hey man, now you’re really livin’

hey all, forget this blog like now, and join me over at rainierisms for my combined effort with m@ as i go through b-skool.

Operation: Network

I thought that the time between being admitted and actually moving to Ann Arbor would be pretty low-key. I have 3 months off work, and figured I would be pretty bored if not for 2 seasons of Lost, 1 season of Heroes, Super Smash Brothers Brawl, Guitar Hero, and Wii Sports.

Bragfest 2008!

However, I am trying to stay aware of exactly what lies ahead, and remember that the next two years of my life are focused on pursuing the career of my dreams. One of the ways I think it’s good to occupy your summer before b-school is updating your professional network. A nice mixture of e-mails, phone calls, and good old postal mail is appropriate, to introduce yourself to alumni, touch base with former supervisors and executives, asking their advice and informing them of your plans and goals. Brag a bit, but don’t forget to stroke egos and humbly remember those who have invested in you along the way.

And so, rocking out Even Flow, Dragonforce, and Raining Blood will have to wait, because I have a lot of people to contact!

– I mentioned my plans to my company’s CEO in the hallway, and will follow up with an email.

– Remember my HBS alum who is a local executive–the one I met with after work one day for a chat about b school? He’s getting an email for sure. We’ve been in touch once or twice since we met, and I will definitely keep that open. Eli Lilly recruits at Ross.

– I scheduled a meeting with my company’s CIO, complete with an agenda, to discuss one-on-one what his career path has been like and what advice he has for me going through school and into management.

– I noticed that one of the VPs at my undergrad institution is a Ross MBA. I emailed him to introduce myself and ask for his pointers in starting out at Ross.

– Speaking of undergrad, a fundraising letter I received from the advancement office recently was signed by the matching donor, who is a Consulting executive for IBM Global Business Solutions. You better bet I’ll be in touch with him, if I have to fly to his office, chloroform his secretary, and wait outside the door for him to return from whatever engagement he’s on. Oh, and I definitely contributed to the scholarship fund he was establishing. Fifty dollars well-spent.

– The CEO of Chemed, Inc., which is the parent company of Roto-Rooter and several other companies in Cincinnati, is a generous old man from my hometown whose foundation awarded me a lot of scholarship money for undergrad. I kept him abreast of my plans through undergrad and actually did an internship at one of his companies before moving to Indy. He’ll be getting a nice letter on expensive paper, once again thanking him for his support and updating him on my plans.

– The charitable organizations I’ve worked with in Indy will be hearing about my plans as well. One of them in particular is recognized as a premiere hunger relief organization, and is a great example of a social enterprise in action. Social enterprise management is my long-term career plan, so I’ll be reaching out to that organization.

Best Summer Ever

I can’t be ALL business, though, can I? Don’t worry. Even though I’ll be emailing and writing letters until the corn is harvested, I fully intend to have the most possible fun during my time off work this summer. This is the beginning of what I’ve got planned.

– Volunteering at the Special Olympics in my home town

– Travelling to Oklahoma to see my sister’s high school graduation

– A trip to NYC with my dad to see a game in Yankee Stadium before it closes, our hatred of the Yanks notwithstanding.

– Playing on the Brain Games, a trivia contest in my home town. My dad asked if I’d join his team.

– Finishing up my advisory council duties for a local music and arts festival

– Finishing up my United Way leadership series and board internship

****Mtrek!****

– Lollapalooza!

– Grilling out, drive-in movies, a few Indianapolis Indians games, and plenty of sleeping in!

But wait, there’s more!

All the while, Fall A will be quickly approaching, so I must stay on top of the administrative/preparatory tasks I have to take care of before school, some of which I’ve already done:

– order transcripts

– apply for loans

– enroll, set up my UofM student account

– keep my house in showing condition while I and my 4 roommates still live in it

– finalize my apartment lease in Ann Arbor

– register for m-trek

– get a new cell phone contract when I begrudgingly return the phone my employer has provided me for the past 2 years. I’m borrowing an old blackjack from my stepdad until the summer release of the iPhone 3g (I hope)!

– buy a computer

– sell a bunch of my crap that I don’t need, like my analog TV, old clothes, old computers, and furniture.

Breathe! Relax!

So it seems like a lot to do, but I’m sure it won’t be that bad. I am fully aware that 3 months off only comes along once in a lifetime (unless you are a teacher, or chronically unemployed, or a professional student). Believe you me, I WILL be fully enjoying every day. But for all of you other admits– GO FORTH AND NETWORK!

Thanks!

A shout out to Clear Admit for their Best of Blogging nomination!  Thanks, CA!

Good luck to all the bloggers nominated, I hope you win the 2nd- and 3rd-place prizes, and that I win the iPod Touch!

Observations

Well here I am, the day after GBR 2008, a couple weeks away from quitting work, and planning the rest of my summer and fall. I’ve picked up a couple of observations about Ann Arbor, Ross, and bschool in general.

1. Hello Means Goodbye

On Thursday night, the first night of GBR, I went home scared spitless suddenly. It was the first time I realized, I think, what was going on. I realized I was moving away from my whole community of friends and would have to start building a new one. I realized I am trying to sell my house, but have no idea if it will. I realized that I didn’t really know ANYONE at Ross, so I began preparing for those lonely nights that I’ll have in the fall. I realized that my introversion will be confronted head on and assaulted, and I will have to fight the urge to withdraw into my shell.

It will all be new, and it is exciting, but for the first time, I understood that it’s not only adding something new, but also saying a permanent goodbye to a lot of the old, in all likelihood. I mean, I can stay in touch with some friends, but most of my life in Indy will fall by the wayside whether I want it to or not.

2. Don’t Sweat The Small Stuff. (Or, Logistics Don’t Break Deals)

I found a great apartment in Ann Arbor. I was a little bit nervous about finding a place close to school, where I can bring my dog, and that is a 1br to have to myself. Just so happens, that place was the FIRST place I called. It’s a beautiful, roomy 2nd floor apt, with a sun room, cabinets with glass that go all the way to the ceiling, pull-out beds, and lots of storage space, and a parking spot! oh yeah, and it’s two blocks from the school. Really. An unbelievable find, and the landlord is really cool, the current residents said he’s very accessible, ‘the best’ they’ve had. Jackpot!  Small problem is, the landlord says it’s leased until September 1, which is 2 or 3 weeks after things get fired up in Ann Arbor!  Oh well, it will work out.  This apartment is worth the wait.  Those are logistics.  They can be solved.

3. Even Leaders Need Leaders

I also saw at GBR that even students coming to one of the top business schools in the country are yearning for leaders. In the group activities, even these ‘best leaders’ were waiting for someone to step up and take things by the horns. I’m good at that, and I think it will serve me well at school. The real observation I made, though, was before GBR. I don’t know if it’s just the acceptance/vote of confidence from adcom, or maybe just the sum of all things bschool over the last 12 months, but I have been taking on a new attitude lately. I have been approaching many situations as problems that just need to be managed, and I have been making an effort to step in and manage them. That’s business, right? Not only are the leaders looking for leaders, but the world is as well. It’s not a cold, heartless attitude, really, but just the freedom to step into the leadership that has been waiting for me all along. I think being accepted to a program like Michigan made me feel like I am already, at some level, qualified to be a leader and a manager, and I’ve felt more willingness on my part to act like it. I have gained confidence and assertiveness, and I’m grabbing hold of things left and right and making them mine. And it is SO FUN!

4. Time Waits For No One, Especially Not Me

So, those are a couple of the observations I have gleaned in the last week. Much lies ahead, and some things are already laying behind, but it can only go forward from here, so I might as well step right up.  If I don’t, it will all pass me by before I even realize I missed it.

It’s Official..

Dear gltnforpnshmnt:

The MBA Admissions Board appreciates your interest in our MBA Program and the considerable effort evident in your application. Unfortunately, we are unable to offer you a place in the MBA Class of 2010.

The MBA Admissions Board carefully and thoughtfully assesses each application. Because of the large number of applications we receive, we are unable to admit many candidates who have excellent credentials and who demonstrate strong promise for careers in management.

Thank you for considering our MBA Program, and please accept our best wishes for future success.

Sincerely,

Deirdre C. Leopold
Managing Director, MBA Admissions & Financial Aid

Dear gltn:

The Admissions Committee has completed its review of your application for the Two-Year Program at the Kellogg School of Management. Despite your many merits as a candidate, I regret to inform you that we are not able to offer you a place in the entering class.

The Admissions Committee carefully evaluated your application in the following areas: work experience, career plans, academic ability and performance, extracurricular and community involvement, leadership and interpersonal skills. Decisions are based upon a thorough evaluation of your individual strengths and weaknesses, as well as your qualifications relative to all others in our applicant pool. This decision is not a reflection of your personal qualities and achievements or your potential for success in management, but merely a reflection of the limited number of places in the class.

We certainly wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors, and thank you for your interest in the Two-Year Program at the Kellogg School of Management .

Sincerely,

Beth Flye
Assistant Dean, Director of Admissions and Financial Aid

Dear gltn: Thank you for applying to the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. After much thought and careful consideration, I regret to inform you that we are unable to grant your request for admission to the Tuck Class of 2010.

Of the applications we reviewed this round, the admissions committee felt that your candidacy showed significant potential and merited encouragement. Therefore, if you plan to re-apply next year and would like to receive feedback on ways in which you could strengthen a future application to Tuck, a member of the admissions committee would be happy to provide you with a coaching session between April and July of 2008. Tuck pro-actively offers feedback to less than 10% of applicants, so our encouragement is sincere. To schedule a feedback session, please email your request to tuck.admissions@dartmouth.edu.

It is often difficult to fully appreciate the competition for admission to Tuck. Our decision is not a reflection on your intellectual abilities, personal achievements or potential success in management. The factors that most often contributed to our decision to not admit an applicant were the rigorous competition created by a strong applicant pool and our commitment to maintain a small class size. This year’s pool is exceptionally strong. We know that many of the applicants who were not granted admission possess excellent characteristics that will serve them well in business school and beyond.

I sincerely appreciate your interest in Tuck and all the time and thought that went into your application. You have my genuine best wishes for success in achieving your future goals.

Warmest regards,

Dawna M. Clarke
Director of Admissions
Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth

I’M A WOLVERINE!!!!!!!

GO BLUE!

rollin’

rollin’ towards ol’ ann arbor, that is.

rejected from kellogg and tuck today.  barring any hbs surprise, it’s Ross, here i come!

ADMITTED to Ross!!  Woot! Hip, hip!

I submitted my resignation letter today.  6 weeks left of work.

Operation: BWoycott

I’m boycotting the BW forums.  It’s the only way I can stay sane between now and 3/31.

I interviewed with Kellogg, and I feel like it went pretty well.  But, who knows.  I can’t believe I will know my fate in the next 28 days!

Not that the forums are bad.  In fact, they have been great for sharing and finding info.  But it’s just a bad decision for me to check them between now and then.

So now it is finished.  There’s nothing else I can do to try to get admitted.  I can only wait and see what they say.

Do notifications from my target schools ever come earlier than the deadlines?  I could probably find out by looking at BW, but you know….not doing that.  Anyone care to share?

HBS says:

While interview invitations will continue to be issued up until notification date, it is fair to say that the vast majority have been sent. I hope that this measure of transparency is helpful.

My inbox says:

I guess it won’t be hbs.

i did schedule my interview with kellogg, though!  I’m excited for another trip to the Windy!  Anybody wanna go with me?  3/1/08

Strategic Mistake?

 I’ve always been optimistic about my chances in long-shot situations.  I periodically buy a lottery ticket with the idea that “somebody is going to win, my chances are as good as anyone’s!”  What I fail to realize is that that equal chance is 1 in 84 million.   In my optimistic view, 1 in 84 million is a GREAT chance!  I will stay in a poker hand believing that my chances are irrationally high for getting the card I need on the river.  Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t, of course.  And I imagine my incidence of drawing the winning card is roughly equal to the statistical probability.

Now I fear I’ve taken the same approach with my MBA applications.  Seven months ago (is that all?), everything about applying for my MBA seemed to be going my way.  I got a pretty good GMAT score.  I anxiously informed my supervisor of my plans, and he encouraged me to, by all means, go to school if that’s what I wanted to do.  He even graciously agreed to write my rec forms.  I reached out to a local HBS alum, who happens to be an interviewer and the former president of the alumni board.  I made the decision to apply to four schools, all top-ten schools, on some sort of emotional high about my chances.  One student I know at one of my target schools will no doubt remember being put off a bit when I said I considered that school my “safety school.”

Regardless, comparing my so-called stats to the class profiles on the top schools’ websites convinced me that I, all around, was planted squarely in the middle of the applicant pool–above average academics, good ECs, average WE, and I knew I could write decent essays.  So I figured, with a roughly 50% chance at 4 different schools, I could probably count on getting into one of them….RIIIGHT????

Wrong.

Here I am, 40 or 50 days out from R2 decisions, and I am feeling decidedly unconfident about my shots of getting in anywhere.  Due to a very poor interview and a missing answer on my application, coupled with some baaad essays, I’ve all but given up on Tuck.  I thought I had a chance at HBS, but waiting for an interview invite is draining my confidence day by day.  20/20 hindsight tells me I could have done better essays.   I have NO feeling for my chances Northwestern–my essays were rushed, and I still have to schedule my interview.  At this point, I consider UM my best shot, having been interviewed by invitation.  But even there, I feel I have a good application, but my interview was just ok, nothing too great, and I noticed recently that people with my undergrad major only make up 4% of their class.  In short, I still feel I have a strong candidacy to some schools, but I’ve had a reality check that I’m not a shoe-in anywhere.

So if I don’t get in anywhere, I will survive, but the point is that in my optimism, I may have discounted the value of applying to more schools or a real safety school, or otherwise making a good, solid Plan B.  It’s only a problem because for 7 months, I’ve been looking forward to this light at the end of the tunnel where I can quit my job, move out my house, live in a new place, meet new people from dozens of countries and all 50 states, and just really step into the next part of my life.  So if I’m not accepted anywhere, all of that hope just falls out from under me.  I work in IT, and making a career change is immeasurably more difficult without the degree.

I should have made a Plan B.  It might not be too late, but it definitely IS too late to improve my WE and ECs for this year’s app cycle.  It’s too late to make a last minute app to a school or two in the next tier, simply because I’ve milked the recommender cow quite dry.  I’ve really only had one real supervisor since graduating from college, and I don’t work with “clients,” so finding another professional recommender is really difficult.  This is my time, in other words, and if it doesn’t work out for b-school now, my opportunity for a top ten school may be essentially over.

There are a lot of other options.  I could go to grad school for another degree.  I could go to a lower-ranked b-school.  I could go do the same sort of work I do now in Iraq and make a lot of money for a year or two.  I could join the Peace Corps or sacrifice a good salary to go be a social worker.  It’s not the end of the world if I don’t get in, it’s just that I have to go back to square one and figure out another plan.  Applying to b-school, you get so focused on WHY MBA, WHY NOW? that it’s hard to convince yourself that doing something different could be just as rewarding.

As my confidence wanes, it’s hard, but it’s probably good that my expectations are falling so that it’s not such a hard blow if I get dinged.  But man, it’s getting hard to keep up hope in this waiting season between the app deadline and the decision day.  Blech.  Good luck to those of you going through the same things…but even better luck to me for the next 55 days!