Summer 1 Breakdown:
Accounting 8:00 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.
Professor: Betsy Willis
Fun Facts: She loves to garden, and she loves her grandchildren. Her grandchildren call her “BB” because her maiden name was “Best.” Betsy Best. Alliteration at its finest.
What you learn: how to read, create, and analyze financial statements, and generally how to determine the financial health of a business
Statistics 9:30 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.
Professor: Jeremy McElroy
Fun Fact: He collects ultra rare comic books, and his favorite series is Watchmen. He is also a former Marine.
What you learn: how to use programs like Excel and JMP to effectively data crunch and give numbers meaning.
Having classes early in the morning is honestly really nice, especially when I get a free a cup of coffee from the graduate lounge! After classes ends, a couple of us students will knock out the day’s homework, leaving us with some reading for the evenings. I’ve also been able to squeeze in time to go play basketball at the Student Life Center (SLC), or what we call the “Slick” – more on that in a later blog post.
Picking up everything and leaving everyone I knew for grad school was definitely challenging. However, our class is already starting to bond and do fun stuff outside of the classroom together! This week, we went to a place called “The Backyard.” We listened to live music, played Giant Jenga, and watched the NBA finals, which was projected on the side of the building. (Still sad the Thunder aren’t in it anymore. I hope KD doesn’t leave.)
I also learned how to play Kan Jam, which is so much fun. I’ve always wanted to be able to slam dunk.
In a way, Baylor’s MBA program is sort of like Kan Jam. I am the Frisbee, unaware of my abilities. The professors are the “throwers,” because they empower me and give me direction. My classmates are the “deflectors” because they me push me closer to my goals. Okay, maybe it’s a bit of a stretch or silly, but this week I’m thankful for the community I am surrounded by, here in Waco, who are forming me into the person I am supposed to become.
– John Pham
P.S. My new best friend Justice just started a really awesome blog where you can find some more insight about Baylor’s MBA program with the bonus of his very own artwork!