Sunday, July 13, 2008
Some Additional Questions
I recently had a discussion about Merage on my professional blog. I wanted to reproduce the discussion here because I answer a number of questions about Merage that you might be interested in.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Our California Dream Apartment
Here's our building
I just sat on the patio. Isn't is awesome.
We're up on the upper level - See there's Lindsey!
Here is the inside. Lindsey got the Landlords to put in new flooring before we moved in. Lindsey did a good job of decoraing.
I just sat on the patio. Isn't is awesome.
And here is the view. This sealed the deal on us picking this place.
It makes for a pretty good party place too!
It makes for a pretty good party place too!
Friday, July 04, 2008
Quick Props to My Polaris Investment Competition Team
I want to say thanks to my Polaris teammates and Chuck Martin, the sponsor of the competition. For those who don't know, Polaris is one of Merage's unique competitions where teams of students are responsible to invest $250K of Chuck's money in the stock market over the course of a year.
This year was a tough year for investors (the S&P return was negative). 5 teams competed and 4 delivered positive returns (the top 2 teams were over 30%!); killing the market and probably beating most professional investors. Our team came 4th with a return in the area of 11% (earning each member a scholarship of $1800). We started the competition like we were shot out of a cannon leading the competition for almost half a year, but the market caught up with us. Timing definitely had a big impact on our portfolio, but we took away great lessons about team work, decision-making, taking market gains, attention to detail, and trusting our analysis. For a team with no investment experience, I am very proud of our efforts.
Credit must go to my teammates Girish Simon, Priyanka Saxena, and Craig Young. Special thanks goes to our team leader Petra Neumayr who kept us on track. Below, my team - The Intangibles:
This year was a tough year for investors (the S&P return was negative). 5 teams competed and 4 delivered positive returns (the top 2 teams were over 30%!); killing the market and probably beating most professional investors. Our team came 4th with a return in the area of 11% (earning each member a scholarship of $1800). We started the competition like we were shot out of a cannon leading the competition for almost half a year, but the market caught up with us. Timing definitely had a big impact on our portfolio, but we took away great lessons about team work, decision-making, taking market gains, attention to detail, and trusting our analysis. For a team with no investment experience, I am very proud of our efforts.
Credit must go to my teammates Girish Simon, Priyanka Saxena, and Craig Young. Special thanks goes to our team leader Petra Neumayr who kept us on track. Below, my team - The Intangibles:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Please login to rate.
Do you already have an account? Log in and claim this comment.
I have a few questions about Merage, and was hoping you can give me some honest answers. I've spoken with adcom staff and student ambassadors, but wanted to get another opinion. :)
1) How was the job placement this year? Did most students get jobs of their choice?
2) Do you know what the average starting salary was? I was surprised to discover that the average starting salary for Merage students in 2007 was almost $20K less than schools with the same ranking..
3) What is the job placement like for the Bay Area? I eventually want to move back to the Bay Area, but it seems like most Merage students stay in the OC. So, just a little concerned.
Your input is greatly appreciated! Oh, and major congrats on graduating and scoring a cool job!
Please login to rate.
Do you already have an account? Log in and claim this comment.
Thanks for you kind words.
Some honest answers to your questions.
1) Job placement was tougher this year due to the economy. I think we may be
lower than last year for placement before graduation, but I expect we'll be
equivalent for placement after 3 months. The interesting thing about hiring
this year was that despite the down turn there were a number of very high
profile jobs posted - so companies are still making strategic hires at
Merage.
2) Average starting salaries are a distorted measure used by ranking
systems. It is difficult to talk about average starting salaries without
first talking about the job type. As an example consulting generally pays a
higher salary due to the life demands it puts on its employees (so schools
who produce a higher ratio of consultants will have their average salary
inflated). While I don't necessarily think 20K lower is correct, you are
right to note that salaries from Merage are generally lower than similar
ranked programs. This is because a high percentage of its students remain in
Southern California. Salaries in the OC are often subject to what I call the
"lifestyle tax". Because it is such an attractive area to live, there are
more candidates for jobs, pushing down wages. This "lifestyle tax"
artificially lowers Merage's average starting salary. I hope you get my
drift why I say the average starting salary is a skewed school indicator. I
will say as a person who grew up with humid summers and cold winters the
lifestyle is wonderful and I am willing to accept the "tax".
3) Interestingly, this year we have a number of students going to work up in
the bay area (5-10% of the class). The companies range from start-ups to big
companies like HP. Last year, we had a student get into google. I won't say
trying to find a job in the bay area is easy. You will be mostly on your own
and will need to actively network with people in the area starting now if
you want to go back with a great position. I suggest find conferences that
suit your preferred industry/job function that are hosted in the bay area.
That raises the chances of people from the area attending. Then network and
stay in contact with those people. The conferences worked out real well for
me this year (I had three solid job opportunities arise) and I recommend
start doing it as a first year.
Please login to rate.
Do you already have an account? Log in and claim this comment.
Great tip about starting early with networking! Where can I find these industry conferences? Any tips?
Also, I am seriously considering studying abroad for a quarter (something I always regretted not doing in college). Do many Merage students study abroad? Would studying abroad for a quarter put you behind other students (in terms of job search/accumulating enough credits to graduate)?
Thanks in advance!!
Please login to rate.
Do you already have an account? Log in and claim this comment.
To your follow ups:
1. You can track down conferences by reading blogs in your field of
interest, tracking down professional associations of field of interest, or
often if you have a target company they will highlight which conferences
they go to on their web page (or just do a google search).
2. Many students do a study abroad and it is a fantastic experience. You
will be behind on job search if your primary field of interest is consulting
or working with a large company with an established MBA hire program.
Otherwise job search doesn't ramp up until February onward. I used my Q1
Year 2 to ramp up my networking in order to hit the ground running in Q2.
Good luck.
Please login to rate.
Do you already have an account? Log in and claim this comment.