MBA diary: The end is near
MY GRADUATION date is still a few months off but as of last week I’m done with my MBA. I’ve loved every day but I can’t lie, I was looking forward to the relief of finishing. No more school, no more books, and all that. Still, after my last exam I came home feeling a little queasy. My husband opened a bottle of champagne and that made everything better but that feeling has since come back and more accentuated. I think I have an MBA hangover.
During the application process I had to write several essays explaining how I would use my MBA upon graduation. What I wrote was the truth: it was going to help me break out of the world of corporate communications and create more opportunities for me. Maybe I’d even found and run my own company one day. Throughout the school year people asked me about my post-MBA goals and I would give them a similar storyline. It would change slightly depending on which classes I was being inspired by, but it all felt real and attainable.
Many of my fellow classmates started looking for jobs and internships the moment the first term started. I was enjoying school—both classes and the extracurricular activities—too much to be bothered. By the time the third term arrived most of my cohort kicked their job hunting campaign into overdrive. It was impressive to see them at work, being so resourceful with the people they were meeting. Squeezing each potential lead, contact and rumour to the last drop in the hope of a meaningful and well-paid job or internship. Several even started taking Mandarin class on top of their normal school work so as to be more valuable to potential employers here in Hong Kong. By the time the summer term started a lot of students had found success. Several of them are making their dream of living and working here a reality.
I, on the other hand, didn’t think about my future while I was in the throes of my post-graduate education. And because of that I’ve ended up empty-handed. Not looking for a job while still studying is a huge regret. I now have unstructured days and too much free time to think that maybe I didn’t study hard enough, didn’t network thoroughly or didn’t apply to sufficient job postings while at business school. Maybe I should have done a different concentration. The instability of not knowing what’s to come is grating at all that beautiful self-confidence and ambition I exuded when I was in the midst of my lovely MBA. It kind of sucks.
But one thing is for sure: I don’t regret doing the MBA. It was one of the best experiences of my life. I learned about business of course; the different facets of running a company and how all the components and departments come together into one cohesive (and ideally profit-generating) unit. However, the thing that will make my MBA priceless is that I learned so much about myself. My year at CUHK has made me a better person. From the two-day torture that was the Outward Bound camping trip, to nausea-inducing case study competitions, to the psychometric assessments the career management centre had us undertake before we matriculated, I figured out a lot about myself. Some people may think this is a waste of money but it’s not. I’ve gotten better at working with people, asserting myself and tempering my ego. This should make me a better manager, VP and hopefully CEO as the years go on. Wish me luck!
Media: Economist
Section: Which MBA?/ Articles/ MBA diaries
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