The MBA Student Voice

Global Trips, One Wedding, No Funerals: Spring Break @ UCLA Anderson

Spring Break! When was the last time you had 1 1/2 weeks off? No work, no school, no responsibilities, no kidding? Well, for me, it was just this Christmas (wrap-up post here), but you can have all these breaks too if you come back to b-school! I'm going to hit a few of the spring break highlights and what's happened since we got back. 

My fellow blogger Connie reported on her trip to Cabo, and a few other large groups of Anderson students dispersed around the globe to create havoc and get ideas for their next great business venture (depending on who you ask). Costa Rica got rave reviews for gorgeous weather and amazing scenery like the famous waterfalls:

Cloud forest vs. Cloud storage. (Photo by Marshall Mawson.)

And every picture I've seen from the legendary Japan trip that almost 100 students went on makes me either wildly jealous or hugely relieved I didn't go!

Luiz, Heloisa, and Camila prove that what happens in Japan should probably stay in Japan. (Photo courtesy Aspan Dahmubed.)

You may be wondering why I didn't get to partake in any of these amazing trips. That is, unless you are an avid reader of this blog, in which case you have been following along for the past 9 months and already know why (no, not THAT!). Stanton and I finally tied the knot!

Stanton manages to hold up his left hand in a salud despite the ball and chain beautiful ring he now sports.

Having been working on planning the wedding behind the scenes during all the craziness of moving across country, surviving fall quarter, and recruiting and doing four high-profile races this winter, it is definitely a relief that the big event has happened. That's easy to say though because it was such a huge success and my husband is so amazing! Really, to all bridezillas out there, it turns out you don't have to micromanage everything to have a fabulous wedding. Have good food, a crowd-friendly venue, an awesome band, and a guest list of people that love to dance, and you can't go wrong. We partied deep into the night and still no one wanted to leave when it was over!

It's my wedding and I will jump awkwardly higher than anyone else on the dance floor and otherwise show off my two left feet if I want to!

The big day was March 31st in Atlanta, GA, where spring had officially sprung. I'm always going on and on about the amazing weather here in LA, and I guess my hometown was getting a bit of a complex because the flowers were in bloom and it couldn't have been more perfect.

Although this pic was included to show off the illustriously blooming azaleas, I suppose it bears explaining that one of the activities at my bachelorette party involved puffy painting matching hoodies. What can I say, my bridesmaids and I are children of the 80s. (L to R: Kara, me, Lucy. Don't get any ideas Gentlemen, we're all spoken for.)

My beautiful family! I couldn't have done it without their support, especially my lovely mother Gaylen. Just in case you weren't sure, she's the one on the left. My sisters Jordan and Allie are next, then my Dad. He was really relieved I finally dragged another man into the family! 

So now it's back to the grind (yes, we got married on Saturday and I was in class on Monday), and the last week has been filled with getting up to speed on my new duties as president of the HTBA, starting my first TA position, and getting used to all the new classes. We had ASA Transition day on Friday, a 7-hour haul where we learned all the ins and outs of being presidents. It was a long day, but I am so impressed by all the leaders of the student council (ASA), the associations and clubs. The class of 2013 is pretty amazing! 

Finally, just because I spent so much time making this collage-style picture and in another plug for LA weather, here is a shot of me smiling with relief after finishing the LA Marathon in 3:29 on March 18th. I loved getting to tour my new city on foot with no traffic, but I did not love the fierce headwind for the entire race. I'll definitely do it again next year and recommend it to my readers!

Next blog post, I'll have more info on the events the HTBA is planning, as well as an update from the Knapp Business Plan Competition, where Sarah Fixler, Aviva Altmann and I are pitching our business plan Yogameo in the semifinals on Thursday. As always, we never stop here at Anderson!

-Charlotte Baxter Maines

Follow me on Twitter: @CharlotteK

Anderson Spring Breakers in Cabo!

Photo courtesy of the uber-talented Brian Sim.  

So spring break officially ended a little over 48 hours ago and spring quarter is in full swing as I type this.  It isn't without a tinge of regret that I find myself writing this wrap up post on my short-lived vacation, but I have to say, it's great to see my classmates again.  From the whirlwind first quarter to the recruiting blitzkrieg, it's as if being in the trenches together brings everyone closer.  But, all that is behind us for the most part and now we're settling in nicely to the (calmer) ebbs & flows of business school.  And speaking of ebbs & flows, a group of us Andersonites decided to bravely venture to the Baja coast this spring break and enjoy an extended weekend in Cabo San Lucas.  This was actually my second time in Mexico, the first time being a family vacation to Tijuana over ten years ago (yes, I know that a "family vacation" doesn't qualify as a real vacation these days).  All I knew was to expect the following three things: pools, beaches, and seafood.  And it turns out, we got all three in spades.

Rollicking: Josh, his gf Teresa, Liwen, and Sara

Click on for more!

Finally, A Break! The Holiday You Haven’t Had Since College

Greetings from VACATION! When is the last time you had a holiday longer than a couple of days over Christmas? Who needs the working world when you can be off from December 8 to early January???

My blogging skills were recently tapped by the prestigious third-party MBA Admissions website Accepted.com who interviewed me for their series about Top MBA programs. I was more than happy to provide them with my thoughts on UCLA Anderson, please check it out! (Note: I prefer the adjective “thorough” to “overshare” but there’s so much good stuff to say I had a hard time editing!)

So since that gives you more than anything you ever wanted to know about Anderson, and I’m on vacation anyways, here is my Christmas blog entry.

Usually I only get to sneak home for a few days over the Christmas holiday because of work, so it was a real treat this year to head to my hometown of Atlanta for a week and a half! This year it was especially important too, since I have this little thing called a wedding in March and there is lots to do! (Further evidence of the general over-ambition of b-school students: the wedding is in Atlanta on Saturday of Spring Break, and I will be back in class in LA on Monday!)

Although my mother has done a yeoman’s job of wedding planning this fall, I still had a few priorities of things I wanted to be involved in. Topping this list, naturally, was the cake tasting. How many weddings have you been to where the beautiful cake tastes like…. nothing? Not the case at my wedding! After much intense discussion (see below) a delicious decision was reached.

One of the most important wedding decisions is made.

My absolutely delectable Vera Wang dress, purchased this summer (described here) had also come in so I got it fitted.  Unfortunately, due to the fact that my fiancé checks this blog from time to time (I think), no pictures will be posted here except this teaser.

I modified the old adage to say “Something old, something new, something borrowed, and something fabulously sparkly!”

Anderson Pre-Orientation Trip to Yosemite: A Great Start to B-school? Yes!

I just returned from my UCLA Anderson Outdoor Adventures Pre-Orientation trip, five days with twelve of my new classmates and two student leaders in beautiful Yosemite National Park. I had been told when I spoke to Anderson students and alums prior to even being admitted that these so-called Pre-O trips were not to be missed, and in fact had signed up for mine before I even put down my deposit accepting my offer of admission to Anderson! It sounded so amazing that I was worried it would sell out before I got in, and amazing it was. (You can also read about my fellow blogger Anna Dickstein’s adventure here.)

The famed Yosemite Valley including El Cap (left) and Half Dome (background).

It was something of a trial by fire—having only met each other for a brief hour at our pre-trip meeting the previous day, we convened on campus and piled into two vans for the 8-hour trek to the famed Hetch-Hetchy reservoir in northern Yosemite. But from the first moment it became clear—there would be no shortage of things to talk about on his trip. I was immediately overwhelmed and deeply impressed by my fellow classmates’ accomplishments both personally and professionally, the places they had lived in and traveled, and the jobs and experience they had wracked up in roughly 25-31 years of life. Swapping stories and experiences would easily take up the entire 5 days!

The “before” picture when everyone still looked fresh and didn’t have dreads for hair and a Backpacker’s Tan (aka layer of dirt). Take a look—If any one of the above is in your sections, consider yourself lucky: (Back, L to R) Bill Wells, Donald Nadalin, Jack Cooney, Leo Reilly, Micha Lamed, Jon Bower (fearless trip leader & UCLA undergrad), Ahmad Nawaz, and Scott Crabtree; (Front, L to R) Remy Monteko-Sherman, Kelsey Hammond (trip leader/Mermicorn), Charlotte Baxter (me), Jennis Chou, Sarah Fixler, and Michael Malenitza.

Free At Last !!! Photos and commentary taken from, inspired by, and dedicated to, the newly-independent nation of South Sudan.

I hope everyone has been having an amazing summer, and, more importantly perhaps, is now fully geared up for the start of the school year.  Seriously, I can’t wait to meet all of my fellow classmates soon.

Anyway, I’ve been pursuing my global travels with a fervent passion over the last four weeks -- which explains why I’ve been absent from updating my blog, and I do sincerely apologise to all of you for that -- but, I’m now back in New York and, best of all, I can proudly say that I’ve finished my “From Extreme to Extreme” 2011 challenge.

I will now update my blog with far more frequency, and will aim to perhaps cover one country, possibly even two, within each blog update.  My first update will be on the world’s youngest sovereign nation of South Sudan, and it is attached below.  My next post will be on Burundi.

So, without further ado, I present to you: The Republic of South Sudan.

Enjoy !!! 

Graham

  

Free At Last !!!

Photos, and commentary, taken from, inspired by, and dedicated to, the gossamer administration known as GOSS, the newly‐sovereign -- and world’s youngest --nation of South Sudan, and the newly‐free South Sudanese people.

A full length of version of my photo-essay about South Sudan is available to download here: Download South Sudan July 2011

This poster pretty much sums it up.

 

UCLA Anderson Pre-Orientation Trip: Big Sur

Exactly four months ago, the UCLA Anderson Class of 2013 received an email inviting us to sign up for a Pre-Orientation trip. With options ranging from rock climbing, to hiking Yosemite, canoeing in Arizona, I knew it when I saw it: “Trip #4: Backpacking Big Sur, Ventana Wilderness.”

Activity level was marked as “physically demanding” and the UCLA Recreation department was not kidding. Each equipped with a backpack that would last us 4 days in the great outdoors, we were on our way. The breathtaking beauty of Highway 1 took us to our first stop, Limekiln State Park.

We gradually began our transition to the tranquil outdoors at Limekiln. We listened to the sound of crashing waves, got our feet wet in the Pacific Ocean, and stacked stones in cairn zen-like piles. 

That first evening we got the "101" on the great outdoors: we learned to recognize poison ivy and hiked a bit to a beautiful waterfall in the state park. We then worked together to chop ingredients and cook the best Thai Fried Rice I’ve ever had. No cell phones, no currency, just a group of 12 incoming MBA students with our 2 amazing guides – about to begin our adventure.   

Laid out like sardines on a few ground tarps, every single one of us slept under the stars. There is something so zen, so amazing about waking up to droplets of early morning dew falling on your face. And once you open your eyes, you see the vast height of redwoods stretching out into the dawn-colored sky.

Filled up on hearty oatmeal and fresh fruit we packed our bags, dividing all group gear we’d carry on our backs over the next 3 days. And thus we ventured off into the Ventana Wilderness, backpacking 10 miles each way across the rolling Pine Ridge Trail. 

Our guides jokingly described the trail as “uphill both ways” and that’s exactly what it was. The hilly terrain ensured that we were always walking at an angle. I had a few moments of revelation during the trip. The most memorable was the importance of taking life one step at a time. We hiked across some very sleep hills with 30 lb bags on our shoulders. I made a point to look around, left and right, but almost never directly ahead. Uphill or downhill I walked one step at a time. Hour after hour, taking pictures, stopping for breaks, chiming in on conversations – all of this was the focus, not the hills. I wasn’t tired; I was challenged. I was happy. I never dreaded an uphill, I simply conquered it one step at a time. This was my biggest lesson and realization, something that I will definitely apply during my MBA.

That second evening, we filtered our own water, boiled sausage and cooked sweet-potato fries. We saw a baby scorpion, and deepened our respect for “leave no trace.” We were fascinated by the story of Jack English who homesteaded land in the Big Sur wilderness.

The next morning, we made our way to Sykes Hot Springs. The springs sprout earth-heated mineral water into 3 separate hot-tub-like natural pools. Despite smelling a bit like sulfur, the water was unbelievably warm with temperatures ranging between 80 and 100*F. To cool off, some of us bathed in the river underneath. 

We started making our way back on the third day. We slept that last night under the stars near a flowing river, returning to civilization the next afternoon.

Thank you to everyone for a great time and I can’t wait to see you on campus in exactly 10 days!

~Anna

72 hours to go!

After having waitied 8 long months since January '11, when I received my acceptance phone call from UCLA Anderson, I have another 72 hours to go before I'm on a plane to Los Angeles! I am literally JOTBWE (Jumping On The Bed With Excitement)!

With just 3 days to go, I've pretty much got my bases covered:

• Visa: My US F1 visa was a tough one to get! Every year, a random group of student applicants get selected for Additional Administrative Processing, which essentially means that the Visa process will take 2-3 months instead of 2-3 days. Well, lucky me, I was randomly selected for the honour of being a part of this procedure! So, despite applying early for the visa (late May), I received my visa this past Monday! Was it worth the wait, tension, anxiety and hair loss? Absolutely.

• Los Angeles: After careful consideration, I've decided on 4 different books on LA and Southern California, one of them called "Los Angeles and Disneyland for Dummies". After reading the material, identifying relevant content and analysing the data, I realize that LA is spectacular!

• Pre-Orientation Tutorials & Reading: I have never done accounting before. The only times I hear the words "Credit" and "Debit" are where they precede the word "Card". Therefore, to get in the groove I decided to start really early with the tutorial. With a the help of fellow UCLA Anderson '13 classmate, Anant Rishi, I think the I've made a lot of progress, even though I'm sure there's a long way to go. As for the reading material, I'm happy to announce that I printed all the pdf files this morning.

• Packing: Ah! This is a tough one. Life would be so much easier if we could hire an agency to pack our bags for us! (Wait, did I just think of an entrepreneurial venture?) Stuffing my entire life into 2 suitcases is very hard. As of today, my bags weigh 79kg. The allowed airline limit is 46kg.

To sum up, barring a few minor things that need some attention, I'm good to to make my way to LA! Looking forward to meeting everone in LA! :)

 - Karan Kumar, MBA '13

UCLA Anderson takes over the Golden Gate

…well I may be slightly exaggerating but on Saturday, August 6^th, we grabbed our bikes and did our best.

Adam, Andy, Brian, Danny, Daphne, Simon and I met at the Golden Gate Bridge Visitor Center 9:30am. The meeting point: Adam’s Napa Wine Country Cycling Jersey!

We had a few route options but most of us rode between 25 and 45 miles that day. Everyone started at the south-east entrance of the Golden Gate. The fog was in; the air was amazingly fresh.

Click here to see our intended route

Usually cyclists get to use the west side walkway of the bridge during weekends, but because of construction we had the fun of sharing the east walkway with a plethora of tourists who, as usual, were unpredictable in their stopping and walking patterns.

We made our way over the bridge in a matter of minutes riding into Sausalito. Nine miles in, we approached our first turning-point: whoever wanted to could turn back and take the Ferry back to Pier 1. 

No one turned back and we headed up our first hill. This was my first hill – ever! Figures it would be a group from Anderson that pushed me to give it a try. Up to this point in my life, I’ve done my best to stick to non-elevated terrain... Making our way up was slightly painful yet definitely awesome. We all made it to the top, continued down and through more of the North Bay.

Feeling the symbolism, we stopped to capture the moment on Paradise Dr.

We had an awesome Saturday morning, each leaving with a solid workout under our belts and great memories:

 “Right after we crossed the GG Bridge, we got caught in the mix of the bike race that was going on that day. Flying down the steep and narrow Sausalito hill dodging scores of racers (and cars) was quite a rush! I also really enjoyed getting to know everyone who joined us on the trip. I hope we make this a regular event!” - Brian, c/o 2010

 “It was great to learn that the alumni community cuts across the full-time, FEMBA, and EMBA programs. All Anderson grads are one family.” - Danny, c/o 2013

 “Going downhill with about 30 other riders into Sausalito – that was mayhem. I also really liked Lakespur. That looked like a really cool town and I had never been through it before.” - Andy, c/o 2011

 “We got to Tiberon, Daphne and I missed the 12:45 ferry and they didn't run another one until 3:00pm so we decided to bite the bullet and bike back which was 45 miles in total. Long day, but good none the less.” – Adam, c/o 2009

 “The 20-mile ride turned out to be an unexpected 40ish-mile adventure (as Adam and I took the wrong turn and in the end biked all the way back to SF).” - Daphne, c/o 2012 

After riding 45 miles, Adam and Daphne are smiling!

 

Baseball vs. Cricket!

Only a few days ago, I bought a ticket to the Summer Dodger Game. I'm already excited about catching the action at Dodger Stadium in a little less than a month from now! However, I do face one small, teeny-tiny challenge: I've never seen or even heard anything related to baseball in my entire life.

  Coming from India, baseball is as rare to come by as traffic-free roads in LA. That said, baseball does have a half-brother that we adore in India: Cricket! 

In my last job, while serving an American client, I decide to educate the folks across the seas on cricket and, in turn, learn something about baseball. Here's some of the stuff I managed to figure out:

	Cricket	Baseball *
Players	Batsman, Bowler, Fielder	Batter, Pitcher, Catcher
Scoring	1 run each time 2 batsmen switch places (no limit), 4 runs when hit ball bounces out beyond ropes, 6 runs when it goes out without bouncing	1 run each time a batter covers all 4 bases, Home Run when a hit ball goes out of the ground without bouncing
Team Size	11 players in each team	9 players in each team
Match Size	1 inning, 10 players out	9 innings, 3 players out
Durations	20-20 (3-4 hours), One Day, Five Days	~3 hours
Popularity	104 nations	117 nations
World Cup/Series	14 nations	USA & Canada, so I hear :)

* The author does not take any responsibility for any incorrect facts on Baseball. After all, he doesn't have a clue.

 

Here's another difference: the shape of the field and the position of fielders/catchers.

In cricket, bowlers bowl 6 balls from one end of the pitch to the batsman standing on the other side of the pitch. Once 6 deliveries are done, a new bowler delivers the next 6 balls, but this time from the opposite end of the pitch from where the previous bowler was bowling. The batsmen do not switch ends.

In baseball, pitchers need to stay stationary within their “box” while pitching. A single pitcher starts the game and makes every pitch until the coach replaces the tiring pitcher with the relief pitcher. A pitcher (or any other player) removed from the game (as opposed to being shifted to another position) cannot re-enter the game.

For batting in cricket, a flat wooden bat is used. A batsman hits the ball once it is bowled in Cricket and runs towards the opposite end where the other batsman is. They both switch ends and this constitutes one run. When the batsman hits the ball along the ground and it crosses the boundary, it is considered four runs while a ball crossing the boundary whilst in the air is six runs.

In Baseball, starting at Home Plate, each batter attempts to run counterclockwise to the next base of the diamond, continuing on to each following base in order, and finally returning to home, whereupon a run is scored. Often a player will reach a base but be forced to stop there. On subsequent plays the player may continue to advance. If the ball is hit over the outfield and exits the field there, it’s a Home Run. 

* On the left are the front, back and side views of a cricket bat. On the right is a baseball bat. As a baseball bat is completely round, it doesn't make sense to show it from three different angles.

For me, this is a lot to start with! After all this research I’m ready for the Dodgers Game!

Existing and incoming Anderson students wanting to buy tickets can check out this site: https://www.wepay.com/xymp9j/tickets/AndersonC4CDodgerGame

Go Dodgers! .. umm, right? :)

- Karan, MBA '13

Welcome to Your World: “From Extreme to Extreme” (a global traveler’s adventure tales leading-up to matriculation at UCLA)

Welcome back to my second post.

Whether you’re working, traveling, studying or just preparing to move to Los Angeles, I hope you’ve all been having an amazing summer so far.

As for me, I’ve decided to travel this summer.  However, I want to make my travels leading up to matriculation as memorable as possible, so I’ve gone ahead and have set myself several challenges. 

For reasons that will become abundantly clear in a minute, I’ve decided to call my 2011 summer travel plans “From Extreme to Extreme.”

My first challenge will be to travel to the world’s oldest sovereign state, San Marino, and to the world’s youngest, South Sudan.

My second challenge will be to travel to the world’s richest sovereign state, Monaco, and to the world’s poorest, Burundi.

My third challenge will be to travel to the world’s smallest sovereign state, The Sovereign Military Order of Malta, and to the world’s largest, Russia.

My fourth challenge will be to travel to the world’s least populous sovereign state, Vatican City State, and to the world’s most populous, China.

In between, I will embark on additional adventures wherever and whenever possible.  I intend to update you, the reader of my blog, at regular intervals with stories and photos of my travels, too.

Starting with a month-long trip to South America that I embarked upon in April, I estimate that I will have visited 29 countries spanning 5 continents over a period of 6 months by the time I meet all my future Class of 2013 classmates in early-September.

The list of countries I will travel -- or have recently traveled -- to include all of the following (underlined indicates that I’ve already traveled to this country since the beginning of April):

South America:  Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay.

North America:  Canada and the United States.

Africa:  Burundi, South Sudan and Uganda. 

Asia:  China.

Europe:  Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, Norway, Russia, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, Sweden, Switzerland and the Vatican City State.

Wish me luck !!!

And, more importantly, I hope you enjoy my travel updates !!!

 

In this post, I will include a write-up and photos of:

1) the world’s oldest sovereign state, San Marino; and,

2) my adventures crossing two of the two highest asphalted roads in Europe.