I, regretfully, spend my last weekend of freedom doing what I know you don't want to hear: finsihing homework. Again and again I will tell you that an MBA program is not the same as your undergraduate experience. The work load is substantially heavier and I feel that catching up on the additional work assigned during orientation is imperative. While a classmate has scheduled a Saturday outing to Jillian's to celebrate the end of orienation, I decide to call it an early night (I still have unpacking to do tomorrow!).
Just to give you an idea of what your first-year courses might look like, here's my class schedule for fall:
MON | TUES | WED | THURS | FRI | |||||
8:50 | |||||||||
9:00 | |||||||||
9:10 | |||||||||
9:20 | MKTG 6208 | ACCT 6208 | MKTG 6208 | ACCT 6208 | |||||
9:30 | Marketing | Accounting | Marketing | Accounting | |||||
9:40 | 8:50 - 10:30 | 8:50 - 10:30 | 8:50-10:30 | 8:50-10:30 | |||||
9:50 | |||||||||
10:00 | BUSN 6200 | ||||||||
10:10 | Career Mgt. | ||||||||
10:20 | 9:30-11:30 | ||||||||
10:30 | |||||||||
10:40 | |||||||||
10:50 | |||||||||
11:00 | |||||||||
11:10 | |||||||||
11:20 | MECN 6208 | HRMG 6208 | MGSC 6205 | ||||||
11:30 | Economics | Human Resource | Info. Resource | ||||||
11:40 | 10:50-12:50 | 10:50-12:50 | 10:50-12:50 | ||||||
11:50 | |||||||||
12:00 | |||||||||
12:10 | |||||||||
12:20 | |||||||||
12:30 | |||||||||
12:40 |
We are greeted first thing Monday morning with another assesment; this time in writing. I advise you to take this 25-minute test seriously. We learn that low-scoring students will be required to take a no-credit writting workshop every Monday afternoon for the entire semester and, trust me, you don't need anything else eating up your time.
After my Monday classes I have an interview (and job offer!) for a part-time work study position on campus. I'm excited about the opportunity, but a bit hesitant about taking on too much work because the program has been so adamant about limiting commitments the first semester. But it's only 6.5 hours a week so I don't think it will be too much of an issue. I have also learned that there are a few other students juggling part-time work so at least I know I'm not alone.
By Wednesday my learning team has decided to set up recurring study sessions every Monday and Wednesday right after class in Snell Library. This is, primarly, to work on our accounting assignments for our Tuesday and Thursday class. Plus, we find it nearly impossible to finish all of the assigned work independently, so these sessions have proven particularly necessary (especially for those of us, like myself, who struggle with the mathematical elements of the coursework).
Thursday is my section's early day so some of our natural-born event planners and facebook afficianados set up a group named Section 58 (a combination Section 24 and Section 34) to post events and get-togethers for both sections. Tonight about 15 classmate head out to Howl at the Moon, a dueling piano bar on High Street. It's so nice to just relax and talk to each other about topics other than balance sheets and brand equity. At first I'm a bit hesistant about going out, after all, it is a Thursday night and we have class tomorrow. But I'm relieved to find that, as 11:30 rolls around, most people begin making thier way home. Again, I'm reminded of how this is not college. We all want to do well and I imagine that's pretty contingent on being awake in class.
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| Photo courtesy of Gian Carlo De Leon |
On Friday both sections meet for Career Management. For this first session they return the resumes we submitted as part of our pre-work with thoughtful edits and suggestions. They had also offered an optional library research session earlier that morning. I'm surprised to see that about 75% of the class shows up.
After getting let out at 11:30 a.m. a classmate and I decide to discover the Prudential Center (or "The Pru", for those not in "the know"). We grab some chowder and peruse shops during this much-needed break.
I leave my classmate around 5:30 p.m. and rush home before meeting my peer mentor at 6:00 p.m. The peer mentor program is an optional program for first-years. As part of the program you are matched with a second year student, usually someone in your intended career track. While the program has no "official" structure, it usally centers around communicating with your second year via phone, e-mail or coffee chats to get the inside scoop from someone who's been there. I've been in touch with mine since August via e-mail and am now meeting her for the first time!
We grab some appetizers and drinks at a restaurant around the corner from my house and talk for the next 2 hours! She fills me in on her residency (at a beer distributor!) and her International Field Study in South America. I ask her about her leadership roles in student organizations and discover she has the very position in the Graduate Marketing Club that I'm applying for (I'll let you know the results of that application when I find out).
Now it's Saturday, but, alas, my only rendevous with sunlight occurs during a 2-hour stint at the nearby laundromat. I grab a coffee from Dunkin' Donuts (for all you West-coasters, they don't know what "drip" coffee means over here) and my case study and plop down in front of a TV playing a Chinese version of American Idol.
Sunday I let myself have some fun. A member of my learning team (and fellow Californian) joins me for some leisurly strolling along Newbury Street and lunch at The Upper Crust where we share a Buffalo Chicken pizza. Yum!
The rest of the weekend is spent face-down in books...
*The views expressed in this blog are not necessarily those of Northeastern University, its faculty, staff or affiliates and are solely the opinion of Katrina Graves
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