MBA core condensed to 900 words
Kristin Lutz, WG'07
Issue date: 9/18/06 Section: Perspectives
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On my first night at home after my freshman year of college, my dad asked me, "So what did you learn this year?" I looked at him in horror, because I thought, 'Surely he doesn't expect me to regurgitate thirty credit-hours worth of calculus, biology, English, economics, and every other class I had to take this year?' I realized (but not before he had a good laugh at my expense) that he was asking me what I really learned-about myself, other people, and life in general-not what I had been taught in a classroom. Of course, I don't think my dad was anticipating such gems as, 'Don't do jello shots and beer bonging on the same night.' Nevertheless, it was fun to think about, and ever since, I go through the same sort of exercise at the end of an academic term.
As last year drew to a close, amid the gasps of "Thank God" and "It's about f*^%ing time," I talked to some of my friends about what we had learned at Wharton, what we wish we had done differently, and what we wish someone had told us a year ago. Now, we came up with a lot of good stuff that could easily fill an insider's guide to Wharton (like waive every class you can), but at this point, you should ostensibly have it figured out. Still, maybe you will recognize yourself, or perhaps you had a similar surprising experience. For example, I found that despite our slacker-talk, we MBAs do quite a bit of schoolwork and studying. Sure, pre-term is a big party, and since September I've taken to calling extra-strength Excedrin my "Friday Morning Vitamins." But we also spend a good portion of our weekends learning something (so take that, Ed George).
I ended up with a list of insights that you might not find in an official school publication. In no particular order:
If you sleep through and/or skip class regularly, you will quickly incur the wrath of your fellow classmates by asking questions that the professor has already gone over in excruciating detail. Seriously, we all want to get out of there, so save it for office hours.
As last year drew to a close, amid the gasps of "Thank God" and "It's about f*^%ing time," I talked to some of my friends about what we had learned at Wharton, what we wish we had done differently, and what we wish someone had told us a year ago. Now, we came up with a lot of good stuff that could easily fill an insider's guide to Wharton (like waive every class you can), but at this point, you should ostensibly have it figured out. Still, maybe you will recognize yourself, or perhaps you had a similar surprising experience. For example, I found that despite our slacker-talk, we MBAs do quite a bit of schoolwork and studying. Sure, pre-term is a big party, and since September I've taken to calling extra-strength Excedrin my "Friday Morning Vitamins." But we also spend a good portion of our weekends learning something (so take that, Ed George).
I ended up with a list of insights that you might not find in an official school publication. In no particular order:
If you sleep through and/or skip class regularly, you will quickly incur the wrath of your fellow classmates by asking questions that the professor has already gone over in excruciating detail. Seriously, we all want to get out of there, so save it for office hours.
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