Michael Ramey's MBA Experience

The Baylor MBA Program and everything it has to offer!

Month: November 2015

Baylor Ethics Competition

November 29, 2015 / / 0 Comments

One thing you will learn at Baylor is how to be an ethical leader in business.  Professors weave the concept of ethics into their lessons and as students, you will discuss many stories of prior ethical failures.  If you are considering Baylor, you can be confident that Baylor will cover this topic and ensure that it sets you apart from other schools’ candidates.

Recently, I was able to participate in the 10th annual Baylor Ethics Competition.  This competition included both undergraduate and graduate business students.  We were given information about the case a few days prior to the presentations.  Our group began researching various aspects of the case and finding solutions to the ethical dilemmas presented.  We decided on a three prong solution with detailed steps to help fix the company’s issues.   We designed a power point and broke off to study our specific parts.

When our group came back together for the presentation, we knocked it out of the park.  The judges asked some tough questions during the Q&A part of the presentation, but as a group we managed to answer them with ease.  All of the research had shown through in our answers.  About a week later, our group was announced at the bi-weekly do-nut hour as the winner of the competition.

Ethics Case Win - CopyBaylor has a very successful graduate team that competes with other universities on a national level.  So if this is something you are interested in, Baylor is a great place to be!  Baylor is truly making great leaders that have a strong ethical foundation.

Sic ‘Em Bears

 

Choosing a laptop?!?

November 11, 2015 / / 0 Comments

If you were anything like me a few months ago, you are struggling with which laptop would work best in the MBA program.  Now that I am almost one semester in, I wanted to share a few nuggets of information that might be helpful in your laptop search.

  • PC or Mac? My current class is almost split in half when it comes to laptop brands.  I would say 45% of our class has a Mac and the rest have a Lenovo or similar.   Either way you go, someone will be able to help you.
  • Office.  This is business school, so we use Excel, Word and Power Point extensively.  All of the teacher’s instructions and assignments give the PC way of working with the specific program.  This is not too say that the Mac people have had a hard time, but some things are not were not the same across the Dont buy a brick. two platforms.
  • Weight.  I live close to campus and walk everywhere so weight of my laptop was something I should have considered more than I did.  Also, we move around in class regularly to form groups and it would be easier to have  a lighter/more portable laptop.   I would highly recommend something under 4lbs.
  • HDMI connection.  The new business school has some pretty fancy breakout rooms for grad students.  You are able to connect your laptop to the huge TV’s by way of the 4 HDMI cords in the room.  Make sure you laptop has that connection or is able to accept it through another cable connector.
  • Solid State Drive (SSD).  Whether it be a Mac or PC, you will be constantly putting your machine in sleep mode to change classes or to participate in discussion.  A machine that will turn back on very fast can be helpful when you are trying to get homework done right before the next class or take down those homework assignments before you forget.
  • Software.  Baylor does a great job of providing access to super affordable software.  You can get Office for almost nothing and Baylor provides Symantec Endpoint protection while you are a student.  So if configuring your machine, save money there and spend the savings on RAM or a SSD.
  • Student Discounts.  You are a student again and that means taking full advantage of this classification while you can.  Always check with the manufacturer to see if they offer a Baylor or student discounts.

I hope this has been insightful.  If you have any questions, please leave a comment and I will get back to you!

Sic’ Em Bears

 

Registering for Classes

November 10, 2015 / / 0 Comments

Twice a year, you will have to look forward to the next semester and begin to plan out your class schedule.  You will receive an email from Chelsea, MBA Adviser, that will prompt you to schedule a time to meet.  During the meeting you will discuss your field of study and Chelsea will recommend classes that will help you build out your degree.  This is a great time to ask about certain classes to see what the workload is like or a chance to see if a certain class would help you further your career.

The interesting thing about the MBA is that we have 2 types of classes.  The core classes (Accounting, Economics, Statistics, Finance, and Operations) are all on 5 week rotations and are 1 hour classes.  You will take each class 3 times during the MBA program and each class builds on the previous semester’s knowledge.  Your elective classes will last all semester and are typically 3 hour classes.  The hard part is seeing all of your classes in a one page view prior to registering.  Seeing all your classes on one page allows you to see when your breaks are for lunch, study or time off.  Lucky for you, I have created a spreadsheet to help you create your schedule and make edits in the case that you don’t get 9:30am class.

Class Schedule Spreadsheet

You will need to know a few things before registering on Bearweb.   You will register at 6am typically, so that is painful in itself.  Also, you will need to have the CRN codes for each class you are registering for.  These codes will be listed next to the class time you want to take on Chelsea’s handouts or Bearweb.  When adding classes, you will see the below the screen.  It allows you to enter the 5 digit CRN codes and then submit.  Some classes fill up fast and it is helpful to have alternate CRN handy when registering.

CRN pictureI want to leave you with a few final notes.  Three semesters goes by very quickly.  Make very good use of your time here at Baylor and one of the best ways to accomplish this is to be prepared in advance (hopefully the spreadsheet helps).  My dad always said, “proper planning prevents piss poor performance.”  I think this is very true on a program basis as well as preparing for each class period.  Get ahead of the curve and stay ahead.  This will make your time here more valuable and rewarding.

Sic’ Em Bears!

 

 

 

Baylor MBA in New York

November 3, 2015 / / 0 Comments

Statue of LibertyAs a student in the Baylor MBA program, you have the opportunity as a Core 1 or Core 2 student to visit NYC.  The trip is part of the career management class and affords you a week away from the classroom setting to learn hands on.   Baylor did a great job of building this into the curriculum and you should definitely take full advantage.

The trip includes guest speakers, company visits and plenty of free time!  Our trip started with a flight into LaGuardia and then a bus ride to The Manhattan Hotel in Times Square.  The hotel was a perfect location for easy access to food, entertainment and transportation.

DSC_0710

During the week, you will have an morning meeting at a variety of companies across this city.  Learning how the subway works is key to getting places on time!  Our trip included meetings at Accenture, Linked In, Bloomberg, Aviva, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, Goldman Sachs and Samlyn Capital.  While at these firms, we were performing case studies, seeing the company culture and networking with the employees.
After all of the meetings, Baylor built in some exclusive tours for the students.  We were able to visit the NYSE and walk around on the floor.  Also, we were able to visit the 9/11 Memorial and see the emotional tribute to the victims.  If you ever visit NYC, this is a must do item.

DSC_0624One World Trade Center

 

 
Food is always important when traveling and New York City did not disappoint.   Baylor took us to Carmine’s one night and brought Bryce Petty as a guest speaker.  Baylor also took us to Defy Ventures one night and we had Ray’s Pizza.  See my other post on Defy Ventures, it is well worth your time.  Other nights we typically explored different parts of the city and tried new places.  A few of us even ventured down to Brooklyn and went to the famous Grimaldi’s under the bridge.

Brooklyn BridgeDSC_0672All in all, this will be one of the more memorable parts of the MBA program.   Our class really got to know each other and it was a great middle of the semester break from class.

Sic ‘Em Bears!

A Night with Defy Ventures!

November 1, 2015 / / 0 Comments

Imagine you are in New York City, riding the N train to the Canal St exit. You look around to notice that most people are lost in their cell phone and you can’t help but notice the plethora of smells bombarding your nose. Jumping off the subway and walking to ground level, you find yourself somewhere between Chinatown and Soho. You manage to find a skinny brick building and walk up the rickety steps. You arrive on the sixth floor a little out of breath and glad a step did not give way. You are met with an expansive room filled with tables and chairs and some strangers sitting there reviewing papers.  At this point, an employee from Defy Ventures stands up and begins to enlighten you on the night ahead.
Defy Ventures intro

You quickly learn that you will be helping former convicts get their business idea up an running.  Breaking up in to groups and then further into one-on-one, you are met with a very eager and purpose-filled individual that wants nothing more than to hear what YOU have to say.  Over the next hour or so, you scramble to come up with ideas that will breathe life into this individual’s idea and hopefully help this individual succeed in the future.
Night at Defy Ventures

Looking back at the Baylor MBA’s trip to NYC, this was my most memorable moment.  I was humbled at the drive these individuals portrayed and the perseverance they continue to show day in and day out as they overcome the stigma of being a convict.  Personally, I was inspired to work even harder and challenge myself.
DSC_0846

If you have not had the opportunity to experience Defy Ventures, I highly encourage you to find a way to volunteer.
www.defyventures.org

 

Recent Posts

Archives

© 2024 Michael Ramey's MBA Experience

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑