Business Week MBA ROI Calculator
Very cool - plug in your salary, age, experience, etc, select the b-schools on your short-list, and the calculator will tell you your expected return on your MBA investment. Stanford stands out at the top of my list with an 18.7% return over 10 years. Hmmm....
Thursday, December 21, 2000
Wharton's Invasion of the Bay Area B-School Scene
"It may not be a stately building with ivy-covered walls, but it promises to be a powerful presence in a market 3,000 miles from its home base. And that sounds just fine to the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, which will drop an executive-education minicampus into the heart of San Francisco -- and in the backyard of two of its B-school competitors -- in the next few months."
When I visited Wharton in Philadelphia in November, my main impression was that it was a goliath that had spread itself too thin. Setting up a campus in the Bay Area may be a good move though. If all of those techos attended a few more business classes, perhaps the dot com sector might actually prove to be profitable in the long term.
"It may not be a stately building with ivy-covered walls, but it promises to be a powerful presence in a market 3,000 miles from its home base. And that sounds just fine to the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, which will drop an executive-education minicampus into the heart of San Francisco -- and in the backyard of two of its B-school competitors -- in the next few months."
When I visited Wharton in Philadelphia in November, my main impression was that it was a goliath that had spread itself too thin. Setting up a campus in the Bay Area may be a good move though. If all of those techos attended a few more business classes, perhaps the dot com sector might actually prove to be profitable in the long term.
Wednesday, December 20, 2000
The new masters of the universe
The Australian Financial Review published a series of articles on management education on October 31st (I'm still catching up on what's been happening in Australia while I've been away). Definitely worth the read. Describes the advantages and disadvantages of undertaking a US MBA and returning to Australia afterwards, versus studying and working locally. Follow the links to some of the related articles as well.
The Australian Financial Review published a series of articles on management education on October 31st (I'm still catching up on what's been happening in Australia while I've been away). Definitely worth the read. Describes the advantages and disadvantages of undertaking a US MBA and returning to Australia afterwards, versus studying and working locally. Follow the links to some of the related articles as well.
Saturday, December 16, 2000
The whole web travel journal thing...
Internet access is not always easy to come by when you're on the road, especially when you're visiting lots of different places, or travelling on a limited budget. I took the option of taking very little technology with me, and seeking out internet terminals on an as needed basis. Internet terminals are not as common place as one would expect in the States. Virtually even decent sized city has one or more Kinkos which always offer a high speed connection and are open 24 hours, but they're a little pricey - I paid between US$10-12/hr at Kinkos in places like LA, Boston, and Philadelphia. In New York, the standard Kinkos rate was US$18/hr, and I was even quoted US$25/hr at a Kinkos located within a classy hotel lobby in Chicago. In some cities, I came across little owner-operated internet cafes where you could sit on a couch, and surf the web on older computer with a slower internet connection for about US$8/hr. The best place that I found was a business called Copy Cat in San Francisco which had a fast connection, and newish machines for only US$2.50 for every 30 minutes.
Of course the real trick for saving money is to seek out free internet terminals at public libraries and universities. While I didn't take the public library option, I did make estensive use of the computer facilities at several of the b-schools I visited. Most of my longer weblog entries were composed in the libraries and foyers of the b-schools after my visits there.
Blogger also made the process of producing a weblog on the road very easy. I didn't have to do any programming or difficult HTML coding. Everything was maintained via a web browser. On my next big trip (hopefully Europe in 2002), I'd like to bring some technology with me so that I can keep my weblog updated from anywhere (wireless, wireless, wireless, yadda, yadda, yadda), but I don't want to have to lug around a laptop computer.
Stuart Loh, a technology hungry BIT student, is currently on the road with 3 others friends doing a 2.5 month tour of the world. They're maintaining a very impressive travel journey at travel.fissure.org. Prior to leaving Australia, Stu did a heap of programming with PHP on a mySQL back-end, so that all four of them could updated the site on the road using just a web browser application and SMS messages. Despite all the planning, and investment in application infrastructure upfront, their fundamental problem has been establishing connectivity.
Anyway, must go and collect my photos...
Internet access is not always easy to come by when you're on the road, especially when you're visiting lots of different places, or travelling on a limited budget. I took the option of taking very little technology with me, and seeking out internet terminals on an as needed basis. Internet terminals are not as common place as one would expect in the States. Virtually even decent sized city has one or more Kinkos which always offer a high speed connection and are open 24 hours, but they're a little pricey - I paid between US$10-12/hr at Kinkos in places like LA, Boston, and Philadelphia. In New York, the standard Kinkos rate was US$18/hr, and I was even quoted US$25/hr at a Kinkos located within a classy hotel lobby in Chicago. In some cities, I came across little owner-operated internet cafes where you could sit on a couch, and surf the web on older computer with a slower internet connection for about US$8/hr. The best place that I found was a business called Copy Cat in San Francisco which had a fast connection, and newish machines for only US$2.50 for every 30 minutes.
Of course the real trick for saving money is to seek out free internet terminals at public libraries and universities. While I didn't take the public library option, I did make estensive use of the computer facilities at several of the b-schools I visited. Most of my longer weblog entries were composed in the libraries and foyers of the b-schools after my visits there.
Blogger also made the process of producing a weblog on the road very easy. I didn't have to do any programming or difficult HTML coding. Everything was maintained via a web browser. On my next big trip (hopefully Europe in 2002), I'd like to bring some technology with me so that I can keep my weblog updated from anywhere (wireless, wireless, wireless, yadda, yadda, yadda), but I don't want to have to lug around a laptop computer.
Stuart Loh, a technology hungry BIT student, is currently on the road with 3 others friends doing a 2.5 month tour of the world. They're maintaining a very impressive travel journey at travel.fissure.org. Prior to leaving Australia, Stu did a heap of programming with PHP on a mySQL back-end, so that all four of them could updated the site on the road using just a web browser application and SMS messages. Despite all the planning, and investment in application infrastructure upfront, their fundamental problem has been establishing connectivity.
Anyway, must go and collect my photos...
Two plugs for Harvard
Despite the fact that the media are calling him a little slow and relaxed, and are heavilly bagging his 9-to-5 work attitude, George W. Bush will be the first president of the United States with an MBA. He completed his MBA at Harvard Business School in 1975. Harvard also boasts that 20% of the top 3 officers in the US Fortune 500 companies have a Harvard MBA. Impressive.
BTW, now that Dubya has made it to the White House, I will officially be known as "Adrian D. Hind". Don't forget that "D" - it's very distinguishing.
Or maybe I could follow a different American tradition, and refer to myself as "A. David Hind". Would people then call me "A" or "David"?
Despite the fact that the media are calling him a little slow and relaxed, and are heavilly bagging his 9-to-5 work attitude, George W. Bush will be the first president of the United States with an MBA. He completed his MBA at Harvard Business School in 1975. Harvard also boasts that 20% of the top 3 officers in the US Fortune 500 companies have a Harvard MBA. Impressive.
BTW, now that Dubya has made it to the White House, I will officially be known as "Adrian D. Hind". Don't forget that "D" - it's very distinguishing.
Or maybe I could follow a different American tradition, and refer to myself as "A. David Hind". Would people then call me "A" or "David"?
Friday, December 15, 2000
Fever
Surprisingly, I had very few health problems during my trip to the States. I was on a 1500mg/day dosage of vitamin C and was only drinking bottled water, so my best effort was a couple of minor 24-hour cases of the common cold as a result of climate changes (San Fran -> Chicago, and Miami -> Yosemite). I also managed to avoid the perils of jetlag - yippee!
Upon arriving back in Oz though, I've been hit with some throat bug and can barely talk. I'm certain it's something I picked up on the 14-hour Qantas flight home. Most annoying - I've got heaps of friends and family that I want to catch up with, and everytime I talk I sound like the Godfather.
Surprisingly, I had very few health problems during my trip to the States. I was on a 1500mg/day dosage of vitamin C and was only drinking bottled water, so my best effort was a couple of minor 24-hour cases of the common cold as a result of climate changes (San Fran -> Chicago, and Miami -> Yosemite). I also managed to avoid the perils of jetlag - yippee!
Upon arriving back in Oz though, I've been hit with some throat bug and can barely talk. I'm certain it's something I picked up on the 14-hour Qantas flight home. Most annoying - I've got heaps of friends and family that I want to catch up with, and everytime I talk I sound like the Godfather.
Back in the land of Oz
Hmm, a little slack during the final few days of my US trip, wasn't I? Maybe I was enjoying myself too much ;-)
I drove out to Yosemite National Park for a couple of days. Amazing place - incredibly scenic. I walked amongst thousand-year-old redwood trees, and saw the giant cliffs on Half Dome and El Capitan. Very tempted to take up rockclimbing now, if only to to be able to one day climb El Capitan.
My final few days in the US were spent back in San Francisco, shopping, absorbing the Christmas spirit, and hanging out in Jazz and Blues bars. All up, a fantastic trip. It's amazing that it's only two months since I left Australia. I've seen and experienced so much in my short time away (and yet there's so much more to see and do whenever I next make it back there).
Back in Australia, nothing much has changed. The Olympic enthusiasm is over, and it's now pretty much business as usual. I'll be travelling around the east coast of Australia a bit over the next two to three weeks, going back and forth to Melbourne a few times, and spending a few days at Thredbo with my family. If all goes according to plan, I'll be settled in a new abode in Melbourne by mid to late January, and will be able to start on the next phase in the Long Road to MBA - the GMAT, which I hope to take in June.
Hmm, a little slack during the final few days of my US trip, wasn't I? Maybe I was enjoying myself too much ;-)
I drove out to Yosemite National Park for a couple of days. Amazing place - incredibly scenic. I walked amongst thousand-year-old redwood trees, and saw the giant cliffs on Half Dome and El Capitan. Very tempted to take up rockclimbing now, if only to to be able to one day climb El Capitan.
My final few days in the US were spent back in San Francisco, shopping, absorbing the Christmas spirit, and hanging out in Jazz and Blues bars. All up, a fantastic trip. It's amazing that it's only two months since I left Australia. I've seen and experienced so much in my short time away (and yet there's so much more to see and do whenever I next make it back there).
Back in Australia, nothing much has changed. The Olympic enthusiasm is over, and it's now pretty much business as usual. I'll be travelling around the east coast of Australia a bit over the next two to three weeks, going back and forth to Melbourne a few times, and spending a few days at Thredbo with my family. If all goes according to plan, I'll be settled in a new abode in Melbourne by mid to late January, and will be able to start on the next phase in the Long Road to MBA - the GMAT, which I hope to take in June.
Wednesday, December 06, 2000
East coast to West coast
In an effort to fit in as much as possible before my flight home to Australia (now only a week away), I've upped the pace a bit. Went out to Key West yesterday, a funky little town at the end of the Florida Keys, proudly boasting the "southernmost point in continental USA" and its affliation with legendary writer Ernest Hemmingway. Key West is roughly 4 hours drive from Miami, mostly along US Highway 1 which connects the dozens of islands along the Keys. Remember the scene in True Lies where they're driving along a really, really long bridge - that's in the Keys. Its actually 7 miles in length and quite spectacular. Interestingly there's actually two 7 mile bridges - the original one has been abandoned.
One night in Key West absorbing some street theatre and downing a couple of beers at Sloppy Joes, and I was on the road again. 4 hours drive back to Miami, then a 6 hour flight to San Francisco. It's almost like returning home, as everything is familar. It's amazing to think that it's been about 5 - 6 weeks since I was last here. It definitely feels like a lot more.
If all goes well, I'll be heading out to Yosemite National Park tomorrow.
In an effort to fit in as much as possible before my flight home to Australia (now only a week away), I've upped the pace a bit. Went out to Key West yesterday, a funky little town at the end of the Florida Keys, proudly boasting the "southernmost point in continental USA" and its affliation with legendary writer Ernest Hemmingway. Key West is roughly 4 hours drive from Miami, mostly along US Highway 1 which connects the dozens of islands along the Keys. Remember the scene in True Lies where they're driving along a really, really long bridge - that's in the Keys. Its actually 7 miles in length and quite spectacular. Interestingly there's actually two 7 mile bridges - the original one has been abandoned.
One night in Key West absorbing some street theatre and downing a couple of beers at Sloppy Joes, and I was on the road again. 4 hours drive back to Miami, then a 6 hour flight to San Francisco. It's almost like returning home, as everything is familar. It's amazing to think that it's been about 5 - 6 weeks since I was last here. It definitely feels like a lot more.
If all goes well, I'll be heading out to Yosemite National Park tomorrow.
Monday, December 04, 2000
Live from Miami Beach... This is the Florida Report.
Bush leads by 537 votes, but now it's up to the courts to decide.
So much to see and do, and so little time. I've been in Florida for the past five days, starting in the Orlando area and gradually heading south. Planning to go all the way to Key West, the southern-most point in the USA.
I spent a day at Epcot, Disney's Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, which was both educational and entertaining - a combination of attractions/rides focussed on the history of human evolution and technological progress, and a showcase of the arts and cuisine of several countries throughout the world - no mention of Australia though. I also spent an evening at Pleasure Island, Disney's sole 'adults only' destination. It's a precinct of bars, clubs, and theatres when the one cover charge gets you into everything - street entertainment, a jazz bar, a 70's dance bar, a rock 'n' roll club, a comedy theatre ... you get the idea. Fantastic, and in typical Disney style they celebrate New Year's every night with a fireworks and dance display.
Thursday was Launch Day at the Kennedy Space Center, and lucky me (and three other Aussies that I met at the Orlando hostel) went out to the Space Coast for the full tour of the Space Center and then hung around on the coast south of Titusville to see the launch at night. Clear day, no clouds, slightly chilly. Thousands upon thousands were gathered for the launch. At precisely 10:06pm as scheduled, the launch site (about 10 miles from where we were) lit up like a huge ball of fire, and the Endeavor rapidly headed skyward. Absolutely awesome. The sound wave didn't hit us until about 90 seconds after the launch, which was definitely something one isn't used to. We were able to follow the rocket in the night sky like a shooting star for the full eight minutes until it finished its second burn. If I live in Florida I think I'd definitely turn into a launch junkie.
I left Orlando on Saturday having felt that I should really be staying at least another week - there is sooooo much to see and do in the area (save it for another time), and drove down the turnpike to Miami. Miami is the place to see and be seen. It's a town of body worship. People walk around in fancy clothes, dine in classy restaurants, and then hits the clubs to dance the night away. If your car isn't a late model sports car or a hotted up pick-up truck, leave it at home. Most amusing town - it feel so surreal and superficial. My favourite aspects of the place would definitely have to be the weather (it's dry season in the tropics here), and the Art Deco architecture. (you'll have to wait for the photos)
Went to the Everglades National Park today. Amazing wildlife - Turtles, alligators, and countless varieties of birds hang out in the waters. Great photography opportunity - kind of wish I had a better camera. I'm up to my 12th roll of film now - I've taken over 300 photos!
Bush leads by 537 votes, but now it's up to the courts to decide.
So much to see and do, and so little time. I've been in Florida for the past five days, starting in the Orlando area and gradually heading south. Planning to go all the way to Key West, the southern-most point in the USA.
I spent a day at Epcot, Disney's Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, which was both educational and entertaining - a combination of attractions/rides focussed on the history of human evolution and technological progress, and a showcase of the arts and cuisine of several countries throughout the world - no mention of Australia though. I also spent an evening at Pleasure Island, Disney's sole 'adults only' destination. It's a precinct of bars, clubs, and theatres when the one cover charge gets you into everything - street entertainment, a jazz bar, a 70's dance bar, a rock 'n' roll club, a comedy theatre ... you get the idea. Fantastic, and in typical Disney style they celebrate New Year's every night with a fireworks and dance display.
Thursday was Launch Day at the Kennedy Space Center, and lucky me (and three other Aussies that I met at the Orlando hostel) went out to the Space Coast for the full tour of the Space Center and then hung around on the coast south of Titusville to see the launch at night. Clear day, no clouds, slightly chilly. Thousands upon thousands were gathered for the launch. At precisely 10:06pm as scheduled, the launch site (about 10 miles from where we were) lit up like a huge ball of fire, and the Endeavor rapidly headed skyward. Absolutely awesome. The sound wave didn't hit us until about 90 seconds after the launch, which was definitely something one isn't used to. We were able to follow the rocket in the night sky like a shooting star for the full eight minutes until it finished its second burn. If I live in Florida I think I'd definitely turn into a launch junkie.
I left Orlando on Saturday having felt that I should really be staying at least another week - there is sooooo much to see and do in the area (save it for another time), and drove down the turnpike to Miami. Miami is the place to see and be seen. It's a town of body worship. People walk around in fancy clothes, dine in classy restaurants, and then hits the clubs to dance the night away. If your car isn't a late model sports car or a hotted up pick-up truck, leave it at home. Most amusing town - it feel so surreal and superficial. My favourite aspects of the place would definitely have to be the weather (it's dry season in the tropics here), and the Art Deco architecture. (you'll have to wait for the photos)
Went to the Everglades National Park today. Amazing wildlife - Turtles, alligators, and countless varieties of birds hang out in the waters. Great photography opportunity - kind of wish I had a better camera. I'm up to my 12th roll of film now - I've taken over 300 photos!
Monday, November 27, 2000
Change of plans...
For all of you who are eagerly awaiting my return to Australia - here's some good news . . . I'll be back in Sydney on December 14th.
I've decided to skip Austin and Denver. I've seen enough b-schools already, and I'm quite happy with my short-list, and while it'd be great to go skiing in Colarado, I'll save it for another time when some of you can join me. Last day in DC today . . . I'm off to Florida tomorrow - woo hoo!
For all of you who are eagerly awaiting my return to Australia - here's some good news . . . I'll be back in Sydney on December 14th.
I've decided to skip Austin and Denver. I've seen enough b-schools already, and I'm quite happy with my short-list, and while it'd be great to go skiing in Colarado, I'll save it for another time when some of you can join me. Last day in DC today . . . I'm off to Florida tomorrow - woo hoo!
So, what's been happening in the past week? ...
Ok, so I've been a little slack at keeping the weblog up to date over the past week or so. Truth be known I've been busy travelling, sightseeing, and absorbing the b-school scene in the north-east.
Last Monday I visited Columbia Business School in Morningside Heights in New York. This b-school has everything I'm looking for - well established, well regarded program, a campus atmosphere and a city location. There's even accomodation on campus for international students at subsidised rates - awesome! It is a little heavilly focussed on finance though, which is not surprising given its proximity to Wall Street. All up - pretty good. I've added it to my short-list and will be carefully watching how its entrepreneurship program develops over the next two years.
My final night in New York was pretty memorable. At the hostel I met a musician from Chicago who was on a similar quest to me (searching for a graduate program), and we went out on the town to the Village, visiting an entertaining bar/restaurant called Lips where all the waitresses were drag queens (hello to Ginger and Gusty Winds if you're listening). We also went out to a cool Jazz bar called the Blue Note - great music, but the drinks were way overpriced.
B-school number eleven was the Wharton Business School at the University of Pennsylvania in Philapdelphia. Wharton's aim seems to be to be the biggest and the best. They take around 700 students a year (slightly less than Harvard), and have the most clubs and the most electives. However, I fear they may have spread themselves too thin - some of the electives are hotly contested, whereas others have very few students. Interesting b-school, lovely historic campus, but if I lived there I think I'd find myself wondering off to New York all the time as there's not a great deal to do in Philadelphia. It was unfortunate that I visited Wharton the day before Thanksgiving as most of the students seemed to be discussing where they were going for the weekend rather than immersing themselves in the latest business concepts.
I spent Thanksgiving day checking out the historic sites in Philadelphia, went to see 'Unbreakable' to see the rest of the sites (quick review: worth checking out, great twist at the end, won't be as much of a classic as 'The Sixth Sense'), and then caught a train down to Washington, DC.
I've been in Washington for the past three days, absorbing myself in the Smithsonian, and taking heaps of photos of sculptures, monuments, and memorials. Amazing town - definitely one up on Canberra. The Smithsonian is huge - I've been to the Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden, the National Air & Space Museum, the National Gallery of Art, the National Museum of Natural History, and the National Museum of American History, and there's still more to see. The Thanksgiving weekend crowds were rather annoying, and the queues to visits special exhibitions and the Whitehouse are ridiculous, but overall its a great experience. When I originally allocated five days to visit Washington I thought it was a bit excessive, but it turns out that I could probably keep myself busy here for up to two weeks.
Alas, that won't be the case, as I'm off to Florida on Tuesday to pay homage to Disney and NASA.
Ok, so I've been a little slack at keeping the weblog up to date over the past week or so. Truth be known I've been busy travelling, sightseeing, and absorbing the b-school scene in the north-east.
Last Monday I visited Columbia Business School in Morningside Heights in New York. This b-school has everything I'm looking for - well established, well regarded program, a campus atmosphere and a city location. There's even accomodation on campus for international students at subsidised rates - awesome! It is a little heavilly focussed on finance though, which is not surprising given its proximity to Wall Street. All up - pretty good. I've added it to my short-list and will be carefully watching how its entrepreneurship program develops over the next two years.
My final night in New York was pretty memorable. At the hostel I met a musician from Chicago who was on a similar quest to me (searching for a graduate program), and we went out on the town to the Village, visiting an entertaining bar/restaurant called Lips where all the waitresses were drag queens (hello to Ginger and Gusty Winds if you're listening). We also went out to a cool Jazz bar called the Blue Note - great music, but the drinks were way overpriced.
B-school number eleven was the Wharton Business School at the University of Pennsylvania in Philapdelphia. Wharton's aim seems to be to be the biggest and the best. They take around 700 students a year (slightly less than Harvard), and have the most clubs and the most electives. However, I fear they may have spread themselves too thin - some of the electives are hotly contested, whereas others have very few students. Interesting b-school, lovely historic campus, but if I lived there I think I'd find myself wondering off to New York all the time as there's not a great deal to do in Philadelphia. It was unfortunate that I visited Wharton the day before Thanksgiving as most of the students seemed to be discussing where they were going for the weekend rather than immersing themselves in the latest business concepts.
I spent Thanksgiving day checking out the historic sites in Philadelphia, went to see 'Unbreakable' to see the rest of the sites (quick review: worth checking out, great twist at the end, won't be as much of a classic as 'The Sixth Sense'), and then caught a train down to Washington, DC.
I've been in Washington for the past three days, absorbing myself in the Smithsonian, and taking heaps of photos of sculptures, monuments, and memorials. Amazing town - definitely one up on Canberra. The Smithsonian is huge - I've been to the Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden, the National Air & Space Museum, the National Gallery of Art, the National Museum of Natural History, and the National Museum of American History, and there's still more to see. The Thanksgiving weekend crowds were rather annoying, and the queues to visits special exhibitions and the Whitehouse are ridiculous, but overall its a great experience. When I originally allocated five days to visit Washington I thought it was a bit excessive, but it turns out that I could probably keep myself busy here for up to two weeks.
Alas, that won't be the case, as I'm off to Florida on Tuesday to pay homage to Disney and NASA.
Thursday, November 23, 2000
Monday, November 20, 2000
New York, New York
The home of capitalism, world media, and the subway. I've been in New York for the past three days or so, taking in the various neighborhoods, visiting museums, and doing a bit of window shopping on Fifth Avenue. As expected, everything is a little bit more expensive here, although I've finally managed to find a trendy little internet cafe in the East Village that only charges $8/hr. (Kinkos wanted to charge me $18/hr !)
I've been walking in Central Park, visited the Statue of Liberty, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Guggenheim Museum. I've shopped on Fifth Avenue, and visited Times Square, and I've walked the streets of SoHo, TriBeCa, and just about every other neighbourhood south of Harlem. I was also fortunate enough to get tickets to see David Letterman (for those of you who were up late on Friday night, I was the one in the audience with the Harvard Business School sweater on ;-)
Visited NYU Stern last Thursday - as expected, it's way to focused on finance, and doesn't have much of a campus atmosphere. Interesting to visit nonetheless, and I'm going back there on Tuesday to attend an investment banking class. Columbia University in lined up for tomorrow, and Wharton on Thursday...
The home of capitalism, world media, and the subway. I've been in New York for the past three days or so, taking in the various neighborhoods, visiting museums, and doing a bit of window shopping on Fifth Avenue. As expected, everything is a little bit more expensive here, although I've finally managed to find a trendy little internet cafe in the East Village that only charges $8/hr. (Kinkos wanted to charge me $18/hr !)
I've been walking in Central Park, visited the Statue of Liberty, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Guggenheim Museum. I've shopped on Fifth Avenue, and visited Times Square, and I've walked the streets of SoHo, TriBeCa, and just about every other neighbourhood south of Harlem. I was also fortunate enough to get tickets to see David Letterman (for those of you who were up late on Friday night, I was the one in the audience with the Harvard Business School sweater on ;-)
Visited NYU Stern last Thursday - as expected, it's way to focused on finance, and doesn't have much of a campus atmosphere. Interesting to visit nonetheless, and I'm going back there on Tuesday to attend an investment banking class. Columbia University in lined up for tomorrow, and Wharton on Thursday...
Wednesday, November 15, 2000
MIT Sloan
MIT may not have the history or the beauty of the Harvard, but it makes up for it in it's appreciation of technology, and the level of personalisation and comradery within the school. I took part in the Sloan Ambassadors Program today, a well-organised 3-hour session in which a group of prospective students get to have a Q&A session with a member of the Admission staff, followed by lunch and Q&A with a couple of current Sloan students, followed by attending a typical class (in my case, a technology strategy class in which Xerox Technology Ventures was discussed).
The facilities at Sloan are not that impressive, perhaps even a little dated, but the school has recently raised over $100 million from alumni and the industry in general that will be spent on new buildings and facilities over the next few years. The entire school is set-up with a wireless network, and all the classrooms are also wired, so it's an interesting mix of old and new. Of course the Sloan students also have access to the facilities of the entire MIT campus as well.
I quite like the structure of the curriculum at Sloan. The class size is mid-range (around 325 students), and it's broken into cohorts for the first year. There's a fairly fixed core curriculum for the first year, and then in the second year you undertake a management track, which is reasonably equivalent to a major. Unlike Kellogg however, you can only do one management track, however it is common for students to switch between tracks in the process of completing the MBA. There's a large range of electives, and they also have a reciprocal agreement with HBS, so you can take electives down the road at Harvard as well (Sloan and HBS are about a half-hour walk apart).
No surprises, I guess, but I've now added Sloan to my short-list as well. Sloan and Harvard were the only two schools that I was reasonably certain would end up on my short-list even before I left Australia, but it's been fantastic to see the schools in action, attend classes, and meet some of the students. The difficultly I have now is that I already have five schools on my short-list, and I've still got to visit Stern (NYU), Columbia, Wharton (U Penn), and Texas ! Maybe I need to be more selective ;-)
No doubt at the end of the process I'll get a chance to evaluate the short-list as a whole, determine what's really important to me in terms of curriculum and general experience, and hopefully narrow the final short-list down to around four or five schools.
MIT may not have the history or the beauty of the Harvard, but it makes up for it in it's appreciation of technology, and the level of personalisation and comradery within the school. I took part in the Sloan Ambassadors Program today, a well-organised 3-hour session in which a group of prospective students get to have a Q&A session with a member of the Admission staff, followed by lunch and Q&A with a couple of current Sloan students, followed by attending a typical class (in my case, a technology strategy class in which Xerox Technology Ventures was discussed).
The facilities at Sloan are not that impressive, perhaps even a little dated, but the school has recently raised over $100 million from alumni and the industry in general that will be spent on new buildings and facilities over the next few years. The entire school is set-up with a wireless network, and all the classrooms are also wired, so it's an interesting mix of old and new. Of course the Sloan students also have access to the facilities of the entire MIT campus as well.
I quite like the structure of the curriculum at Sloan. The class size is mid-range (around 325 students), and it's broken into cohorts for the first year. There's a fairly fixed core curriculum for the first year, and then in the second year you undertake a management track, which is reasonably equivalent to a major. Unlike Kellogg however, you can only do one management track, however it is common for students to switch between tracks in the process of completing the MBA. There's a large range of electives, and they also have a reciprocal agreement with HBS, so you can take electives down the road at Harvard as well (Sloan and HBS are about a half-hour walk apart).
No surprises, I guess, but I've now added Sloan to my short-list as well. Sloan and Harvard were the only two schools that I was reasonably certain would end up on my short-list even before I left Australia, but it's been fantastic to see the schools in action, attend classes, and meet some of the students. The difficultly I have now is that I already have five schools on my short-list, and I've still got to visit Stern (NYU), Columbia, Wharton (U Penn), and Texas ! Maybe I need to be more selective ;-)
No doubt at the end of the process I'll get a chance to evaluate the short-list as a whole, determine what's really important to me in terms of curriculum and general experience, and hopefully narrow the final short-list down to around four or five schools.
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School isn't just a b-school; it's an institution. With 880 students in each incoming class, the b-school is massive. There are around ten buildings all interconnected by an underground tunnel system. I saw the case method in action at a 'Management of Technology' class - the company under investigation was Red Hat. I also attended an information session being conducted by a 2nd-year student who had formerly been a pilot and established leader in the Army.
The facilities at HBS are top-notch. The library is obviously very old, but has been decked out with heaps of PCs with flat-screen monitors and high-speed internet access. There's an impressive sports and recreation centre thats dedicated to the business school, which even includes an indoor running track. There's also dormitory and apartment accomodation within the b-school grounds (around 50% of the b-school students live on campus).
In terms of the academic curriculum - it's about 95% case based. Harvard in the home of the case method. In fact, most professors at other top b-schools prefer to publish their cases through Harvard. In the first year, you become part of a cohort of 80 students, and do all your classes with that group. The second year is all electives, and there are about 70 to choose from, plus you can takes classes from other schools within Harvard or from Sloan @ MIT.
Although it's a very big school, I think I'd really get a lot of value out of an MBA at HBS. The name is very well known, which would make a difference back in Australia (and throughout the rest of the world), the quality of education is impeccable, and the facilities are very impressive.
One final feature that makes a difference - all students (regardless of citizenship) can get a loan from Citibank to cover the full cost of the program. With all other schools that I've come across, you enough need to finance the first year yourself, or get a loan with a US citizen acting as a co-signer.
Bit of a diatribe, but suffice to say, I've now added Harvard to my short list.
Harvard Business School isn't just a b-school; it's an institution. With 880 students in each incoming class, the b-school is massive. There are around ten buildings all interconnected by an underground tunnel system. I saw the case method in action at a 'Management of Technology' class - the company under investigation was Red Hat. I also attended an information session being conducted by a 2nd-year student who had formerly been a pilot and established leader in the Army.
The facilities at HBS are top-notch. The library is obviously very old, but has been decked out with heaps of PCs with flat-screen monitors and high-speed internet access. There's an impressive sports and recreation centre thats dedicated to the business school, which even includes an indoor running track. There's also dormitory and apartment accomodation within the b-school grounds (around 50% of the b-school students live on campus).
In terms of the academic curriculum - it's about 95% case based. Harvard in the home of the case method. In fact, most professors at other top b-schools prefer to publish their cases through Harvard. In the first year, you become part of a cohort of 80 students, and do all your classes with that group. The second year is all electives, and there are about 70 to choose from, plus you can takes classes from other schools within Harvard or from Sloan @ MIT.
Although it's a very big school, I think I'd really get a lot of value out of an MBA at HBS. The name is very well known, which would make a difference back in Australia (and throughout the rest of the world), the quality of education is impeccable, and the facilities are very impressive.
One final feature that makes a difference - all students (regardless of citizenship) can get a loan from Citibank to cover the full cost of the program. With all other schools that I've come across, you enough need to finance the first year yourself, or get a loan with a US citizen acting as a co-signer.
Bit of a diatribe, but suffice to say, I've now added Harvard to my short list.
Monday, November 13, 2000
Boston, Massachusetts - a nice place to live
After an exhausting journey from Ann Arbor on Friday afternoon/night (bus, plane, plane, train, train, train, walk), I arrived in Boston, Massachusetts, undoubtedly one of my favourite cities in the world. The combination of 350 years of history, some really interesting architecture, the presence of Harvard and MIT, and a plethora of hip IT companies make for a top quality city. Very expensive on the housing front though. Been sightseeing and checking out the neighbourhoods this weekend. Campus tours and class visits start tomorrow.
After an exhausting journey from Ann Arbor on Friday afternoon/night (bus, plane, plane, train, train, train, walk), I arrived in Boston, Massachusetts, undoubtedly one of my favourite cities in the world. The combination of 350 years of history, some really interesting architecture, the presence of Harvard and MIT, and a plethora of hip IT companies make for a top quality city. Very expensive on the housing front though. Been sightseeing and checking out the neighbourhoods this weekend. Campus tours and class visits start tomorrow.
Friday, November 10, 2000
Half-way through...
Well, I've visited 6 out of the 12 b-schools on my list so far. Still to go are MIT, Harvard, NYU, Columbia, Wharton, and Texas. The school that has impressed me the most so far is Haas @ UC Berkeley. It's well-located, well-priced, and seems to have a very dynamic program with strengths in Entrepreneurship and E-Commerce. I've also like Stanford and Kellogg. I like the prestige associated with Stanford, and I think it would be a fantastic campus to spent a couple of years at. Kellogg seems to have an impressive program with a lot of flexibility, and some top quality professors. So, my short-list currently stands at 3 schools. I imagine I'll probably add 2 - 3 more to that list from the remaining six. Most of the people I've been talking to (current MBA students and other prospects) seems to be applying to around 5 schools, so I guess I'm right on the mark.
Well, I've visited 6 out of the 12 b-schools on my list so far. Still to go are MIT, Harvard, NYU, Columbia, Wharton, and Texas. The school that has impressed me the most so far is Haas @ UC Berkeley. It's well-located, well-priced, and seems to have a very dynamic program with strengths in Entrepreneurship and E-Commerce. I've also like Stanford and Kellogg. I like the prestige associated with Stanford, and I think it would be a fantastic campus to spent a couple of years at. Kellogg seems to have an impressive program with a lot of flexibility, and some top quality professors. So, my short-list currently stands at 3 schools. I imagine I'll probably add 2 - 3 more to that list from the remaining six. Most of the people I've been talking to (current MBA students and other prospects) seems to be applying to around 5 schools, so I guess I'm right on the mark.
University of Michigan Business School
Internet access has been difficult to come by over the past couple of days. I'm in Ann Arbor, Michigan today (some of you may need to get out your maps), visiting the business school at the University of Michigan. Ann Arbor is the qunitessential American college town, a population of around 140,000 consistenting mostly of students, university employees, and supporting businesses. The college football scene here is HUGE - the football stadium here seats over 100,000 people.
The b-school at U of M though did not seem all that special. It's very much a general management program. Nothing stood out as an outstanding feature of the program. It's well regarded and well ranked, and would probably provide a decent education. I've come out here to experience the university town culture, but I want to do my MBA in a big city (or very close to one).
Internet access has been difficult to come by over the past couple of days. I'm in Ann Arbor, Michigan today (some of you may need to get out your maps), visiting the business school at the University of Michigan. Ann Arbor is the qunitessential American college town, a population of around 140,000 consistenting mostly of students, university employees, and supporting businesses. The college football scene here is HUGE - the football stadium here seats over 100,000 people.
The b-school at U of M though did not seem all that special. It's very much a general management program. Nothing stood out as an outstanding feature of the program. It's well regarded and well ranked, and would probably provide a decent education. I've come out here to experience the university town culture, but I want to do my MBA in a big city (or very close to one).
Monday, November 06, 2000
Kellogg Graduate School of Management
Very impressed with Kellogg. They've got a good program with lots of flexibility, it's well-regarded by students and recruiters, and it's located in a lovely little city called Evanston, about 15 - 20 miles north of Chicago. I attended an information session and an Advertising class today, which I was both super-impressed with. Apparently, Kellogg's main strengths are Marketing and Finance, but their E-Commerce and Entrepreneurship streams are rapidly gaining in popularity. I think I'll have to come back tomorrow to attend another couple of classes and spend some more time checking out the campus, but so far ... I think I might like it here.
Very impressed with Kellogg. They've got a good program with lots of flexibility, it's well-regarded by students and recruiters, and it's located in a lovely little city called Evanston, about 15 - 20 miles north of Chicago. I attended an information session and an Advertising class today, which I was both super-impressed with. Apparently, Kellogg's main strengths are Marketing and Finance, but their E-Commerce and Entrepreneurship streams are rapidly gaining in popularity. I think I'll have to come back tomorrow to attend another couple of classes and spend some more time checking out the campus, but so far ... I think I might like it here.
University of Chicago GSB
Not impressed with the University of Chicago. Apparently the quality of the education is very good, but the neighbourhood is terrible. It's underprivileged, ugly, and just felt unsafe as I was walking through the area. I didn't even stay for an information session or to attend a class, as I have no interest in living in that sort of area for two years. The campus was also pretty average, and I didn't get a sense of comradery amoung the students. Rather than hanging around all day, I took the train all the way across town to Evanston...
Not impressed with the University of Chicago. Apparently the quality of the education is very good, but the neighbourhood is terrible. It's underprivileged, ugly, and just felt unsafe as I was walking through the area. I didn't even stay for an information session or to attend a class, as I have no interest in living in that sort of area for two years. The campus was also pretty average, and I didn't get a sense of comradery amoung the students. Rather than hanging around all day, I took the train all the way across town to Evanston...
Sunday, November 05, 2000
The Second City
Been in Chicago for about a day and a half now. Interesting city - very much into promoting itself as the USA's second largest city. It also has the second tallest building in the world (Sears Tower), from which the view last night was absolutely spectacular. Chicago doesn't seem to be very heavilly geared towards tourism - it's more of a workers' domain. Plenty of good shopping on Magnificent Mile though. B-schools lined up for Monday (Chicago) and Tuesday (Kellogg) - stay tuned for the reports.
Been in Chicago for about a day and a half now. Interesting city - very much into promoting itself as the USA's second largest city. It also has the second tallest building in the world (Sears Tower), from which the view last night was absolutely spectacular. Chicago doesn't seem to be very heavilly geared towards tourism - it's more of a workers' domain. Plenty of good shopping on Magnificent Mile though. B-schools lined up for Monday (Chicago) and Tuesday (Kellogg) - stay tuned for the reports.
Friday, November 03, 2000
Stanford Business School
Took the CalTrain out to Palo Alto today to visit Stanford University. Palo Alto is about 50 kilometres south of San Francisco, and the town basically exists to support the university. The Stanford University campus is absolutely gorgeous - well laid out and well cared for, lots of lawns and common areas, beautiful gardens, and many of the builidings are architecturally unique. Most of the buildings are funded by donations from wealthy alumni, but I imagine a great deal of the rather high student fees go towards maintaining the image of the place.
The fees for the Stanford MBA program are quite high (just under US$29K this year) - the highest I've seen so far, but this is also the first private university that I've visited. There's nothing particularly special about the curriculum for the program. It's extraordinarily flexible, with no requirement to do majors or concentrations. You can even take up to 16% of units outside of the b-school.
Essentially, I think the main drawcard is the Stanford experience itself, rather than any particular feature of the MBA program. Most students also live on campus (about 95% of the undergrads, and 45% of the grads), so there's a big culture that's built up over time that you become a part of.
Difficult to tell whether I'd want to apply to Stanford. The school's well-regarded, and I'm sure I'd get a top-flight education (if I actually got accepted - they get around 6000 applicants for only 365 positions), but I'd be concerned about living a sheltered life on campus or in a college town. I'd like to be able to experience American city living at the same time. Out of Stanford and Haas, I think Haas is more suited to my profile.
Took the CalTrain out to Palo Alto today to visit Stanford University. Palo Alto is about 50 kilometres south of San Francisco, and the town basically exists to support the university. The Stanford University campus is absolutely gorgeous - well laid out and well cared for, lots of lawns and common areas, beautiful gardens, and many of the builidings are architecturally unique. Most of the buildings are funded by donations from wealthy alumni, but I imagine a great deal of the rather high student fees go towards maintaining the image of the place.
The fees for the Stanford MBA program are quite high (just under US$29K this year) - the highest I've seen so far, but this is also the first private university that I've visited. There's nothing particularly special about the curriculum for the program. It's extraordinarily flexible, with no requirement to do majors or concentrations. You can even take up to 16% of units outside of the b-school.
Essentially, I think the main drawcard is the Stanford experience itself, rather than any particular feature of the MBA program. Most students also live on campus (about 95% of the undergrads, and 45% of the grads), so there's a big culture that's built up over time that you become a part of.
Difficult to tell whether I'd want to apply to Stanford. The school's well-regarded, and I'm sure I'd get a top-flight education (if I actually got accepted - they get around 6000 applicants for only 365 positions), but I'd be concerned about living a sheltered life on campus or in a college town. I'd like to be able to experience American city living at the same time. Out of Stanford and Haas, I think Haas is more suited to my profile.
Thursday, November 02, 2000
Alcatraz
A visit to San Francisco isn't complete without a tour of Alcatraz Island, so this morning I caught the cable car to Fishermans Wharf, and bought a ferry ticket out to Alcatraz. The island is actually very close to the San Francisco penisula, and the ferry trip took less than ten minutes. To my disappointment, I discovered that there were some scenes in "The Rock" that must have been filmed elsewhere ;-( A lot of the island is very run-down, with several buildings reduced to rubble. The main cell block has been well maintained, and there's an audio tour that you can do that tells the story of how several of the inmates lived. I also got to walk around in the "recreation area", which is just a big concrete yard with high walls. All up - an interesting experience, definitely one of the nicer prisons that I've visited (as a tourist ;-), and good value at only US$12.
A visit to San Francisco isn't complete without a tour of Alcatraz Island, so this morning I caught the cable car to Fishermans Wharf, and bought a ferry ticket out to Alcatraz. The island is actually very close to the San Francisco penisula, and the ferry trip took less than ten minutes. To my disappointment, I discovered that there were some scenes in "The Rock" that must have been filmed elsewhere ;-( A lot of the island is very run-down, with several buildings reduced to rubble. The main cell block has been well maintained, and there's an audio tour that you can do that tells the story of how several of the inmates lived. I also got to walk around in the "recreation area", which is just a big concrete yard with high walls. All up - an interesting experience, definitely one of the nicer prisons that I've visited (as a tourist ;-), and good value at only US$12.
Halloween on Castro
Wow! San Francisco definitely knows how to party. Halloween is huge event in the USA, and I was fortunate enough to be at the right place at the right time last night and experience Halloween on Castro St in San Francisco (along with half a million other people ;-). It was as big as the Mardi Gras in Sydney, but even better because so many people in the crowd get involved - infact the crowd is the event itself. Several blocks were closed off to traffic, and everyone just mingled, checking out each others' costumes and generally having a good time. Awesome!
Wow! San Francisco definitely knows how to party. Halloween is huge event in the USA, and I was fortunate enough to be at the right place at the right time last night and experience Halloween on Castro St in San Francisco (along with half a million other people ;-). It was as big as the Mardi Gras in Sydney, but even better because so many people in the crowd get involved - infact the crowd is the event itself. Several blocks were closed off to traffic, and everyone just mingled, checking out each others' costumes and generally having a good time. Awesome!
Wednesday, November 01, 2000
Haas @ Berkeley
Went across the bay to Berkeley today to visit the Haas School of Business at the Berkeley campus of University of California. While the campus wasn't all that visually impressive, the b-school definitely made up for it. I attended two classes; a first-year class in introductory finance (dull, but absolutely essential), and a second-year class called 'Negotiation & Conflict Resolution" which was very interesting, and utilised the backgrounds of the international student body very well.
I was also fortunate to attend a speech from Thomas Siebel, the founder and CEO of Siebel Systems. This is one of the major advantages of attending a b-school that is located close to the business community. Several of the businesses that you're studying are literally just down the road (or at least within an hour or two's drive).
Being a public school, the fees at Haas are a little lower than the private schools. Studying at Haas (for an international student) is *only* US$20,000 a year. In comparison with the other US b-schools, I think Haas definitely has potential for me. It's well located, well priced, and seems to be well regarded by the local business community. Congatulations Haas, you've made it to my short-list.
Went across the bay to Berkeley today to visit the Haas School of Business at the Berkeley campus of University of California. While the campus wasn't all that visually impressive, the b-school definitely made up for it. I attended two classes; a first-year class in introductory finance (dull, but absolutely essential), and a second-year class called 'Negotiation & Conflict Resolution" which was very interesting, and utilised the backgrounds of the international student body very well.
I was also fortunate to attend a speech from Thomas Siebel, the founder and CEO of Siebel Systems. This is one of the major advantages of attending a b-school that is located close to the business community. Several of the businesses that you're studying are literally just down the road (or at least within an hour or two's drive).
Being a public school, the fees at Haas are a little lower than the private schools. Studying at Haas (for an international student) is *only* US$20,000 a year. In comparison with the other US b-schools, I think Haas definitely has potential for me. It's well located, well priced, and seems to be well regarded by the local business community. Congatulations Haas, you've made it to my short-list.
Sunday, October 29, 2000
SFMOMA
Much like wine, one's appreciation for art seems to improve with age. Yesterday I had the opportunity to visit the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (more commonly known as SFMOMA). After queing for about 20 minutes, and paying the moderately steep entry fee of US$9, I wandered in amazement around this fairly large collection of modern art. There were the token single colour paintings with titles like 'Expression of Red" or "Yes, it's just blue paint on canvas!", but there were also plenty of interesting photographs, collages, paintings, and strangely shaped objects. I was able to see originals by Mondrian, Picasso, and Dali. Fantastic!! (and New York is still to come).
Much like wine, one's appreciation for art seems to improve with age. Yesterday I had the opportunity to visit the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (more commonly known as SFMOMA). After queing for about 20 minutes, and paying the moderately steep entry fee of US$9, I wandered in amazement around this fairly large collection of modern art. There were the token single colour paintings with titles like 'Expression of Red" or "Yes, it's just blue paint on canvas!", but there were also plenty of interesting photographs, collages, paintings, and strangely shaped objects. I was able to see originals by Mondrian, Picasso, and Dali. Fantastic!! (and New York is still to come).
Metreon - the shrine to Sony
Awesome. Metreon is located in downtown San Francisco. It's essentially a shrine to everything Sony. There's an IMAX theatre as well as a regular cinema. There's a 'Sony Style' shop with all the latest Sony gadgets and big-screen TVs. There's also a huge shop purely dedicated to Playstation (although they were out of Playstation 2 consoles). Restuarants, cafes, and a few other non-Sony shops as well. This place rocks.
Awesome. Metreon is located in downtown San Francisco. It's essentially a shrine to everything Sony. There's an IMAX theatre as well as a regular cinema. There's a 'Sony Style' shop with all the latest Sony gadgets and big-screen TVs. There's also a huge shop purely dedicated to Playstation (although they were out of Playstation 2 consoles). Restuarants, cafes, and a few other non-Sony shops as well. This place rocks.
Saturday, October 28, 2000
San Francisco
Woo hoo! Just arrived in San Fran. The hostel I'm staying in is a bit of a dive, but it'll suffice. First impressions of San Fran (I've only been here 6 hours) - I like this place. The people are friendly, the city has trams, there's heaps of historical culture, and the coffee in good. In some ways the city reminds me of Sydney. I'll be here for a week - more detailed updates over the new few days.
I had an extra day in Palm Springs at the end of the conference, and used the opportunity to take a ride on the Aerial Tramway. It's essentially a big carriage that gets carried up from the desert floor to the mountain range on a cable. The view is absolutely fantastic, and it's made even better by the fact that the floor of the tram rotates as the journey progresses. Stark contrast - at the bottom of the ride you're in the desert, and it's about 25 degrees. At the top of the ride you're in the mountains and it's almost zero and snowing. Cool.
Woo hoo! Just arrived in San Fran. The hostel I'm staying in is a bit of a dive, but it'll suffice. First impressions of San Fran (I've only been here 6 hours) - I like this place. The people are friendly, the city has trams, there's heaps of historical culture, and the coffee in good. In some ways the city reminds me of Sydney. I'll be here for a week - more detailed updates over the new few days.
I had an extra day in Palm Springs at the end of the conference, and used the opportunity to take a ride on the Aerial Tramway. It's essentially a big carriage that gets carried up from the desert floor to the mountain range on a cable. The view is absolutely fantastic, and it's made even better by the fact that the floor of the tram rotates as the journey progresses. Stark contrast - at the bottom of the ride you're in the desert, and it's about 25 degrees. At the top of the ride you're in the mountains and it's almost zero and snowing. Cool.
Wednesday, October 25, 2000
Get your MBA online!
Jones International University is "the first fully online accredited university". Their MBA program looks to be fairly well structured, and I'm sure they'll do reasonably well, but personally, I really value the face-to-face and group discussion component of tertiary education. Online learning has it's place, but I'd rather spend $700 on a collection of good textbooks than pay for the right to put a couple of assignments together based on some assigned reading. For management and business education, I really feel that their is no alternative to the classroom - that's where the value is, that's why people pay upwards of US$50,000 to get their MBA education at a top-flight b-school.
Jones International University is "the first fully online accredited university". Their MBA program looks to be fairly well structured, and I'm sure they'll do reasonably well, but personally, I really value the face-to-face and group discussion component of tertiary education. Online learning has it's place, but I'd rather spend $700 on a collection of good textbooks than pay for the right to put a couple of assignments together based on some assigned reading. For management and business education, I really feel that their is no alternative to the classroom - that's where the value is, that's why people pay upwards of US$50,000 to get their MBA education at a top-flight b-school.
Sunday, October 22, 2000
Border Grill - Santa Monica
Went to an awesome Mexican restaurant in Santa Monica last night called Border Grill - tequilas a plenty. Also checked out the J. Paul Getty Museum - most impressive (and it's free!). Change of scene now - I'm in Palm Springs for a FileNET conference. Back on the road later this week.
Went to an awesome Mexican restaurant in Santa Monica last night called Border Grill - tequilas a plenty. Also checked out the J. Paul Getty Museum - most impressive (and it's free!). Change of scene now - I'm in Palm Springs for a FileNET conference. Back on the road later this week.
Friday, October 20, 2000
MBA Forum @ Westin Bonaventure hotel
Attended the MBA Forum this evening hoping to narrow down my b-school long-list by talking to some of the admissions staff and graduates. Instead I now have an additional b-school on my list that I want to research further and possibly visit - Babson College in Massachusetts. It's a reasonably small school (about 150 full-time students per year) with a program that's very strong in entrepreneurship. I was also amazed at the number of universities that are out there competing for those MBA student dollars. There were over 120 b-schools represented at the forum in Los Angeles this evening.
Attended the MBA Forum this evening hoping to narrow down my b-school long-list by talking to some of the admissions staff and graduates. Instead I now have an additional b-school on my list that I want to research further and possibly visit - Babson College in Massachusetts. It's a reasonably small school (about 150 full-time students per year) with a program that's very strong in entrepreneurship. I was also amazed at the number of universities that are out there competing for those MBA student dollars. There were over 120 b-schools represented at the forum in Los Angeles this evening.
Wednesday, October 18, 2000
Kinkos to the rescue
Woo hoo! My craving for internet connectivity has been resolved. Kinkos in Santa Monica have proper PCs with internet connectivity and 17" Sony monitors for 20c/min.
Woo hoo! My craving for internet connectivity has been resolved. Kinkos in Santa Monica have proper PCs with internet connectivity and 17" Sony monitors for 20c/min.
I'm creating this post from a free internet machine on campus at UCLA. Spent the entire day here, walking around, checking out the buildings, getting a general feel for the place. I also attended a class on Strategy in the Digital Economy at the b-school (Anderson). Getting access to the internet has been fairly eratic, so don't expect me to be posting every day.
Anderson seems to be a fairly decent school. The course content is very fresh, and the students are very knowledgable and experienced. I'm still only rating it as a maybe though, as I'm not a big fan of the city of LA (too much smog ;-)
Anderson seems to be a fairly decent school. The course content is very fresh, and the students are very knowledgable and experienced. I'm still only rating it as a maybe though, as I'm not a big fan of the city of LA (too much smog ;-)
Sunday, October 15, 2000
1 day to go
This time tomorrow, I'll be at the airport about to depart for my 14-hour flight to Los Angeles. This trip has been over a year in the making, and the day has finally arrived. I'm all packed and ready to go. And surprise, surprise - the Aussie dollar has just bottomed out at an all time low of around US 52.5c.
I've set myself up with web access to all the key services I need - email, finances, blogger, bookmarks (go blink!), instant messaging, and file management. I'm not taking a laptop with me, so I'll be relying completely on internet cafes and web terminals for my connection to the rest of the world.
First destination - Santa Monica!
This time tomorrow, I'll be at the airport about to depart for my 14-hour flight to Los Angeles. This trip has been over a year in the making, and the day has finally arrived. I'm all packed and ready to go. And surprise, surprise - the Aussie dollar has just bottomed out at an all time low of around US 52.5c.
I've set myself up with web access to all the key services I need - email, finances, blogger, bookmarks (go blink!), instant messaging, and file management. I'm not taking a laptop with me, so I'll be relying completely on internet cafes and web terminals for my connection to the rest of the world.
First destination - Santa Monica!
Thursday, October 12, 2000
Business Week B-Schools
Business Week Online have a vast array of content regarding US b-schools and the application process. Definitely recommended reading. I especially like the MBA Journals section - some interesting advice there for the long application process I'll be going through next year.
Business Week Online have a vast array of content regarding US b-schools and the application process. Definitely recommended reading. I especially like the MBA Journals section - some interesting advice there for the long application process I'll be going through next year.
Wednesday, October 11, 2000
Discover the "Daniels Difference"
Ever since I signed up for the MBA Forum in Los Angeles next week, I've been receiving emails from universities all over the world, trying desparately to promote themselves as alternatives to the big name b-schools. Here's the latest one, from the University of Denver!
The University of Denver Daniels College of Business is the premier business school in the Rocky Mountain Region, offering an integrated curriculum, values-based leadership, and a technologically advanced business school. Furthermore, as one of the nation's strongest urban economies, Denver is the headquarters for several Fortune 500 companies and internationally-based companies. We offer an array of full-time and part-time programs to fit your professional goals.
Ever since I signed up for the MBA Forum in Los Angeles next week, I've been receiving emails from universities all over the world, trying desparately to promote themselves as alternatives to the big name b-schools. Here's the latest one, from the University of Denver!
The University of Denver Daniels College of Business is the premier business school in the Rocky Mountain Region, offering an integrated curriculum, values-based leadership, and a technologically advanced business school. Furthermore, as one of the nation's strongest urban economies, Denver is the headquarters for several Fortune 500 companies and internationally-based companies. We offer an array of full-time and part-time programs to fit your professional goals.
Sunday, October 08, 2000
The value of seeing televised sport live
Idiots! Channel 9 normally televise the Formula 1 Grand Prix events live. With the time difference between Australia and Europe, this means that the race usually starts around 11:00pm on a Sunday night. This afternoon, however, the Grand Prix is in Japan. Woo hoo! I thought - the race will be on at a reasonable hour (4:30pm), and I'll hopefully be able to see Schumacher take home the championship before dinner. But no, for some stupid reason - Channel 9 are showing 'The Neverending Story II' and some documentary about Loch Ness. The race isn't being shown until 11:35pm. Personally, I get much more value out of watching a sporting event as it happens. The whole delayed telecast thing just doesn't appeal to me. My solution - I'm 'watching' it on the internet. formula1.com have a popup window with blow-by-blow text descriptions of the race. Not quite the same, but at least there's no cigarette advertising ;-)
Idiots! Channel 9 normally televise the Formula 1 Grand Prix events live. With the time difference between Australia and Europe, this means that the race usually starts around 11:00pm on a Sunday night. This afternoon, however, the Grand Prix is in Japan. Woo hoo! I thought - the race will be on at a reasonable hour (4:30pm), and I'll hopefully be able to see Schumacher take home the championship before dinner. But no, for some stupid reason - Channel 9 are showing 'The Neverending Story II' and some documentary about Loch Ness. The race isn't being shown until 11:35pm. Personally, I get much more value out of watching a sporting event as it happens. The whole delayed telecast thing just doesn't appeal to me. My solution - I'm 'watching' it on the internet. formula1.com have a popup window with blow-by-blow text descriptions of the race. Not quite the same, but at least there's no cigarette advertising ;-)
Long List
I've mentioned a few of them already, but here's the list of b-schools that I'm planning to visit in the US this year. Hopefully, after visiting the schools, I'll be able to narrow down this list to about 6 - 8 that suit my requirements, and I'll be able to start the application process later next year.
I've mentioned a few of them already, but here's the list of b-schools that I'm planning to visit in the US this year. Hopefully, after visiting the schools, I'll be able to narrow down this list to about 6 - 8 that suit my requirements, and I'll be able to start the application process later next year.
- Andersen (UCLA)
- Haas (UC, Berkeley)
- Stanford
- Chicago
- Kellogg (Northwestern University)
- Michigan
- Harvard
- Sloan (MIT)
- Stern (NYU)
- Columbia
- Wharton (UPenn)
- Texas
Millers Storage Group
Quick plug for Millers. I've been using their boxes to packup all the things in my apartment. Their storage centre in Pyrmont (Ultimo) stands out like a sore thumb, thanks to its size and the overuse of bright orange in their colour scheme.
Quick plug for Millers. I've been using their boxes to packup all the things in my apartment. Their storage centre in Pyrmont (Ultimo) stands out like a sore thumb, thanks to its size and the overuse of bright orange in their colour scheme.
8 days to go
My trip to the US is creeping up on me very quickly, but I'm fairly certain I'm going to be ready for it. Even though I may have only started this weblog two weeks before my departure, this trip has actually been in the planning stages for at least 12 months. At the same time though, I've been involved in a couple of projects at work which have involved heaps of interstate travel. So, it's been difficult to get excited about an upcoming 'road trip' when you're on the road 50% of the time already. In 1999 I clocked up 56 flights, a personal record. So far in 2000, I've 'only' made 36 flights. I have at least 15 flights booked for my US trip, so again, it looks like I'll exceed 50 flights in a year.
My trip to the US is creeping up on me very quickly, but I'm fairly certain I'm going to be ready for it. Even though I may have only started this weblog two weeks before my departure, this trip has actually been in the planning stages for at least 12 months. At the same time though, I've been involved in a couple of projects at work which have involved heaps of interstate travel. So, it's been difficult to get excited about an upcoming 'road trip' when you're on the road 50% of the time already. In 1999 I clocked up 56 flights, a personal record. So far in 2000, I've 'only' made 36 flights. I have at least 15 flights booked for my US trip, so again, it looks like I'll exceed 50 flights in a year.
Fortunately, I'm spending my final two weeks at home in Sydney. This has given me time to get my life in order, pack up most of the things in my house, and catch up with my friends one last time while I can still call myself a Sydneysider. When I get back from the US, I'm planning to move to Melbourne (same company, same job, just based in a different location). The last time I moved interstate was eight years ago, when I 'left home' in Darwin, and moved to Sydney for university. I had about two boxes of clothes and books that time, and the move was relatively painless (logistically). Eight years of personal growth and junk accumulation, and I now have about 15 - 20 boxes of 'things' plus half a household of furniture.
Thursday, October 05, 2000
Change of plans - I'm no longer going to San Diego. Unfortunately the friend I was going to stay with will be out of town, so I get to spend a few extra days in Los Angeles instead. Turns out one of my best mates from Sydney will be in LA at the same time, so I'm looking forward to a big weekend. One of my colleagues at work has suggested I add Seattle to my itinerary. I originally had Seattle on my itinerary, but I had to remove it to make way for Chicago. The thought of a bottomless cup of coffee at the home of Starbucks is tempting though...
Tuesday, October 03, 2000
San Francisco Jazz Festival - Turns out I'm going to be in San Fran during their annual Jazz Festival. Cool. Better hurry up and book my accommodation ;-)
Contact details while I'm away
I'll be regularly checking both my Com Tech email address and my hotmail address, so please continue to use what you're used to. I'll also be logging on fairly regularly to AOL IM - my screenname is "adrianhind". At this stage, I'm unlikely to have a telephone number or access to SMS. Damn American mobile networks aren't all that compatible with the rest of the world.
I'll be regularly checking both my Com Tech email address and my hotmail address, so please continue to use what you're used to. I'll also be logging on fairly regularly to AOL IM - my screenname is "adrianhind". At this stage, I'm unlikely to have a telephone number or access to SMS. Damn American mobile networks aren't all that compatible with the rest of the world.
Monday, October 02, 2000
For a b-school that is supposed to be heavily focussed on Marketing curriculum, Kellogg's web site could probably afford a bit of a makeover.
Chicago GSB is also on my list of potential b-schools, but in all honesty, I've had difficultly judging this one. I've never actually visited Chicago, and I've chosen a fairly cold time of the year (November) for my b-school visit, so I'm hoping my impression of the weather won't get in the way of my analysis of this supposedly well-respected b-school.
New MBA Class Comes from 266 Firms and 32 Countries
"Bearing passports from 32 different countries and job experience with 266 different organizations, the Stanford MBA Class of 2002 settles down to the books Sept. 27"
Stanford is one of the top b-schools in the world, located in the beautiful city of San Francisco. It is also one of the most difficult schools to get into, with roughly 5% of applications being successful.
"Bearing passports from 32 different countries and job experience with 266 different organizations, the Stanford MBA Class of 2002 settles down to the books Sept. 27"
Stanford is one of the top b-schools in the world, located in the beautiful city of San Francisco. It is also one of the most difficult schools to get into, with roughly 5% of applications being successful.
Anderson @ UCLA - planning to visit on October 17th. This one isn't high on my list at the moment. I'm not sure if I'd really want to live in Los Angeles for two years, but it's worth checking out nonetheless.
Sunday, October 01, 2000
Sloan cuts the connection
One of my favourite b-schools, MIT Sloan, has implemented a wireless network for all student laptops on campus. Very impressive.
One of my favourite b-schools, MIT Sloan, has implemented a wireless network for all student laptops on campus. Very impressive.
Itinerary
Planning two months in another country is never an easy task, especially when you've got heaps of different places you want to visit and events on particular days in certain cities that you want to attend. My itinerary for USA 2000 has been through at least nine major overhauls. With 15 days until I leave, it's reasonably fixed now, but since I have not yet had my plane tickets printed, it's highly likely that it could still change slightly.
My basic itinerary is as follows:
Sydney -> Los Angeles -> Palm Springs -> San Diego -> San Francisco -> Chicago -> Ann Arbor -> Boston -> New York -> Philadelphia -> Washington DC -> Orlando -> Miami -> Austin -> Denver -> San Francisco -> Sydney.
Planning two months in another country is never an easy task, especially when you've got heaps of different places you want to visit and events on particular days in certain cities that you want to attend. My itinerary for USA 2000 has been through at least nine major overhauls. With 15 days until I leave, it's reasonably fixed now, but since I have not yet had my plane tickets printed, it's highly likely that it could still change slightly.
My basic itinerary is as follows:
Sydney -> Los Angeles -> Palm Springs -> San Diego -> San Francisco -> Chicago -> Ann Arbor -> Boston -> New York -> Philadelphia -> Washington DC -> Orlando -> Miami -> Austin -> Denver -> San Francisco -> Sydney.
Let the journey begin. In just over two weeks time, I'll be leaving my overly excited Olympic home town of Sydney for the thrills and chills of the USA. For roughly two months I'll be travelling around the USA by plane, train, and automobile seeking out potential business schools for study in a few years time. I'm also planning to take in a shuttle launch, attending a conference in Palm Springs, do plenty of sightseeing, and visit friends in Boston, San Diego, and possibly San Francisco.
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