Friday, January 18, 2008

Congratulations!

Congratulations to the newly aboard members of Class of 2010 at Fuqua. I remember awaiting the results with bated breath same time last year, eventually falling asleep before getting an intimation :) Hope most of you are able to attend the Blue Devil Weekend and get a taste of Fuqua before joining.

Good luck to all those who did not make it or are awaiting other results. Hope everyone gets the best. Having been through a string of rejections, I understand the not so sweet feelings that accompany it. All I can say is that B-school apps are just a part of a long journey and not the end of the game.

Here's some tips for waitlisted candidates. Forrest's latest blog will also be helpful to you in case you have been waitlisted.

And the answer is...YES!

I have an internship. It took 5 interviews over 2 rounds to land up an internship in the industry that I wanted to get into.

It is amazing how things change. Just 5 weeks back I was worried about whether firms will even look at me. Then, it changed to whether I will be able to impress the recuiters with the skills that I have learned over the past semester. With an internship in hand, all those scary thoughts of having to spend a jobless summer have been thrown outside the window. I am now looking forward to the day when all my friends here land up super awesome offers and we can laugh over some of our silly responses in those claustrophobic interview rooms. Personally, it is a big relief to have a summer job offer before the first day of school. This should help me focus on my academics better.

Overall, it has been a good start to the internship season at Fuqua. Despite fears of a forthcoming recession, firms are picking up good numbers from here - seems to be either more than or same as last year. Of course, the final word will come from the Career Management Center (CMC) later.

The second years are a vital cog of this recruitment process, and their efforts to prepare us have been exemplary. I know of so many second years who came to school during the winter break just so that we can practice interviews and sharpen our skills with them. Hats off!






Tuesday, January 01, 2008

Happy New Year

Life is still exciting, only the players of the game have changed.

There is another challenging year in front of me as I prepare to embrace myself for the upcoming recruitment roller coaster and the related uncertainties. Same time last year, it was just as uncertain. I was awaiting my decisions, writing new applications. Literally everything I did found some link to my essays and my life story. I used to check my e-mail with anticipation.

Then I got through Duke and it felt that my life was about to change. Life did change. It has been an intense last six months. Networking is the name of the game. 'People know people who know people' has been the mantra. Life's goals have evolved from getting into the best B-school and best career to getting the best in whatever I set my sights on. My classmates from around the world have set the bar high. I miss India but find myself learning more and more about America - a country I had so many pre-conceived notions of.

In a nutshell, I am loving it! Here's good bye to 2007 and celebrating the spirit of Team Fuqua as I wish all readers a Happy New Year.