Some sane conversation about the MBA!

I was heartened to drop by the BusinessWeek forums for the first time in a while to find a great discussion/reflection on the B-school experience from "IWannaGetln" (link).

After all the forum hype about essays and GMATs, the fretting about rankings, and the complaining about "my subgroup is being oppressed," it's great to read about one person's real journey and what an MBA did and didn't do for him. Alex's comments about how banking and consulting firms churn MBAs are especially enlightening, too.

IWannaGetln's recommendations about grades not mattering are very true, but it's going to be hard for me to heed them. Grades are such great little meritocratic rewards. Since the third grade, I've been a sucker for getting a gold star. But the advice about maximizing your on-campus interview opportunities and not taking the first offer are also worth heeding.

There are so many piddly things to do to prepare for school. Aside from packing, moving, and having a baby (that was my wife's job!), I've had to stay on top of getting my vaccination records together, getting a parking pass, setting up my Fuqua email, etc. Fun, fun, fun. It's so much more real now. All the concerns I had a year ago (which school would be absolutely PERFECT for me?) seem petty. I am more concerned with making the most of my two years and beginning the transition to a new field (pharma).

Perspective is sometimes hard to gain, but now that I'm committed, it is a lot easier. And any time I might lose it, I've got an infant daughter to remind me of what's important.