They Said It Would Be Hard

And they were right! From when we first arrived on campus, the second year students told us that October (along with February) is absolutely brutal in terms of workload and the busy factor. They weren't lying. Just this week alone I've had three presentations, a pop quiz, six meetings, a deliverable for econ and many other things. This weekend is my reunion and homecoming, but we also have an accounting final Monday morning. This is a crazy balancing act!

I fully understand what they mean when they say October will test your will. While mine hasn't broken, it is definitely being pushed to the limit. I don't think I've woken up and felt confident about my work for that day. I continue to plug away and try and do the best I can; at the end of the day, that's all you can ask of yourself.

Last Friday I had my first interview for an internship. I had heard about it from our Career Management Center and spoke with several students who did this same internship last summer. For my first interview, I think it went well. It was completely behavioral, as I'm sure most of mine will be. I did get a nice bag of swag, which is always nice! It was also my first attempt at a career fair. It can be daunting, walking up to potential employers and literally throwing yourself in front of them. While a good number of companies were not in my future plans, it was excellent practice.

Things continue to spin dangerously close to the ridiculous line here at Wake Forest Schools of Business. You can see stress levels rising each day when someone has a presentation or interview. It's October, so the first mini is almost over. Can't believe 1/8th of our MBA program has gone by!

And So It Begins!

Greetings all! It's been awhile since I last wrote anything. Honestly, I didn't think I'd keep blogging once school started. But, after some encouragement from my new classmates, I figured what the heck!

So, what's been going on with me since June? I stopped working at the end of June, went to Vegas for a few days, relaxed around the house, paid way too much money to fix various things on my car, packed up my few possessions and headed to Winston-Salem on August 6th. I mostly just set up my room in the house and tried to meet as many of my new classmates as possible. Good times were had by all, and on Thursday of last week, orientation officially began.

Five days of orientation may seem like a lot, and I figured it would drag on. Surprisingly, it's been better than my expectations. Donovan Campbell, our first speaker on Thursday, was awesome. I never expected an opening speaker at an MBA program to be so emotional! I think all 400 people in the room were deeply moved. I've ordered his book, Joker One, and I look forward to finding some free time to read it!

Friday, we got our free laptops, section and team assignments (go team ten!), and learned more about how the next two years will go. Yesterday was team building...for seven hours. I went in with an open mind and had a good time. I definitely came away with a better appreciation for my new teammates! All I can say is, we got eleven people through a hula-hoop in 5.7 seconds.

There's still two more days of orientation...Monday is more information sessions, Tuesday is Community Plunge, where all new students make a splash in the community by volunteering. Classes start Wednesday, and I'm already under a load of assignments to be completed!

I'll definitely try and keep up with blogging during the school year, and I'm also on Twitter. I look forward to sharing this journey with everyone!

Let The Work Begin

Ask and you shall receive! I checked the admitted students website and lo and behold, two of the three pre-term assignments were posted. I've got some Excel prep work to do and I have to choose one of three options for financial accounting practice. I remember a bit of accounting from my undergrad days, but as my current job doesn't use much of it, I've forgotten most of it. I'm most likely going to choose the online option, for $55. I hope it's intuitive and easy to follow!

Also posted was the medical form. I have until July 1st to track down my medical records (not easy when you've moved twice in the past year and a half) and get a physical. I haven't been to a doctor since 2000! There's still more stuff to be posted (insurance, course registration, etc.) but at least it seems like we've officially moved from admitted students to actual students