Monday, November 21, 2011

The PhD Project

Last week I attended the PhD Project conference in Chicago. It is a conference hosted by the KPMG Foundation that provides prospective PhD students from minority backgrounds to learn more about business doctoral programs. Since 1994, they have taken the number from only 200 business professors to over 1,000. I was happy to be invited with 300 prospective students.

We had several sessions that covered what the application process is like, the life a doctoral student, and the career path of business academia. They also had breakout sessions for each discipline. I attended both the Management/OB and Marketing panels.

This was a great opportunity to network with current Professors, Doctoral students, and prospective students. They also hosted a university fair and we got to meet with different doctoral program admins and professors.

Interestingly, there was another conference going on at the same time at the same hotel. The Mid-West Fur Fest. There were like 100 guys dressed up in full body animal costumes. Loved it!

I'm considering working for a few years and then going back to school. There were many people in that scenario and it was good to hear their stories.

I really enjoyed the opportunity to learn more about PhD programs and meet others with similar interests. The best part was all the free food!


Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Peter Bishop is Back!

They finally brought back Peter Bishop! In the last episode of Fringe, Peter Bishop returned and he explained more of his story and appears to have insight on why no one remembers him. In this time line, the Observer never saved Peter from drowning in the Lake. But for some reason, the Observer has decided not to erase him completely. He was stuck in some parallel dimension or something until he was released by one of Dr. Bishop's failed experiments.

It will be interesting to see how he will get everyone to remember him. I'm sure Walter will find a way at some point  once he gets motivated.


Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Interview with Dean Mittelstaedt

I had the opportunity two weeks ago to sit with the Dean of the W.P. Carey Business School, Robert Mittelstaedt. In that interview I had the opportunity to learn more about his background, his accomplishments with the school, and his vision for its future.

Before we got into details about the school he learned about my background and gave me some career advice. He said to starte with what you are interested in, but not to plan too far in advance. He cited his own experience of going to Wharton for his MBA and not planning on getting into academia, but eventually found himself as a VP in Wharton's administration, which lead him to ASU.

One of the key issues he expressed for W.P. Carey graduates was to understand that technical skills will only get you your first job and that leadership skills will enable you to grow in a company.

He also said that after our formal education ends that we should be still reading the Wall Street Journal everyday, as well as other business publications.

In terms of the school, he was pleased with the trajectory the school is going with receiving funds from W.P. Carey, the McCords, and gaining high rankings with only a few years of existence. Out of 10,000 business schools in the world, only 1,000 are accredited by the AACSB, and only 500 of those are in the U.S.

He also spoke highly of the faculty and felt they were just as qualified as the Wharton professors. Our Supply Chain emphasis is ranked number three in the nation by U.S. & World Report. The management department is highly ranked in research and we spoke about Prof. Sinha, my New Product Development professor, who is highly regarded in his field.

It was a great interview to learn more about career management and the school's history and future. I'm glad to be part of it!