Pepperdine's Accelerated MBA Program - "A Hidden Gem"

Everyone knows that when choosing an MBA program, we look at rankings. Why not, right? It is a very important financial investment after all. True, but with Pepperdine the story is a little bit different.

Our program does not usually show up on the traditional rankings lists. That is also because we are a smaller program and we do not focus primarily on research. Research is important and a big class brings more profit, that is true. But at Graziadio a smaller class is more important because it gives the student the opportunity to get to know absolutely every single classmate. Our professors know our names by class two and make an effort to get to know us. Their doors are always open and we can stop by anytime to ask about the class or talk about our career goals. And depending on your personal drivers and point in your career, access to professors and classmates can be more appealing than a cut-throat environment where the emphasis is on individual performance.

Apparently this is also what the Wall Street Journal looked at on when they selected some MBA programs that did not make the cut for their ranking, but were highly regarded by students and alumni. Read the article here.

Back on the Roller Coaster

It is week 4 already! I will try to give you the one-sentence synopsis of what has been happening for the past four weeks, so let’s see how I do. Here we go: I have been busy with structuring Challenge for Charity, interviewing first-year students for leadership positions, working, planning future events, networking, setting up my personal portfolio and yes, going to classes.

As you can easily notice, as soon as you start your second year, the focus changes. Or at least, it should. Classes are very important, do not get me wrong. But, they should be 50% of your focus. My professors might not agree with this statement - or if they do, they might never openly admit it - but the other half of the time should be spent on whatever will ensure that you have a job come graduation: networking, work/another internship or projects that will hone your skills and enhance your portfolio and resume.

Technically, full-time students are not supposed to work, but so many of us do. Or did. I tried it also, because I believe it is really important to maintain the contact with the company while in school – especially if you are lucky to have a good internship - which will make it easier to find a job upon graduation. Easier said than done! I continued working with Coca-Cola until this week. Although a great learning experience, working 16 hours a week while taking four classes and running Challenge for Charity rapidly took its toll on me. So unfortunately, I had to make the decision to stop working.

The other difference between the first and the second year is that for the most part, we do not have midterms or finals. We do have instead TONS of reading to do, as well as case studies, papers, and group projects. And they take a lot of time. Which is partly why I am writing this blog entry at midnight. School is unbelievably busy, but it is also very rewarding and I am still loving every minute of it! Even when I have to read 127 pages for business law.