Is Getting An MBA Worth It?
Yes, that age-old question: is the $120,000 MBA worth it? Successful business people have both advocated and renounced the degree for reasons you've probably already read or heard about. Now that I'm...
View ArticleDuke MBA Business Improv Course
A year ago when I was still a first year Fuqua MBA student, I saw "Business Improv" when registering for classes and had no idea how it may be useful, so I went back to preparing for my summer...
View ArticleDuke MBA Insights: The Best Time to Get the MBA (Reader Request)
I've been getting quite a few questions from readers on when the best time to do the MBA is. Usually the question is around how much work experience would be competitive as an applicant. Some...
View ArticleDuke MBA 2nd Year Electives Are Amazing
This is a post I wrote a while back. Sorry that I haven't been good at updating my blog lately. I'm writing again so stay tuned for some new posts in the upcoming weeks! Here goes.I'm currently about...
View ArticleRecruiting at Duke MBA (Fuqua)
With my MBA journey at Duke Fuqua coming to an end, I thought it'd be a great time to wrap up and reflect upon my experiences in the past 2 years. In an effort to write things that my readers care the...
View ArticleThe Summer Before the MBA
One question I get a lot from prospective students is what to do in the summer before the MBA program. Like a lot of folks from non traditional backgrounds, I contemplated if I needed to take some...
View ArticleBenefits of Getting an MBA
A lot of readers have asked me what benefits the Duke MBA has brought me. The MBA is a huge upfront investment and the opportunity cost is high. Most applicants have decent jobs and 2 years is a long...
View ArticleMBA Internship Final Presentation Tips
Last year at this time I was an MBA intern preparing for my final internship presentation. The internship was the first time I ever worked in a real business setting and I had never given a real...
View ArticleHow the Duke MBA Makes Leaders - Collaboration
A Duke MBA alum – this is a new title that is going to take some time getting used to. I’m happy to be finally back in the workforce and it’s been interesting seeing how the Duke MBA has changed my...
View ArticleHow the Duke MBA Makes Leaders - Communication
I’ll start off with a quote from another blog post I’ve written: “not all great communicators are great leaders, but all great leaders are great communicators.” Being able to clearly articulate what’s...
View ArticleHow the Duke MBA Makes Leaders - Entrepreneurship
Every leading MBA is talking about its entrepreneurship initiatives right now. It’s a new area of post-MBA opportunity as you start seeing more and more MBAs start companies themselves or join...
View ArticleHow the Duke MBA Makes Leaders - Strategic Mindset
There was a post in Forbes that asserted the MBA is a waste of time (OK, I can't find it anymore since this post was written a few weeks ago). Sure, I can agree with some of its points. However, there...
View ArticleTips for MBA Admission (Guest Post)
There's a lot of debate about the value and nature of an MBA program. Skepticism about initial investments and ROI is certainly warranted on a broad scale, but I'm still in the camp that firmly agrees...
View ArticleQuick 2016 Update
Hey everyone! Hope that you had a great start to 2016. To kick things off for the year, I thought I'd share this quick update. The end of 2015 was a big transitional time for me as I started full time...
View ArticleThe Difference Between Science and Business
I’ve had the fortune of meeting with a lot of talented first year MBA students over the past few months. As a recent graduate myself, I enjoyed learning about peoples’ backgrounds and their career...
View ArticleCareer Development 101: Choosing a Post-MBA Company
My MBA journey at Duke Fuqua came to a close in 2015. During those 2 years I’ve written a lot of content on my thoughts on the MBA and the admissions process with a lens from my experience at Duke, and...
View ArticleCareer Development 101: Taking Networking to the Next Level, MBA Style
Relationships, relationships, relationships. As someone who came from a science background – after doing the MBA and working in a Fortune 100 company – I’ve come to realize that networking is key to...
View ArticleCareer Development 101: Manage your Leadership Development
Ah yes, the perpetual question: how much of a person's career progression depends on the institution, and how much depends on the individual? It may come as no surprise to my readers, but I am strongly...
View ArticleCareer Development 101: Communicate Effectively
When I was a kid I was actually pretty extroverted. However, after multiple instances of culture shock growing up I became increasingly introverted. It allowed me to be somewhat successful in science,...
View ArticleIs the Master of Business Administration Right for Me? (Guest Post)
Whether you’re an entrepreneur, aspiring business leader, or you just think that you may want to learn more about business, the thought of getting your Masters in Business Administration may cross your...
View ArticleCareer Development 101: Love the Industry you're in and Be an Expert
There is without a doubt a stereotype for recent MBA grads – folks who are ambitious, smart, hard-working, but oftentimes lack experience or domain knowledge. Looking around and at myself, I think this...
View ArticleIs an MBA Worth It? 1-Year Post-MBA Reflection
In early 2012, when I was working as a biomedical researcher at the National Institutes of Health, I decided that I wanted to get an MBA and make the transition into the business side of health care....
View ArticleBook Review: Getting to the Top, Strategies for Career Success
On this blog, I talk a lot about how my MBA from Duke has helped me successfully transition from science into business. However, since the time I graduated, I found that that I needed to continuously...
View ArticleMarketing Roles - What Companies Look For in MBA Candidates
Marketing is one of those functions, that if done successfully, requires a little bit of everything. In other words, it is highly cross-functional and requires a lot of different skills. In Kathryn...
View ArticleBook Review: The Unwritten Rules, The Six Skills You Need to Get Promoted to...
Post-MBA I became very intrigued by how senior leaders navigated their career progression. It was also at this time that I realized I learned nothing about this during my MBA and needed to...
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