Frequently Asked Questions
Post By:
Meg Meyer
Meg Meyer
MBA/MPH, 2012
As a Graduate Admissions Assistant, there are several questions that I am frequently asked by prospective students who are interested in Boston University’s MBA programs. Hopefully my answers to those questions will be helpful for those of you who are considering applying and coming to BU.
1) What do you like most about BU’s School of Management? And why did you choose to come here?
My most straightforward answer to this question is --- the people. Before deciding to come to BU, I visited a class, went to an information session, and also to an open house for admitted students. At each of these events when I met current students who were on panels and available to answer my questions, I thought they seemed smart, approachable, down to earth, and ambitious. They had diverse interests and seemed like people I would be excited about being in a classroom environment with. This proved to be true throughout my time here. I would say that I learned just as much from my classmates as I did from professors and I made wonderful friends along the way.
2) What is your relationship with your professors like?
I went to a small liberal arts undergraduate school that prioritized small class sizes, and individual attention from professors so I thought these things would probably not be as big of a priority at a large University like BU. I was wrong. Given that participation is part of your grade in most classes, Professors at SMG really get to know their students by name. All professors have office hours and respond to emails as well. While there are teaching assistants for some classes, they do not teach in the class, professors do. This is all to say that if you want to develop a close relationship with your professors at BU School of Management, you definitely can.
3) How do you like being in Boston?
Boston is a fantastic city to be a student in. I am originally from Minnesota but lived in Boston for 2 years prior to starting Grad School and knew I wanted to stay here. Given the amount of universities in this area, there are so many opportunities for conferences, networking, case competitions, etc. just within a 10 mile radius. Boston may not be as exciting as a bigger city like New York but it still has a lot to offer and I appreciate that it is manageable, beautiful, historic, and very walkable.
4) Is there a career center to help you find an internship and job?
The Feld Career Center is a great resource on Campus. It is located right in the School of Management building and has office hours for both full-time and part-time students throughout the entire year. There are career counselors available to meet with you and some are even specialized in different areas of interest (ie. healthcare, consulting, etc.). As a full-time student you are required to do two things: submit your resume and do a mock interview. The rest is up to you...you can meet with your career counselor to talk about potential career paths, do interview prep, and even talk about salary negotiation. You can attend seminars, career days, and information sessions that they host. They also manage a database of jobs and internship postings available to students and sometimes bring companies to campus for recruiting events and career fairs.
5) Is it okay if my background is not very quantitative or math-based?
MBA students at BU come from all different kinds of backgrounds and it is totally fine if you’re not a math whiz (in fact, I avoided math like the plague when I was an undergrad!). A good amount of MBA students focused on business, finance, or econ during their undergraduate education but many others focused on humanities or the arts. It is my opinion that during the first semester the classes are designed to get everyone on the same page about the basic core areas of business. Many of these are quantitative but they do not involve overly-complex math. Also, I found that my classmates who were strong in quantitative subjects were more than willing to work with me on subjects that were more challenging for me through study groups or tutoring.
6) What would you say the culture of the school is?
In a word – collaborative. Nishant Sharma summarized it well in his blog post herebut I’ll explain it in my own words as well. BU’s academic emphasis on teamwork starts on day 1 of orientation and continues throughout the time you spend here. Most classes bring in some kind of a team project and grades are even shared with your teammates so everyone has a mutual incentive to work together to produce the best product possible. I also found that many students form study groups that meet outside class or work on problem sets together. For the most part I would say that MBA students work very hard on class work but they also balance this out with social activities and fun and that becomes part of the school culture as well.
Meg is a
recent graduate of the dual-degree MBA/MPH program in which she studied Global Health Management. Her full-time job is now to look for a job. You may find her running around Boston with a backpack on or challenging people to dance-offs.
recent graduate of the dual-degree MBA/MPH program in which she studied Global Health Management. Her full-time job is now to look for a job. You may find her running around Boston with a backpack on or challenging people to dance-offs.
Disorientation
The week leading up to graduation was called "Disorientation" for all graduating second years. It involved a week of fun activities fully planned by students. Here's a look at what went down...
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| Kimball Farms - arriving by school bus |
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| Batting Cages |
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| Bumper boats |
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| Disorientation bracelets |
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| Barbeque lunch |
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| Paintball |
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| F1 racing - scoping out the course |
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| Ready to race! |
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| The final lap |
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| An afternoon Red Sox game |
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| Field Day - wheelbarrow races |
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| Field day - three-legged races |
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| The end of an awesome week! |
Welcome from Graduate Student Council President, Sonal Dhingra
Post By:
Sonal Dhingra
MS-MBA/PNP, 2013
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| Pictured from left to right: Sonal Dhingra (GSC President 2012-2013), Gail Justino-Miller (Director, Graduate Programs Office and GSC Advisor), Carl Palme (GSC President 2011-2012) |
I’m not sure how long I can hang on to this “first-year” moniker, but I am going to try to keep it for as long as possible. This first year of business school has flown by and it has been a blast! From the galas to the team meetings, from IP to finals – this year has been challenging and amazing. But seeing the class of 2012 graduate made me realize that it is all going by way too fast.
What made this year so great were not only all these new experiences but also all the new friends I have made here - from all programs, classes and cohorts. As the 1st year representative on council for Cohort C this year, I had the unique opportunity to be the voice of my peers, but also to bring us all together. Often people come to business school and think the secret to success is learning how to calculate NPV or understanding marginal cost. But I’ll tell you the real secret: it’s having friends who are willing to give up their time to teach you how to calculate NPV when you don’t understand or explain marginal cost to you so you can do well on your midterm. This place is about more than building your network; it is about being a part of a community where you gain friends that will last well beyond your time here.
I am glad to have gotten the chance to know the class of 2012, and while I am sad to see them go, I am excited for the new adventures in store for the centennial class of 2013. This coming year will be filled with some old events, like boat cruise (which is on Saturday, September 15, 2012 by the way), Link Day in February and the traditional Thirsty Thursdays, but also new events like the Health Care Case Competition in October and even more great speakers for the Dean’s Speaker Series starting in September. Council will also be focused on increasing events with alumni, collaborations amongst clubs and increased connections, both internal and external, to increase opportunities for our students.
Summer is here now, and while we’re off at our internships right now, we are all also looking forward to returning to SMG in the fall to meet the class of 2014. Welcome to the family - we can’t wait to make some great memories with you. See you all in August and get ready for an amazing time – we hope that it all doesn’t go by too fast!
PS: Be sure to check out the council websiteand facebook pagefor info on events, clubs and BU GSM happenings.
Sonal Dhingra
Graduate Student Council President
2012 – 2013
Farewell from Graduate Student Council President, Carl Palme
Post by:
Carl Palme
MS-MBA, 2012
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| Speaking at Graduation |
Business school came and went, and I am glad that I was able to take advantage of everything it had to offer. Particularly, I really enjoyed being part of the Graduate Student Council as a Cohort Representative and then as President. It was a great experience because I was able to give back to the Boston University community and work with really amazing people.
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| Myself and Erin Gregory (2012 chosen class speaker) on stage at Graduation |
As a council we were in charge of helping student organizations with funding for conferences, events, and bringing speakers to school. We also helped students attend Case Competitions as well as organize certain events. Most importantly, we were there as student representatives and as a liaison between the student community and faculty & staff.
When we started as council in the spring of 2011, we set a few goals for ourselves:
- Build an even stronger community
- Improve internal and external communications
- Pilot a student led speaker series
- Broaden alumni outreach
I would say that we succeeded at everything. Our community became even stronger than it already was, we used our marketing and analytic skills to improve all methods of communication, we had great speakers attend the school (including Gustavo Valle, the CEO of Dannon), and had fruitful interactions with alumni.
We were successful because of the amazing people that worked on council, as well as the support and excitement we received from the community at large. BU really attracts incredible people and that makes the experience a whole lot better.
Now that I have graduated, I am really pleased with my experience and with having spent time with the classes of 2011, 2012, and 2013. I look forward to seeing what the new council will do as well as meeting the incoming class in the fall.
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| 2012 Graduates celebrating after Commencement |
Grad school went by way too fast, but it was worth every minute!
Carl Palme
Graduate Student Council President
2011 – 2012
STAY TUNED FOR ANOTHER POST FROM INCOMING GRADUATE STUDENT COUNCIL PRESIDENT, SONAL DHINGRA...
Advice to the Class of 2014 from the Graduating Graduate Assistants
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| 2011-2012 Grad Assistants, top row (L to R): Shawn, Kira, Carl; bottom row (L to R): Meg, Maya (Recruitment Administrator), Anya |
To close out the 2011-2012 academic year, we asked all of the Graduate Assistants who work in Admissions to offer their advice to the incoming class of MBA students. You'll find many common themes in the advice they offer --- take it to heart, it's true!
ANYA:
Everyone tells you this, but the next two years are going to fly by. Here's some free advice: learn to take risks, don't be afraid of making mistakes, go to your professors' office hours (they can help you network with BU alumni), and have FUN! By the way, Cohort Cup events are wonderful opportunities to mingle with your entire class and make great memories!
Everyone tells you this, but the next two years are going to fly by. Here's some free advice: learn to take risks, don't be afraid of making mistakes, go to your professors' office hours (they can help you network with BU alumni), and have FUN! By the way, Cohort Cup events are wonderful opportunities to mingle with your entire class and make great memories!
CARL:
My advice is to take advantage of everything that BU has to offer. Participate in as many Case Competitions as you can. Get involved with Club Leadership. Go to all the Speaker Series Events. Attend the Social Outings and meet as many people as you can. Accomplishing all of this may seem daunting, but you won't regret it. You will have plenty of time to sleep in the future!
KIRA:
You should definitely enjoy your time during the MBA as best as you can because it is over way too fast. Pick the classes you are interested in and not just the ones that fit into your concentration, it's more about your individual curriculum. And don't forget the MBA is not just about classes, it's also about extra-curricular activities. So join different clubs and be engaged, because you can learn so much from the people around you that you could miss in the classroom. Take advantage of all the great things BU has to offer.
MEG:
Invest in relationships with your fellow classmates, professors, and SMG staff. At the end of two years, those will be what you really cherish and carry with you. Also invest in really figuring out what you want in a career. This is the time to explore what is out there with minimal consequences so that you can get a job you are really passionate about at the end of your time here.
SHAWN:
My advice is to enjoy your time here. Explore areas you have been curious about but never tried. Go see New England and what Boston has to offer. It is a 2 year break from work where you have a chance to totally redirect your life. Enjoy every second and stay in the moment. It goes by too fast.
TAYLOR:
My advice is the most important thing you can do is manage your time well. Aside from managing your time, be sure to use your resources which include but are not limited to professors, TAs, and classmates. Good luck.