[MBA] The school across the river - Sloan

I had signed up for the afternoon session at Sloan keeping in mind my aversion to waking up early. But I hadn't taken into account the realities of public transportation in the suburban sprawl. So there I was, being woken up at the unearthly hour of 5 something to make the trip to Cambridge, MA.

I and the other visitors were greeted by a couple of 1st year students who handed us our nifty Sloan folders. We chatted with them for a while mostly about how tough the 1st month had been on them. We were then whisked away to a conference room for a Q&A session with an adcom member. She stressed on the interdisciplinary opportunities available at Sloan thanks to it being part of MIT. This is something which is highlighted in most Sloan publicity literature as well - especially when talking about alumni. I have seen and heard how close knit Sloan alumni are. But I wonder how the MIT alumni thing plays out.

I could have asked this question at the lunch session that followed, if only I had the chance. These being the last few weeks before the R1 deadline, Sloan was swamped with visitors. So each Sloan student was asigned 5-6 people at lunch. Add to that the overcrowding in the small cafetaria and you had an environment not really conducive for discussion. From what little I could hear above the din, our guide seemed to be an impressive chap. To be frank apart from a free sandwich I didn't get anything much out of this lunch.

Then we were off to our class. In the 1st semester all courses are mandatory except an elective where you can choose either Marketing or Finance. My group went to the Finance class. We were asked to introduce ourselves to the class and after a round of applause the professor took over. It was a lecture based class and the topic for the day was duration and effective duration of bonds and how these concepts were tied to interest rate risk. Not the most exciting of topics and the professor didn't make too much of an attempt to liven it up either. I was initially disappointed with the level (quality not quantity) of class participation. But then I realized that people with finance backgrounds must have self-selected themselves out of this course. So no wonder the comments were not too insightful even to a finance novice like me.

The class was the end of the official Sloan visit program. I spent the rest of the afternoon roaming around the MIT campus - which incidentally I liked a lot. All in all the visit was a bit of a let down as I couldn't really get a feel of Sloan, primarily because I couldn't talk to any students properly. I learned what I already knew. That Sloan was a small school with a great finance program and an absolutely fabulous entrepreneurship program. But I knew that even before I got there. Unless you have the ability to strike up unsolicited conversations with strangers, I would suggest you visit during off peak times - maybe the weeks immediately following the R1 deadline. I would also recommend dropping by the admissions office and picking up the Roadmap brochures. They provide a high level view about how to pursue different careers through the MBA program. And yeah, if you have the time go visit the Entrepreunership Center.

As I walked back to Kendal Square to catch my train, I realized that I was feeling quite relieved. In the morning while walking towards Sloan I had felt a bit nervous. I have never worked around MBAs and this being my 1st school visit I guess I was afraid that everyone I would encounter would be way more smarter than me. It was reassuring to see that most of the students and applicants were just like me (in a good way). Even in the communication skills department I felt that though I wouldn't win any prizes, I sure could hold my own. I might or might not make it into any of the schools I am applying to but atleast now I know that I am not on a fool's errand either. That was probably my biggest takeaway from this visit.

Next : Tuck