Tag Archives: day in the life

Students actively participate

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Here at Haas students actively participate on the shape of the MBA program as well as take charge of many other activities. There are a lot of ways in which you can positively impact the student’s experience in the business school.
The Speaker Series is a good example of students’ involvement. A student organizer works with an instructor professor developing a course that aims to provide an introduction to multiple facets of a determined industry for all students, ranging from those preparing for a career in it or to those simply interested in learning about the industry. Careers in Marketing, Private Equity, Health Care, Alternative Energy, Careers in Consulting and General Management & Strategy are examples of some of the Speaker Series organized this year. You and your classmates will get to interact with top professionals from organizations such companies such as Visa, Dodge & Cox, Delloite, Clorox, P&G, Mozilla, Adobe, Google, Apple and many others.
I am attending to the Career in Marketing series, which has been a great opportunity for interacting with professionals and for getting insights on the skills required to be successful in this career. This Speaker Series also has been very important for me to get know better the culture of the companies, thus helping me focus on my search for an internship over the summer.
There are also several other ways in which you can impact student’s experience in the business school. Organizing the >Play conference, leading a club, preparing tailgates for Cal’s games, being a MBAA leader, supporting admissions on Day at Haas and organizing a trek to your home country are some other examples of the many activities in which you can be involved.

—Ricardo de Paula

—Ricardo de Paula

Time for Thai Noodle

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Full time job search is a demanding process that requires commitment, discipline and… makes me hungry!

Nibbling at small bites at the end of a company presentation may not suffice. Especially if you had an intense day, spent doing homework, attending classes, and meeting with classmates for club activities.

So, where can you resort to have a good meal with your friends, no matter how late it is?

Thai Noodle!

today was a good day

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7:20 am Pre-Alarm goes off (“pre-alarm” because I always hit snooze at least once)

7:22 am I let my mind ease out of dreamland and into what will be my longest day of the week.

7:30 am Real-Alarm goes off. I reach over to my desk, grab my computer, and pull it onto my chest (while I’m still lying in bed). I already have the link to Professor Haykin’s website, so that I can watch the Tesla Motors “Virtual Case” (aka video case) for today’s Innovation, Creativity, and the Entrepreneur (ICE) class. I’m grateful for the opportunity to absorb a case with my eyes closed.

8:05 am After finishing the case, I put my computer back on the desk and roll out of bed. I listen to make sure none of my roommates are showering (don’t want to divert the hot water), and begin to get so fresh and so clean. I turn up the volume and blast the case from my speakers as I get ready so I can review some of the key details (wasn’t totally awake the first time I went through it)

9:00 am Phone rings. Who is calling at this hour? Daniel Chun, one of the undergrads on my Diversity Conference planning committee. He has a lead for a keynote speaker. AWESOME.

9:15 am Gah… I really should fire off some emails before I leave. Must find a nonprofit board meeting to attend before my paper for Strategic Management of NonProfits is due on Oct 20th. I check the websites of 5 charter schools, fire off emails to contacts at 3 CMOs, and text a couple friends at nonprofits. Maybe I should draft an email to solicit interviews from my Del Monte colleagues for the Strategy, Structure, and Incentives project… D’oh! Gotta go!

9:45 am Grab my dinner out of the fridge, hop on my scooter, and ride down the hill to school for

10:00am Meeting with admissions about the Diversity Admissions Workshop on Oct. 10th.

10:30am Bump into Takashi (from the other IBD Finland team) in BofA. Chat about our meeting with Sebastian and the upcoming IBD conference. Brandon (also on Takashi’s team) swings by. We brainstorm what’s the best way to provide constructive feedback on how to ensure that our client continues to get good value out of the IBD projects they pay so much for.

11:00am Hop on my scooter and scoot down to Emeryville for lunch with Gasper Martinez, a colleague from Stanford undergrad who I’m trying to recruit onto Leadership High School’s Board of Trustees.

11:20am Arrive at Cocina Poblana, but Gasper texts that he won’t be there for another 20 minutes. It smells yummy. I sit down, whip out my computer, and start drafting more emails.

11:40am Gasper arrives, buys us lunch, and lets me know that although I’m here to court him onto our board, he’s also here to try to recruit me to work for EdTec, a charter school support organization. SWEET! Let’s talk!

12:40pm We wrap up lunch, he agrees to set up a visit to Leadership High, and I agree to come by EdTec to have lunch with folks there sometime in the coming weeks. Time to jump back on the scooter and head to school.

1:10pm Back at school. As I’m walking from my parking spot to school, I pass by I-House, which today is hosting a BCBG sample sale with items up to 70% off! I’ve been dying for some reatil therapy for WEEKS… so tempting…

1:25pm Walk into C335 in time to catch the tail end of the Education Club kick-off meeting. Welcome to all you first years interested in public education!

2:00pm Help Jason gather up the extra pizza and walk over to the MBA lounge to meet with my IBD team on our upcoming presentation. Marvel at all the great pictures Bernie added to the presentation. Reminisce about how simple life was in Finland. Work on a single project during the day; relax in the evening and at night.

3:00pm Meet with Amy Hornstein in the program office to discuss the status of the Diversity Conference planning. Accept her offer of a plum tart slice leftover from Kate Blumberg’s birthday. Tasty!

3:45pm Hungry again. Head to the MBA lounge and wolf down leftovers from lunch. Notice a bag of leftover baked goodies that are now up for grabs. I dig around and find… a brownie? Yoink!!!

3:55pm Pick up prospective students visiting my ICE class.

4:00pm ICE time! Today’s session is on design thinking, and Whitney Mortimer, IDEO’s head of Global Marketing is the guest speaker. I heart this class!

6:05pm Time for Strategy, Structure, and Incentives. Discussing make or buy/ outsourcing decisions. Somewhere around 7pm I start fading…

7:30pm Break time. I try to get on airbears (the UC Berkeley wireless network) to print the reading for Power & Politics tomorrow. FAIL. Try to call Wendell Tull from admissions to touch base about sponsorships for the workshop. No reception. Retrieve my dinner from the HaasWeek room fridge. Microwave does not blow up. Success! Yum. The food gives me a second wind. Start skimming the Power & Politics reading on my computer.

8:15pm Break over. Back to discussing the situations in which outsourcing does or does not make sense.

9:30pm Class over. Wohoo, I made it! Oof, it’s cold outside now that it’s dark. Suddenly regretting wearing a skirt/not bringing knee-high socks to wear on the ride back home. Oh well. Hop on the scooter and scoot up the hill.

10:00pm Home. Public policy roommate (Aurora) is pressing gauze to her lip and is icing it. What’s going on? Public Health roommate (Meghan) explains that Aurora got hit in the face with a softball. =( We do some googling about what kinds of cuts need stitches. Aurora decides to go to the emergency room and sends me update texts about her tetanus shot and sweet wrist bracelet.

11:00pm Crawl into bed, pull my laptop onto my chest, and blog about my day. Aaaaannnnnd… I’m spent. G’night Neverland!

—minimish