business and I was able to present this idea at a venture fair set up by the school's center for entrepreneurship. During this fair, I met a gentleman who'd actually launched a very similar venture and he educated me about the merits of my idea (good) but also about the real-world prospect of ever turning it into a successful business (low). As much as people credit B-school environments for providing a launching pad for entrepreneurial projects, so should they credit B-schools for allowing people to pragmatically test the waters of their creative ideas before investing any money.

There are many widely held beliefs that people profess about business school. A common platitude is that it's all about the people. Some other declarations that I've heard consist of: 1) It's all about the social events; 2) It's nothing more than a country club (I believe I disabused proponents of this theory in my third article); the ever-popular view that 3) It's all about finding jobs after school; and the never-suggested but possible viewpoint that 4) It's all about the learning and grades.

In my opinion, no matter what your perspective, you can make an argument that business school is worthwhile. I could do a cash-flow analysis of how long I have to work at my job before I recover all of my capital. But the intangibles that accompanied my B-school education are truly what I think of when I try to value my education. For me, to think about being a part of the Columbia Business School community only as an alum and not a student is a bit disheartening. But I know that the skills that I learned and the network of people I developed at CBS have prepared me for a successful career and a happy life.