בהמשך לסדרת הראיונות עם בוגרי תוכניות ה-MBA המובילות, היום ראיון עם בוגרת UCLA:
UCLA Anderson MBA
What is special about your school? In your eyes, what differentiates your school from others?
• #1 differentiator: Collaborative environment – students who compete for the same internships will help each other out and prepare together
• 2nd year students are very involved with helping 1st years in their career search
• School provides no-cost personal 1-on-1 tutoring for 1st year students in all of the core classes.
• Work-hard-play-hard mentality
• Athletic environment and great sports culture
• Tailgates and multiple Social events
• Multi-cultural environment – international food fair, holiday celebrations, trips to Israel, Japan and other counties.
Any recent changes in your school? or in the admission process?
Changes in school in the past two years:
• Launched the Think in the Next campaign, aimed at highlighting the school’s innovative and entrepreneurial spirit.
• Host Tedx events since 2013.
• Buffed up their blog and started creating 5-minute videos that feature specific students, professors or programs
• Updated and upgraded many facilities, including a new student lounge
• Launched a ‘Fire Side’ program – a monthly get together where students / other pre-approved speakers share unique life stories
• ’15-minutes’ program: personal encounters among students.
• Anderson Newspaper – monthly edition
• Lunches with Professors at the Faculty Center.
• D-4-8 – intimate dinners for 8 people with leading executives across industries.
• Spring career fair- in addition to all other activities and career fairs – to assist students who haven’t secured full-time offers by then.
• Specific Industry Tracks (trips) to New York (finance, sports, retail, entertainment), San Francisco (tech), and more
• And more – the school is very dynamic and attentive to student request and ideas.
Admissions:
Two admissions seasons ago, the school transferred all of the interviews to be conducted by 2nd year students. As a rule, international students are not interviewed by someone from their country of origin.
Can you share some details about the atmosphere in the school? between students, between students and faculty? How do you spend your free time?
As for free time (there isn’t much…): this is Los Angeles, and the activities are endless: culture, sports, beach, really – anything.
Can you share some details about the area/city?
UCLA is located in Westwood, on the west side of Los Angeles. It is the heart of business and culture of Los Angeles. Only an hour flight from SF, 4 hour drive from Las Vegas, 2-hour drive from San Diego. This location provides great advantages in contacting business professionals, companies and attending professional conference.
Can you share some details regarding job opportunities and summer internships for students in your school? How strong is the career office? Did the school name/brand give you any advantage when looking for a job? Are there any specific recruiters who mostly recruit from this school?
See employment report for employers / specific recruiters – from the top of my head I’d say Google, Deloitte, Mattel, Amazon, Microsoft, Disney, and more.
In general – Anderson is not just a finance school, or just a marketing school. The students are from all backgrounds – from school teachers to investment bankers – and after Anderson they can transition into anything – tech, consulting, i-banking, entertainment, and much more. The LA location is a huge advantage for both tech and entertainment, and the school brand is very strong in Los Angeles and California.
The Parker Career Center is incredibly helpful in preparing students for interviews, writing resumes, networking – they are there to assist with each and every element of the job search.
How did you deal with the Visa issue?
Had an F1 Visa, then was on OPT status, then applied for an H1B and received it (won the Visa lottery).
What did you like about the school/program?
By far – the collaborative environment. But also everything I wrote in #1 and #3, as well as the LA location.
Who will especially enjoy this school? who will be a good fit to the school?
People who are cool, laid back, get stuff done, real people- not fake, friendly, funny, don’t take themselves too seriously because at some point you’ll probably wear a funny costume and will be made fun of, people who care and love helping – because the school is in many ways run by its students. People who are leaders and like initiating and taking charge of things.
Any tips for someone who is considering applying to UCLA MBA?
• Speak with current students and alumni prior to submitting. Each club has an admissions VP – reach out to them.
• If possible – visit the school.
