Progress on New Stanford Graduate School of Business Campus Continues “Fast and Furious”

Construction is underway on a new eight-building campus for the Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB), and progress remains “fast and furious”, according to a recent post on the Stanford GSB Admission Blog.

Originally slated to open in 2010, the Knight Management Center is now on track for an April 2011 completion date, according to Stanford Admissions. The new campus, all 360,000 square feet of it, features a flexible design intended to support a wide variety of teaching and learning methods and more collaboration and engagement with the Stanford campus at large.

The new campus will encompass 100,000 square feet more than the existing GSB facilities and will include more flexible teaching spaces for both larger and smaller class configurations. It will also include creative workspace for faculty to encourage collaboration, custom-designed space for the school’s executive education programs and new space for the school’s centers and related activities. The design of the new campus also incorporates smart building practices that use water and energy responsibly to dramatically and affordably reduce environmental impacts.

The new Knight Management Center was made possible by an unprecedented $105 million gift in 2006 by Nike Inc. founder and chairman Philip H. Knight ’62. The remaining funds needed for the $275 million project were to be raised before ground was broken in 2008.

For more details about Stanford GSB’s new Knight Management Center, click here.

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Fridays From the Frontline

Hello there, and thanks for returning to Fridays From the Frontline! Applicants were a talkative bunch this week, recounting admitted student weekends, disappointing zings, and everything in between. Current students were a bit more quiet, probably trying to savor each last moment of their b-school experience before summer internships, or full-time jobs, become the new reality.

Steve
prepared for his last few days of bachelorhood and compared himself to a flying mime (the similarities are eery). Beautiful Mind took a look back on his MBA journey thus far, and provided links to a few posts he felt were particularly helpful. XLick partied hard at Johnson’s accepted student weekend, but remained on NYU’s waitlist. Nistha illustrated the relief that many of her friends and family were now feeling as a result of her decision to attend NYU Stern. HBS Dork discussed the Harvard oath of ethical conduct, and expressed appreciation towards Clear Admit. Braveheart was sad to hear of the death of CK Prahlad and began drafting his ‘why MBA’ and ‘career progression’ essays. Madalogue chose to decline Olin’s offer of admission in favor of Tepper’s, but wouldn’t be able to attend the Tepper admit weekend due to work responsibilities. MBA Dreamz was also saddened by Prahlad’s passing, and recounted his own experiences with the man. A conversation with a former Goldman Sachs executive, and a deluge of resumes for a recent position at his company, gave LBiggs the ability to see a “silver lining” in taking another year before attending b-school. Procrastinator shared his Tepper and Ross waitlist experiences and hoped for a good result from Tepper. His BoB nomination inspired Rocky to look back at the MBA research he started doing in 2005, and each step of his application process. The Dreamer sadly reported that her time on the Ross waitlist was over, but announced the likelihood that she will join W.P. Carey’s class of 2012. Ellipsis discussed his GMAT class choice.

McDonough ’11 Part-Timer recounted an interesting panel discussion in his entrepreneurship course. Goizueta ’11 Ahembeea talked about nailing down the best summer internship and encouraged students to get involved as soon as they can. Kellogg ’11 Orlandao offered advice to current applicants about how to tackle essays. Foster ’11 Helen recounted the trials and tribulations she encountered through her running club.
Darden ’10 Oren live blogged a festive day on-campus, which included Mexican food, martinis, octopus balls and a potential dip into a pool. IIMB ’10 Happy Libran graduated, congratulations! Darden ’10 July Dream explained that she will be starting her new job only two days after graduation, and expressed excitement over her move to Chicago (as she should, it’s a great town). McCombs ’10 Metal responded to countless emails asking him whether his MBA experience was ‘worth it.’ Fuqua ’10 Randy reflected on the differences between American and Chinese culture when it comes to mourning, noting that US television channels never shut down their offerings.

And that concludes this week’s Fridays From the Frontline! We can’t wait to hear more about the final days for the class of 2010, and to meet those who will begin their application journey in the coming months. Until then, have a great weekend!

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Best of Blogging Celebrity Judges

Earlier this month Clear Admit’s Best of Blogging (BoB) nominees were announced, and with only seven more days before the 2009-2010 BoB  polls close, it is time to turn our attention to this year’s panel of celebrity judges. Each year Clear Admit reaches out to the greater business school community to develop a top notch panel of b-school insiders. This year bloggers will be judged not only by their peers and the Clear Admit staff, but also three unique individuals with great MBA ‘pedigrees.’ Without any further ado, our celebrity judges!

Brad Garrison (AKA hella):  Lending his thoughts on the BoBs for a sixth consecutive year, Brad is a veteran of the MBA blogging space. He blogged his way through his own Wharton MBA (he graduated in 2006), and continues to host aggregated lists of the latest posts by MBA applicant, student and alum bloggers on his site.

Soojin Kwoh Koh: Having gone through the application and enrollment process of b-schools herself, first as an applicant and then as a  Ross student, Soojin has been in the shoes that many BoB nominees are currently wearing. As the Director of Admissions at Ross School of Business, Soojin is no stranger to the application cycle’s highs and lows, and maintains her own blog to keep Ross applicants informed and engaged.

Peter Johnson: Peter has been the Executive Director of Haas’ Full-Time MBA Program Admissions Committee for over ten years. He, too, has an online presence, which was cultivated to provide applicants up-to-date answers to their most pressing questions.

The years of experience these three have guarantees us a dynamic group of celebrity judges for this year’s competition. We’re looking forward to learning what they think of this year’s stellar group of nominees and seeing how their thoughts, combined with those of the nominee pool and Clear Admit Staff, impact the rankings!  Stay tuned for the announcement on May 4th!

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Twitter Thursdays: News from MBA Programs

Welcome to another edition of Twitter Thursdays, a column in which we highlight some of the latest updates from the top MBA programs on Twitter!  If you want your Twitter feed filled with Clear Admit’s updates, special prizes, admissions tips and breaking news, be sure to follow us on Twitter.   You can also check out the list of MBA programs we’ve compiled to ease your daily access to breaking news from the top MBA programs, as reported by admissions committee members themselves.

While The Assistant Dean of UCLA Anderson MBA Admissions & Financial Aid, Mae Jennifer Shores, has been stuck in London due to the Icelandic eruption, Anderson students excelled in the annual Challenge for Charity Competition – tying for first place with USC Marshall. Rich Lyons, the Dean of the Haas School of Business, noted U.S. News’ ranking of Haas’s part-time program.  Jim Dean, the Dean of UNC’s Kenan-Flagler Business School, attended the Global Innovations in Energy Conference on campus. Across the pond, MBA Admissions Coordinator at Judge Business School, James Barker, will be welcoming dozens of Round 4 candidates to campus for interviews next week – and hopefully the numerous students stranded abroad due to the volcanic eruption.

Chicago Booth linked to some application tips as well as how to save for grad school. Meanwhile, The Tuck School lightened things up with a comedy show and sharing funny videos about Life at Tuck.  London Business School will pass its last deadline for the 2012 MBA program.  The Kellogg School plugged its professors’ latest research and insight on a range of topics – from fraud during the financial crises to curiosity about the iPad.  The Wharton School shared some photos from the recent summit of MBA student government leaders and celebrated Earth Day by conducting a comprehensive waste audit.

Thanks for checking out Twitter Thursdays this week!  If you’re on Twitter or want to suggest someone else to follow, let us know; e-mail wiki@clearadmit.com with your user name and status as an MBA applicant, student or admissions officer so we can add you to the appropriate Twitter list.  Happy tweeting and we’ll see you next week with some more updates!

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Student Government Presidents from Seven Top Schools Launch MBA Peer School Forum

Outgoing and incoming student government presidents of seven major business schools convened earlier this week at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School for a three-day President’s Summit, where they announced the formation of a new MBA Peer School Forum.

The forum, a student government coalition with representatives from the Wharton School, the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, Columbia Business School, Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management, Harvard Business School, MIT’s Sloan School of Management and Stanford Graduate School of Business, was developed to help create inter-school cohesion and collaboration and support student-led initiatives designed to positively impact business and society.  » Continue reading

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Participate in the Graduate Admissions Virtual Summit

On Wednesday, April 28th, 2010, the Association of International Graduate Admissions Consultants (AIGAC) will host a free online global event – “Discover how you can position your application for Success,” – aimed at prospective graduate program applicants.

Two of Clear Admit’s knowledgeable admissions counselors, Stacey Oyler and Brett Haber, will each be hosting a 55-minute webinar focused on MBA application strategies, both of which are described in detail below:

“6 To-Do’s in the Next 6 Months: A Checklist for Round 1 Applications”

The first of the two events, led by Ms. Oyler, is scheduled to be held from 10:00 a.m. – 10:55 a.m. PST on the day of the summit. In this webinar focused on Round 1 application strategy, she will cover such topics as:

• Preparing for and scheduling the GMAT
• Selecting and working with recommenders
• Defining career goals
• Resume preparation
• Making the most of a campus visit
• Contacting “those in the know”

To reserve your spot today, or to learn more about this seminar, click here.

“Are you applying to Harvard, Wharton or Stanford?”

The second of the two webinars hosted by Clear Admit admissions counselors will be led by Brett Haber from 3:00 p.m. – 3:55 p.m. PST. Aspiring b-school applicants who attend this webinar will learn more about each school’s philosophy and how to best approach each school’s essay questions.  By the end of this webinar, participants should have a clearer understanding of what strengths each program looks for in applicants.

To register for this free webinar click here.  Space is limited so be sure that you sign up early!

For more information about the webinars and chats hosted during the AIGAC Graduate Admissions Virtual Summit visit the AIGAC website.

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Campus Chronicles: The Cornell Business

Welcome back to Campus Chronicles! This week we’ll take a look at Cornell Johnson’s student newspaper, the Cornell Business, to see what’s been going on for Johnson students.

Earlier this month a team of first- and second-year Johnson students won the IDEAcorps challenge in New Orleans, a competition in which MBA student teams work with local entrepreneurs to create solutions for business challenges faced by the entrepreneur’s start-ups. The eight Johnson students and two faculty advisors from Johnson worked with Chris Laibe, the founder of a medical software services company. The IDEAcorps challenge ran concurrently with New Orleans Entrepreneur week, through which the participating students had the chance to hear from guest speakers, including the owner of the Dallas Mavericks. In addition to the IDEAcorps challenge and Entrepreneur Week, Johnson students had the chance to rebuilt homes in areas recovering from Hurricane Katrina.

In addition, on a recent Sustainable Global Experience Immersion trek to Washington D.C., Johnson students learned about cap and trade and renewable energy from diverse parties including the government, DuPont, USAID, National Geographic, and SustainAbility, a boutique consulting firm, as well as Honest Tea, a startup organic food company. Johnson students came away with knowledge from sustainability leaders and entrepreneurs about the newest actions in energy use, policy, media, and business approaches.

Finally, Johnson students have created a Top 10 list for newly admitted students, aimed at informing them about the business school. With humorous advice about the most popular campus social events, hot spots in Ithaca, and must-have professors, incoming Johnson students should be ready to attend Sage Socials, compete in a Jell-o eating contest, see the Taughannock waterfalls, and take a class from Professor Vishal Gaur.

That’s it for Campus Chronicles this week. Be sure to check back next Thursday to see the recent events on another business school campus!

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GMAT Tip: Think Like the Testmaker Series, Volume 12

Today’s GMAT tip comes from our friends at Veritas Prep. In today’s article, they present the twelfth installment of their “Think Like the Testmaker Series”:

Brian Galvin is the Director of Academic Programs at Veritas Prep, where he oversees all of the company’s GMAT prep courses.

Ask any MBA student – past, present, or prospective – about Data Sufficiency questions, and you’re sure to get a reaction. More often than not that reaction will be negative – “I hate Data Sufficiency!” – and even when it’s positive – “those are tough questions, but I figured them out and learned to appreciate them – the reaction will be one of reluctant praise for the complexity of these unique questions. This is with good reason – Data Sufficiency questions tend to carry a significant degree of difficulty on the GMAT (as quant scores have risen, the GMAT has begun to feature more Data Sufficiency questions than its traditional 15 out of 37), and because they require a new thought process for most, they offer a greater study challenge than perhaps any other question type on the GMAT.

All of this is intriguing, however, when you look at the Data Sufficiency format closely, because if you break down the question type, it’s remarkably clear-cut and honest: “Do you have enough information to answer the question?”. Seems fair enough, right? Obviously, the authors of the GMAT can take this seemingly-simple premise and add difficulty to it, but if you focus only on what the question is asking, the testmakers really only have two ways to trick you:

1) Get you to think that you have enough information when you really don’t

2) Get you to think that you don’t have enough information when you really do

The simplicity of the question type – asking when you have enough information to answer the question – lends itself to these two possibilities for you to answer incorrectly.
With this in mind, you can better think of ways that a question will disguise the sufficiency of the information provided:

You think you have enough information, but you really don’t
To make this mistake, you’re likely making assumptions about the question that are telling you things about the data that aren’t necessarily true. Are you only thinking in terms of integers, or positive numbers? Have you considered the possibility that 0 is a potential value? Ultimately, to avoid this pitfall, you need to get in the habit of looking for the “catch”: “I think this is enough information, but what type of situation would give me a different answer?”

You think you don’t have enough information, but you really do
These can be even trickier, as the GMAT provides you with statements that don’t quite seem like enough information, but if you work through the statement you’ll find that it’s just enough. When you suspect that this is the case – one major clue is that a particular answer choice seems almost too obvious – work through each statement to glean as much information as you can. Often this comes from taking a statement and manipulating the algebra to rephrase the information in a more useful form. Other times, the GMAT will provide you with a valuable clue in the form of the other statement. Consider the question:

A rental car agency purchases fleet vehicles in two sizes: a full-size car costs $10,000, and a compact costs $9,000. How many compact cars does the agency own?

(1) The agency owns 7 total cars

(2) The agency paid $66,000 for its cars

Here, answer choice C seems to be a fairly easy choice – the first statement tells us that the number of full-size cars plus the number of compacts equals 7 (F + C = 7), and the second tells us that the total value is $66,000, or that 10,000F + 9000C = 66000. Having both equations, we know that, with two equations and two variables, we’ll be able to solve for the number of compact cars.

Here, the GMAT is likely trying to get us to think that we have less information than we really do – it’s not too likely that they would make choice C as easy to get to as it is. To counteract that, we can ask ourselves whether one of the statements is necessary. Statement 1 tells us that the agency has 7 total cars – is that necessary for us to know, or could we derive that from statement 2?

If we assess the information in statement 2 – that the cars cost $66,000 total – let’s see if it’s even possible that the agency could have bought anything other than 7 cars. If not, then statement 1 is unnecessary. If we try to purchase 8 cars, it stands to reason that if 8 of the cheapest cars cost more than $66,000, it’s not possible to purchase 8. 8 of the cheaper cars would be 8 * 9000, or a total of $72,000. Because 8 of even the cheapest cars – substituting any of the cheaper cars with a more expensive one would only increase the total value above $72,000 – costs too much for us to reach the $66,000 total price paid, then it’s not possible to purchase 8 cars (or more).

Similarly, if we test the price of 6 of the full-size cars, we may be able to eliminate that possibility. 6*10000 is $60,000, which is not enough for us to reach the $66,000 total price. If we were to substitute a cheaper car for any of the more expensive cars in our set of 6, it would only decrease that total to below $60,000, so we can prove that the agency cannot purchase 6 cars for $66,000.

Because, based on the information in statement 2, the only number of cars that could be purchased is 7, the information in statement 1 doesn’t need to be stated explicitly – we already know that from our interpretation of statement 2. Therefore, the correct answer is B.

More important than this question itself is the takeaway, which is that the GMAT likes to cleverly hide information from you so that you don’t think you have it. One great way to test for that is to take the given information from the other statement and test to see if you really need it. The authors of the test know that we’d all prefer the security of too much information, but will reward us for being able to answer the question with just enough data. If you test the given information to see if you could do without it, you can stay one step ahead of the authors on these tricky questions.

Overall, keep in mind that, as devilishly clever as these Data Sufficiency questions can be, the authors have only two ways to get you to make a mistake – they can make you think you have enough information when you don’t, or make you think you don’t have enough information when you actually do. Sure, there are several smaller devices that they can employ to get you to make these mistakes, but if you keep these major factors in mind as you study and take the exam, you’ll better be able to anticipate where the trap may lie.

For more information on Veritas Prep, download Clear Admit’s independent guide to the leading test preparation companies here. This FREE guide includes coupons for discounts on test prep services at ten different firms!

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Submit a Report for Cornell / Johnson, London Business School, NYU / Stern or UCLA / Anderson to Win an Amazon.com Gift Card!

Welcome back to another dose of Wiki Wednesdays, in which we take a peek at some of the latest interview reports in the Clear Admit Wiki. Some of the latest additions to this online repository for MBA applicants include reports for Berkeley / Haas and NYU / Stern.  As these two schools continue to roll out interview invitations, let’s take a closer look at some of the questions these candidates shared!

For Berkeley / Haas, a Round 3 applicant recounted questions posed by an alumnus:

  1. Why do you want to go to business school?
  2. What do you see yourself doing coming out of business school?
  3. What other programs are you interested in at Haas?
  4. Tell me about a time you were able to do something creative/not by the book.
  5. Tell me about a time you [wanted to go] in a different direction than a supervisor.
  6. What kind of leader are you?

A Round 1 candidate for NYU / Stern shared the following questions from an interview with an adcom member:

  1. Tell me about yourself.
  2. What can Stern offer you that others schools do not?
  3. Is Stern your first choice?
  4. What job do you imagine yourself doing during your first summer break?
  5. What do you feel is the weakest aspect of your resume?

Thank you to everyone who has shared their interview experiences this season and helped fellow applicants!  If you’re interested in sharing your experience, we’ll be awarding a $10 Amazon gift certificate to applicants that submit interview reports for Cornell / Johnson, London Business School, NYU / Stern or UCLA / Anderson through next Tuesday, April 27th!  All you have to do is send us your interview field report for the selected schools for inclusion in the Wiki and we’ll send you a $10 Amazon gift certificate.   You must send your interview report to wiki@clearadmit.com to be eligible; we’ll post it to the Wiki and notify the winners by e-mail (Limit: one gift card per person).

The most helpful and informative reports usually include the following information:

  1. Date/Admissions Round
  2. Description of visit and/or interview atmosphere
  3. Type of interview (alum vs. adcom, blind vs. application-based)
  4. List of nterview questions
  5. Commentary (What did you think of the interview? What surprised you? What didn’t surprise you? What might you conclude about the school based on this experience?)

Applicants who would like to supplement the information available on the Wiki can check out our Clear Admit Interview Guides, which provide school-specific insight about admissions interviews.  Best of luck to those wrapping up the admissions season with interviews!

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Women MBAs Make Less Than Male Counterparts Straight Out of Business School, Research Shows

Women make an average of $4,600 less per year in their first post-MBA jobs than men and the pay gap widens even more over time, according to research published in last month’s Harvard Business Review.

The research, by Nancy Carter and Christine Silva of Catalyst, was part of “Women in Management: Delusions of Progress,” an article in the March 2010 issue of HBR. Controlling for job level and industry as well as factors like having children or differing aspiration levels, Carter and Silva found that women trail men in every category, including job title, advancement and pay, at every career stage.

For a section in the March article, HBR caught up with Carter to discuss her findings and to better understand where the pay gap between men and women starts.

“We started looking at salary differential and then we found this discrepancy in why men and women leave first jobs,” Carter told HBR. Women, they discovered, were far more likely than men to leave their first job because of a bad manager. “That first job started to look much more important to us than we thought,” she continued.

Though their research didn’t show why they left – or why they were getting bad bosses – it did find that those leaving first jobs were averaging $4,600 lower pay. Because subsequent jobs are often linked to the salary one held at a previous position, the pay gap continued to widen from there.

Carter has spoken to many executives since the research was published,  and their responses have ranged from shock and disbelief to skepticism. “Most people recognize that it’s easy for things to happen midstream,” Carter told HBR, “but few of them believe that the first job could be a problem. It does seem like an easy place to address parity.”

Carter and Silva’s research does not uncover the source of the discrepancies in pay in the first job, and doing so has proven to be difficult, according to HBR. Based on conversations with executives who have reviewed the results, Carter speculates that it could be based on very subtle stereotypical biases that influence recruiters’ hiring decisions. 

One executive Carter talked to ordered his team to look at the resumes of the last 100 hirees and found discrepancies in pay between men and women, but he couldn’t determine where they had come from, according to the HBR article. But upon seeing the pay gap, he adjusted the women’s salaries on the spot, Carter told HBR.

“That was affirming,” Carter says, “to think people were going home with more money in their paycheck the next week based on this research.”

For more on this story, click here.

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Columbia Business School Deadlines 2010-2011

Columbia Business School has announced its deadlines for this upcoming admissions season! The list of deadlines is as follows:

January 2011 Accelerated Program
Application Review Period Begins: May 2010
Decision Period: Within 8 weeks
Application Deadline: October 6th, 2010

September 2011 Early Decision
Application Review Period Begins: August 16th, 2010
Decision Period: Within 10 weeks
Application Deadline: October 6th, 2010

September 2011 Regular Decision (International Applicants)
Application Review Period Begins: January 5th, 2011
Decision Period: Within 12 weeks
Application Deadline: March 2rd, 2011

September 2011 Regular Decision (U.S. Citizens and Permanent Residents)
Application Review Period Begins: January 5th, 2011
Decision Period: Within 12 weeks
Application Deadline: April 13th, 2011

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What Flag Will You Try Not to Fly?

On Monday we mentioned red flags to avoid during your application process, which made us curious…

What Flag Will You Try Not to Fly?

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Wharton Admissions Staff Announces Global Event Schedule for Prospective Applicants

The admissions staff at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School has released its schedule of upcoming events for prospective applicants, including presentations in more than 150 cities and 45 countries around the globe.

The admissions receptions, which will take place throughout the summer in various cities, provide prospective applicants with an opportunity to hear an overview of Wharton’s MBA program from the school’s admissions representatives as well as meet with local alumni. Alumni in each city will describe their Wharton experiences and share their perspectives on the long-term value of a Wharton MBA.

Interested prospective applicants are encouraged to register for an event in their city. For a list of events currently scheduled in the months ahead, click here. For international events, select the “Admissions Receptions: International” tab. For domestic events, click the “Admissions Receptions: U.S.” tab.

Please note: Wharton expects to add more events soon, so check back if you don’t see your city listed.

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Trivia Tuesday: Applied Management Research at UCLA Anderson

It’s time again for another edition of Trivia Tuesday, our weekly examination of the programs and opportunities that differentiate the leading MBA programs. This week we turn our attention to UCLA Anderson and an unusual feature of their second-year academic program: the Applied Management Research Project.

As second-years, Anderson students test their business skills in a practical setting by partnering with organizations to address complex internal business problems or evaluate strategic opportunities. Some students opt to put their entrepreneurial abilities to the test, fulfilling the two-quarter Applied Management Research Project (AMR) requirement by establishing their own ventures. Many students cite the AMR as one of their most rewarding and confidence-building experiences at Anderson.

Students choose their own AMR teams, which are comprised of three to five people guided by a faculty advisor. Teams have significant latitude in defining their projects, beginning with a choice between completing a Management Field Study, creating a business or pursuing a special project. In choosing a Management Field Study, as the vast majority of students do, a team either completes a strategic project for a company as arranged by Anderson, or independently secures a partner company, which is subject to program approval. Approaching the partnership like a consulting engagement, Management Field Study teams collaborate with company executives to identify and offer solutions to organizational and competition-based problems. Recent student teams have worked for such companies as Yahoo, Trader Joe’s, Bank of America, Fox Sports International and the L.A. Times. Teams seeking experience in smaller businesses have joined with the online start-up Savings.com, and worked with a local cooking show host to help her launch her own line of cooking products.

In addition to freedom in choosing the industry and function of their partner companies, Management Field Study teams also select partner companies based on location. Those desiring international business exposure are matched with international partners, communicating with these firms via teleconferencing, and occasionally through an on-site visit. Teams who prefer consistent face-to-face meetings select business partners nearby, or opt for regional partners and split the travel obligations amongst team members.

Those students who choose to pursue the AMR over the Fall and Winter quarter may use their on-site experience to make contacts in their company or gain a foothold in the industry that will help them secure a full-time job following graduation. Those who undertake the project during the Winter and Spring quarters instead may already have accepted job offers, thus they select projects that will further prepare them for their future positions.

To learn more about UCLA Anderson’s AMR Projects or other curricular features, check out the Academics section of the Clear Admit School Guide to Anderson!

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