Dreaming of Picasso

Monday, February 13, 2006

Pre MBA Education

Last week I got an email from Haas, asking me to register for the statistics waiver exam. Unfortunately, I will be on vacation at that time and also I want to make sure I get an admission before I embark on the journey to fulfill the pre-requisites. However, this email sparked an related thought process that I had not thought before.

I really do not have a background in accounting and the last time I did any sort of Math was 10 years back. I am not talking about the simple GMAT math, but something advanced like calculus. Given that I will be a part time student, I think it is a given that I will have to do a good job at managing my time. In my opinion, good time management is a function of good planning and in that spirit, I have decided to enroll in a local community college for the Spring Quarter. The subjects that I plan to take
- Accounting ( For sure because I don't want to start out cold in the class and play catch up for the rest of the semester)
- Statistics ( A requirement for Haas @ UC Berkeley)
- Calculus ( If I do not get into Haas then I would probably want some sort of calculus course)

In my mind, by attending classes in the evening, I would more likely get into a routine of doing things like projects/homework, therefore giving me a better chance at bringing my act together when it comes time for the actual courses in the MBA program.

I would be really interested to hear from current students ( both full time and part time) if they wish they had done something different in preparation of going to B-School.

5 Comments:

  • I don't know if you already know this, but the common myth is that accounting has to do with math. UNTRUE. You can be totally math challenged and still be a great accountant. It is all about the concepts. Finance, on the other hand, does have a bunch of statistics in it...but nothing you cannot do on your calculator.

    Have you thought of taking Berkeley Extension classes?

    Blockbuster.com shipped me Camp instead of Disk 5 of N/T Season 2. I was SO pissed when I opened up the envelope this morning. ut what makes me REALLY sad is that I will have to wait for months before season 3 comes out on DVD =/

    By Blogger Marina, at February 14, 2006 8:11 PM  

  • Good luck with your classes. On top of work, that sounds like a heavy load! I definitely agree that calculus and stats are both the way to go - standard dev and regression theory will come up time and time again.

    Congrats on completing the tepper interview!

    By Blogger i_will_make_it, at February 15, 2006 5:16 PM  

  • Hi Foobar

    Did you indicate preference to take the waiver exam in your application?
    I'm also in the same league of 'waiting-to-hear-from-haas' applicants. Although my prereqs is for Math & not Statistics, I have'nt received any email asking to register for prereqs. I indicated that I was planning to take the course in my application - not sure if that makes a difference.

    Thanks

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at February 18, 2006 10:34 AM  

  • To Anonymous,
    Actually I only need the statistics waiver and I also mentioned my intent to enroll for classes. I got the email regardless asking me to register for the waiver.

    By Blogger FooBarMe, at February 26, 2006 6:20 PM  

  • So, you should have heard back from Haas now - what's the word?

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at March 20, 2006 7:53 PM  

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