NYU Diversity Conference Day 1

So... today was the first day of the NYU diversity conference.  As I lay here on my bed I figured I would write an update before going to sleep.  I'm going to write it as the days events happened...

First I went to work haha.  Unlike a lot of the people, about 50% of people are not from the tri-state area, I live only a couple of subway stops from NYU.  So I got to the Kaufman building around 4:30.  Upon picking up my name badge I was told that I look familiar, by someone from NYU.  I said "yeah I've been here last year for a marketing event."  They said, "Oh yeah.. and your last name is unforgetable."  I smiled and thought to myself "Thanks mom and dad!"  If you guys don't know, my last name is Battle-Baxter.  Battle is my moms last name and Baxter is my dads last name.  It just happens to flow.  Say it outloud and you'll see...  Richard Battle-Baxter.  If you throw in my middle name it sounds even cooler...  Richard Alvin Battle-Baxter.

Anyway, upon arriving I was escorted into a reception area with soda, coffee, and some snacks.  I met a couple of cool people.  You know how that goes.  Initially everyone is standing in a small group of 3/4 asking the standard questions - "What do you do?"  "Where are you from?" "What other schools are you looking at?"  Just have these answers ready because you will be asked them by other prospectives at every event you attend.

So then after the little hour long reception we went upstairs to the 11th floor and sat at tables for an introductory speech to the weekend.  I noticed that there were about 100 prospective students there.  Actually, I think it was closer to 90.  So after that speech it was time for ice breakers.  It was similar to musical chairs in that each table was given a scenario ie. "You are the owner of a restaurant and have to come up with a dish that represents NYU."  or "You are an olympic planning committee and you are to come up with a city and new sport for the next olympics!"  The games were fun and interactive and allowed us to meet a whole bunch of people we probably wouldn't have met otherwise.

Then after the ice breakers it was DINNER TIME!  Dinner was only across the hall but it was a complete 180 from where we were previously.  It was as if we were at a 5 star restaurant!  I sat at a table with my friend Jessica and we had two current students sit with us, as well as the director of admissions, Issor Gallagay.  I personally love 3 course meals.  We had a nice appetizer.... steak and potatos....this amazing cupcake...and coffee. Oh... do not let me forget to mention that the wine was flowing!  My glass was never empty and at one point I said to the person next to me.. "they really want us to get drunk don't they?"  which was funny because then the waiter echoed my comments as he refilled my glass.

One of the best parts of dinner was listening to the Dean speak.  Being a minority himself, he could really relate to the positions that we were all in.  If I tried to begin to mention all of the accolades of this dean, I would write a 9 paged book.  He's phenomenal and has this hhmm... ora... about him.  The dinner conversation was great.  It's always nice to hear from current students, but this time it was different.  I think maybe because we were sitting at the table for so long and the personalities of the two current students assigned to our table, we got a lot of great insight into the Stern experience.

After dinner we were lead downstairs into the basement for Beer Blast which was dubbed Sangria Blast for the evening.  From what I understand this event occurs every Thursday and is open to all Sternies.  So we get down there and it's hot because there were so many people, but it was fun!  I saw a couple of my friends who go to Stern and talked to them for a bit.

An coincidental thing happened though, which in hindsight is not too surprising considering my past experiences.  So one of the students who was sitting at my table saw me at Beer blast and told me to come find her after I got my drink.  So I did, and she introduced me to the two people she was talking too.  One of the guys told me who he used to work for and I'm like... Oh did you work in Ohio?  He said yes.  So I asked "do you know ________ and _______?"  He's like "oh I love _______ and yes I know ________ and (Current student sitting at my table) knows him too!"  I thought that was weird so I turned to her and said "How do you know ________?"  She said "I grew up with him!"  I thought that was weird because I grew up with him.  We played soccer together since we were very young and I had never met her.  So I said.. did you live in Old Bridge?  And she said "No... our parents grew up together in Nigeria so we've know each other forever!"  I was like "wow... what a small world?"  Now if you guys are wondering who this person we were talking about is... Well.. he's my friend who is now at Duke Fuqua!  You know... This Guy!

With that being said - and I could have said much more - I'm going to go to sleep.  I have a very long day tomorrow and I'd rather not be tired.  Plus I'm excited to get to wear my new custom suit that I got last month!  Not sure which shirt I'm going to wear with it, but I'm sure I'll figure it out in the morning!

Later...

NYU Diversity Conference - ACCEPTED off Waitlist!

So today around 4pm my gmail updated itself and the following email w/ corresponding subject line came through:

I smiled and said "YES!!!" to myself again haha.  Then of course I immediately texted my friend who was also accepted!  The same one who I will be going up to Cornell with.  

The conference is NEXT WEEK!  But don't cry for me Argentina, I had already warned work that I would be taking those days off.  I told them last week that it was tentative, but to keep it on the schedule.  At least I don't have to worry about lodging and traveling costs lol.  I'll just use my metrocard and in the morning instead of going East on the subway I'll go South.  Just a hop skip and a jump.

Here is the schedule for the days events:

Thursday, October 7        
4:00-5:00 p.m.            Registration
5:00 p.m.                    Welcome and Icebreaker
6:30 p.m.                    Opening Dinner Featuring NYU Stern Dean Peter Henry
8:30 p.m.                    Stern Beer Blast (optional)


Friday, October 8        
9:30-10:15 a.m.          Check-In and Breakfast
10:30 a.m.                  Mock Class
12:00-7:00 p.m.         Association of Hispanic & Black Business (AHBBS) Students Conference
7:00 p.m.                   Happy Hour with AHBBS (optional)


Saturday, October 9        
9:30-10:00 a.m.         Check-In and Breakfast
10:00 a.m.                 Career Development and Student Activities Presentation
11:00 a.m.                 Your 60-Second Pitch Workshop
12:00 p.m.                 Mock Application Workshop
1:30-3:00 p.m.           Luncheon with Stern Alumni
8:00 p.m.                   A Night out with AHBBS (optional)


So I'm looking forward to it!  Reminds me that I must put my suit in the cleaners!  Ok I just wanted to give you guys an update.  


Here is my weekend in preview:


Friday night - Study then watch Freakanomics on iTunes.
Saturday - Take a full length MGMAT CAT Exam...  Go into work to do some stuff... Study....Continue writing essay.
Sunday - Study... Continue writing Essays

Cornell Johnson Means Business - ACCEPTED!

So if you couldn't tell from the post title - I was accepted to Cornell's diversity conference = Johnson Means Business!  I knew that today was the day that they would be sending out acceptances because tehy said it on their website.  So then today I was watching my GMAIL account like a hawk!

Then at 5:26 my email refreshed and this popped in my inbox!

You can't believe my excitement after being waitlisted by NYU and Dartmouth.  I was like god just give me one please.  My prayers worked.  I still haven't heard back from NYU yet and their conference is Next Thursday/Friday/Saturday.  Tuck's conference isn't until the 2nd week in November, so I have time for that one.

So upon reading the Cornell email I immediately texted my friend who is on a 3 business school tour right now.  I said "Omg Omg Check Your Email!"  I knew she was driving but she's able to get her email via her phone.  So her response back was "YES!!  ROADTRIP!"  Hahahaha...  So I'll most likely be going with her and maybe one or two others.  

What's cool about this is that Cornell will have students host you (most schools do that anyway), but they'll also reimburse us up to $200 for travel!  Now... How clutch is that since it's so close to R1 deadlines!  I mean I'm already struggling to find money.  Like really struggling, but that will be tomorrow's post.  So yeah Cornell makes it very easy... well.. easier!  So I think maybe someone is going to drive or maybe I can convince them to take the Cornell Campus to Campus Luxury Coach  that leaves right here from the Cornell Club in NYC.

This acceptance just rejuvenated me!  Actually all of today's events rejuvenated me!  I wish I could tell you all about the latter half of my day, but I can't.  You'll find out about that at a later date.  Don't even think about asking either!

I'm going to go do some more research on Cornell before calling it a night.  Because October is probably going to be the busiest month of my life, I must make sure that I rest AND EAT.  I say that I must eat, because my mom will read this post... and then email me and say 'You must eat too'.  Now she's reading that last sentence and smiling... and now she's laughing and thinking "You're crazy."  

In any event...

Business School Diversity Conferences

I hope everyone had a great weekend!  Let me give you some quick updates:

1.)  My friends heard back from the NYU Diversity Conference, but unfortunately I did not.  My friend Jessica was accepted on Thursday around 6pm.  They said they would let everyone know by the 10th, but I still have not heard back from them.  Doesn't look like a good sign.  Guess I wasn't diverse enough.  We'll see though, I wasn't rejected at least.  So I'm still hopeful.  If I am rejected I have my suspicions as to why that would be the case.  More to come when I find out the answer....

2.)  After much hard work I THINK I have completed my essay for the Tuck Diversity conference.  I put a lot of time into this essay and my friends can attest to that statement.  I just want to get someone to look over my resume again, so I know that it's perfect to submit.  The Tuck Diversity Conference essay was to be 250 words.  The question was "Why do you want to learn more about Tuck and why do you feel you're a good fit?"  When I first wrote the essay, I was all over the place, but after speaking with a coworker I realized that I needed to revamp it.

I also looked at the essay that I submitted last year to the Tuck diversity conference and I will say, there's a huge difference!  Something incredible happens when you've had the interaction with the school and students vs. not having interaction.

3.)  This week I have to submit the Cornell Johnson Diversity conference essay.  This one is a tad bit more robust.  It's 400 words and the question is "In 400 words or less, please discuss the following: What career do you plan to pursue upon completing your MBA and why? How will the Johnson School help you achieve this goal?"  As standard as this question seems, I must admit that I have not put as much time and energy into Cornell as I have Dartmouth.  The interaction I've had with Cornell students has been positive, but this darn GMAT exam has me distracted so to speak.  No worries though, I'll be able to get this essay done this week.  


Here's the kicker though - I HAVE TO STUDY FOR THE GMAT!!!  ::sigh::  All these hiccups in the process.  I will not let them be detrimental though!


4.)  I changed my Tuck interview from 9/24 to 10/26.  I'll be taking off the whole last week of October.  Monday, I'll be on my way up to Dartmouth for my interview.  Tuesday is my interview.  Wednesday morning I'll be on my way home.  Thursday, if accepted to the Cornell Johnson diversity conference, I'll be up there Thursday - Saturday.  


It's a grueling process, but it's gotta be done!

GMAT & B-School Journey Update!

Hello All...  at the end of my last post I said that there were a lot of things that I needed to update you guys on.  So this post will do just that.  I don't want to fall behind because there are a couple things going on later this week...

I was interviewed for MBAPodcaster:
So last week a representative over at MBA podcaster reached out to me.  She said that she was putting together a podcast related to the MBA Timeline and what candidates should do prior to applying and when.  She was tipped off to my blog by one of her colleagues.  I was excited to participate because MBA Podcaster has been very useful for me.  I found out about it last summer and have listened to all 100+ podcasts... if you don't believe me check my very post because I called it out http://bit.ly/MyFirstPost.  I will say that I was very nervous when we were talking on the phone.  I wasn't nervous because of the conversation topic, but I was nervous because I knew I was being recorded.  You guys all know that I love to talk, but something changes when you know that you're being recorded I guess.  I also think it was because I didn't want to say any school names.  When I talk freely I "name drop" all the time, but since I was making a conscious effort to not name any schools, I would trip myself up.  She reassured me that I was doing fine, aside from the couple of "speak ups", and that the podcast would turn out just fine.  I don't think it will be out until the fall.

Update on conversation with VP:
I know people are anxious to hear about this update.  Well...hhmm... it did not go as planned. :-(  The conversation I had with her was not bad by any means.  She liked the position I created and asked what I was looking for.  She also noted that I added a title change and I explained why.  I think she was surprised by that but I explained to her that since we got rid of our agency and were engaging in new initiatives that I felt that new responsibilities warranted a new title.  She didn't quite understand that, which was mind boggling to me.  Maybe I'm missing something, and you guys can correct me, but... if you're Title says that you are a Lawn Mower...and now in addition you trim hedges, plant flowers, and water the grass... wouldn't your title change to Landscaper or something like that?  At least that's how I feel.

She reassured me that her and the team have noticed the progress that I've been making.  There are still some areas with which I need to work on, but that she and my director and my manager are dedicated to helping me improve those areas.  She said "that's kind of our job... to make sure that you progress..."  Funny she says that because she leaves this week on a 3 month maternity leave.  Which brings me to my next point of discussion with her.

Let me just say that she's hardcore!  She's due this Thursday!  I asked her when she would be leaving and she said that as of right now... Wednesday will be her last day!  I said... "I think your last day should be Tuesday so that you can get a full days rest on Wednesday before your life changes for ever."  She laughed but didn't seem to agree haha.  So when people ask me if I think she'll be able to write my recommendation letter, I say that she definitely will.  She's going to give me her email address and phone number and said that I should keep in touch with her constantly to give her updates and so she can update me.  It's great having people in your corner... she's definitely on Team Richard!

InsideTheMBA.org event on Tuesday:
So last Tuesday I attended an MBA fair at the Westin Times Square... which by the way is NOT in Times Square...it's on 43rd and 8th avenue....I know why hotels do that... but it's not good for people who live in the city and hear Times Square and then walk through that horrendous crowd only to find that it's not in Times Square.  Anyway... the event was PACKED to say the least.  There were more people standing up than sitting down because there were not enough tables.  When I got there I looked for my friends Jess and Ben (called out in a prior post).  We were standing... I was eating and drinking white wine (you guys know how I feel about free alcohol).  There was a "panel" discussion for about 15 minutes and then they let us mix and mingle with the school representatives.  The reason I put "panel" in quotes is because they were standing and passing the mic between a couple of them.  It was very informal.

They allowed people to ask questions of course... and all of the questions were pretty standard.  I honestly don't know how the school representatives stomach answering the same questions over and over and over and over again.  Doesn't it get draining?  I mean how many times can you answer "What GMAT score do I need?" before wanting to pull all of your hair out?

There was one question that was asked that made everyone go "Did he/she just say that?"  I was debating whether (not whether or not because that would be redundant) to post what the question was, but I've decided that this is MY blog and I'll do as I please haha...  So the topic of discussion was about application essays.  This person asked "So you guys said what people should not do, but what can we do to make sure that the admissions committee isn't thinking, "Wow this essay blows!""  I don't know if you guys think that's inappropriate but I sure do.  That question should have been phrased differently.

I was only at the event to talk to three schools.  NYU, Cornell, and UNC Kenan-Flagler.  The crowd for Baruch and NYU were huge, so I wasn't going to take the time to speak to the NYU reps.  I'll be attending 100 other NYU events, so that wasn't a concern of mine.  At first the crowd for Cornell and UNC was huge too, so I just got some more free food and free wine and sat down at a table and waited for the crowds to die down.

I heard from a friend that UNC was making strides in the digital marketing realm, so I wanted to see if that was true.  Turns out... it's not.  So that's an excluded school.

I then spoke to Randall from Cornell.  If you guys have never met him, he's full of energy and I think is one of the most approachable people in the industry!  I remember last year I heard him give a presentation about Cornell and I was incredibly impressed with the school.  So I asked him about the curriculum pertaining to my interests and about the Johnson Means Business diversity conference.  I'm actually going to email him when I finish writing this post.  I have some questions for him.  :-)


GMAT studying:
Studying is going well.  Right now I'm going back through my MGMAT books.  Today I was going through Equations, Variables, and VIC's.  Initially when I went through these books I circled the problems I got wrong or didn't know.  I did not write in the books other than that and I advise anyone else studying does the same.  That way when you go back through the books you aren't persuaded by the answers you came up with before.  I was feeling more confident because the questions I got wrong months ago, I was now getting right for the most part.  I'm going to start studying a heck of a lot more now.  I've got to!!!  I do not want to have to take this exam again.

Kaplan event on August 8th and the sacrifice I will have to make to attend:
So on August 8th there is a Kaplan event at the Grand Hyatt.  It's called Destination Business School. It's an all encompassing 2 Day business school event.  It covers everything from Essay writing to Elevator pitches etc.  I'm looking forward to it.  I initially heard about the event last week when I went to the Ross event at the Kaplan Center.  I saw the date and quickly wrote it off because that's the weekend I was going to be in Fire Island with friends.  When I got the opportunity to go to the event I jumped at it with no question.  I'll have to cancel my one day trip even though I already paid for it, but that's not a concern for me.  I mean gotta make sacrifices right?  Who knows what I'll learn or whom I'll meet.  The opportunity cost is just too great too not attend.

ESSAYS:
So as I'm sure you all know, essays have begun rolling out.  I know that for me I've seen all of the essay questions for the schools I wish to apply too.  So in reality I could start my essays.  All that I've done thus far is add a folder to my desktop titled B-School Essays.  Within that folder there are X amount of subfolders for each school.  Right now I just have 1 document with all of that schools essay questions.  As I think about things throughout the days and weeks I just go in and jot notes under which question it would apply too for each school.  I'll go back through at a later date and then begin writing.  I haven't begun to write the essays, because well... again I've be better served by studying for the GMAT otherwise my essays won't matter.  But at least I'll have all of the information available.

I also had a call today with that HBS alum.  We spoke for 15 minutes and he gave me some incredible advice that I would not have thought of.  I'm telling you guys... if you're going through this process with me... having people at the schools you wish to apply too.. is invaluable.  They know the culture of the school and can tell you what to focus on.  Sometimes just hearing it from someone else is enough.

Fall calendar:
OMG this is filling up sooooo quickly and I'm not even done.  I've been going to the school's websites to find out when they're having events in the city or on their campuses.  I'm in a position where I'm looking for two types of events, on campus and here in my neck of the woods.  I'm looking for of course general info sessions, but more importantly events geared towards Minorities and the LGBT community.  With that being said I have a full September/October/November.  I'll give you a preview into what I have on my calendar as of right now.  Some of the events overlap and I'll have to decide which ones to attend.

September 2nd - Tuck Reception @ Yale Club
September 3rd - NYU Diversity Conference application deadline
September 6th - Ross Diversity Conference application deadline
September 19th - MBA Tour event
October 7th - 9th - NYU Diversity Conference
October 8th - 9th - Ross Diversity Conference @ Ross
October 13th - Tuck Early Action Deadline
October 14th - 17th - Reaching OUT Conference in Los Angeles
October 16th - UC Berkeley Diversity Workshop @ Berkeley
October 28th - 30th - Cornell Diversity Conference @ Cornell
November 6th - Consortium interview Deadline
November 6th - UC Berkeley LGBT event @ Berkeley
November 11th - 14th - Tuck Diversity Conference
November 15th - Consortium Application Deadline.

So yeah needless to say this fall is shaping up to be a very busy and expensive one... not sure where the funds are going to come from...if anyone wants to donate a couple thousand dollars to my bank account, I'm all for it!

This week I'll be hitting the quant side of my gmat prep HARD!

As always... take care...  beware... don't stare... who cares?  Now I'm just delirious because it's late...