Booth Networking in Unexpected Places

Hongtae Kim worked in investment banking in Hong Kong prior to coming to Booth. He was an undergraduate at the University of Chicago and decided to return mainly because he loved the academic atmosphere of the University of Chicago and Booth, and enjoyed the city and the Chicago Bulls. He is concentrating in Marketing, Strategy, and Entrepreneurship at Booth, and will be working at AccuRadio, an internet-radio startup based in Chicago, over the summer.

His story shows that in order to land your ideal internship, it sometimes requires patience, motivation, and a little luck—coupled with leveraging the huge, diverse, and generous Booth alumni network.  While Booth alumni are well-represented in finance, consulting, and corporate fields, the independent and entrepreneurial nature of our students and alumni means that you can find us in unexpected places.

--Matt 

Coming to Booth, one of the most common pieces of advice I got was to fully utilize the Booth alumni network. As an international student, I was a bit skeptical of how much I would be able to leverage the alumni network and didn’t know how I was supposed to do it. On top of that, I was looking into a music-related career path which isn’t a “traditional” post-MBA field.

While it sounds like a cliché, the Booth alumni network is everywhere and willing to help you out, and you could encounter alums in some random places.  For instance, I met Kurt Hanson, Class of 1980, in San Francisco at the SF Music Tech Summit  which is a conference for music tech startups. I had decided to fly to SF to make connections and learn about what’s going on in the industry, but I wasn’t expecting to meet any MBAs, let alone Booth alums.  Naturally, when I bumped into Kurt (by accident) at the cocktail networking session, we were both pleasantly surprised to meet someone from Booth at the event. Kurt was invited as a panelist as a veteran in the radio industry and the Founder / CEO of AccuRadio, an internet-radio start-up based in Chicago. We casually talked about Booth, our backgrounds and the conference, and the following week, Kurt invited me to visit his office in Chicago. We continued our discussion on the music tech industry over dinner.

After a couple of meetings, I asked if I could work for his company over the summer as an intern, and he was excited to have me on board. Like most start-up recruiting, there was no formal vetting or interview process. He talked about his company and his views of the industry and I expressed my strong interest in the business. I also identified a couple of areas in which I could help the company as an MBA intern. I will be working in a broad range of projects including revamping the company’s search engine marketing efforts, supporting fund raising efforts, and identifying international business opportunities. While the projects are varied, I am certain that the range of my summer experience will help my transition from banking into technology. I am very excited about the opportunity, as the company sits in the exact field I was pursuing, and I will have the autonomy to define my own projects and apply my classroom studies to my summer internship.

When it comes to networking, especially if you have a narrow target list, I think the most important thing is to be aggressive and seek out different venues, rather than relying solely on the on-campus recruiting process. My decision to fly out to San Francisco to attend a conference that fit my interest was what made the difference for me. I ended up meeting a potential mentor in the music tech industry and a Booth alum who was happy to help me out. Especially as a career switcher, having first-hand interaction with an insider helps you express your interest and make a case for yourself.

I am looking forward to my summer in Chicago, especially after going through four winters in Chicago! More importantly, I am excited to get great experiences and networking during my summer that will help me achieve my career goal of carving a niche position in the evolving music tech industry. 

Tradeoffs and Compromises in the 90-Hour School Week

As he sails past midterms in the final quarter of his first year, Josh Hirschland reflects on his experience dealing with a common (and fortunate) problem at Booth:  too many opportunities for too few hours in the day. Read on to find out how he has made the most of his year.

--Matt

After you’ve been admitted to Chicago Booth (Congratulations!!), you will receive several guides detailing the ins and outs of student life. One of these handbooks will helpfully outline what a typical schedule looks like—how much time you will spend in class, on homework, on recruiting, and so forth—which, when you add it up, will account for between 79 and 105 hours per week. And upon looking at that, and you will say, “That’s crazy; that must be wrong.” And you’ll forget about it.

Until you get to school and you realize that it’s accurate.

For those incoming students who see business school as a vacation from work, the volume of requests that are made of your time as a student can be jarring. Between classes, homework, guest lectures, recruiting, extra-curricular activities, mentoring and leadership opportunities, social engagements, and the daily requirements of being an adult human being, there are literally dozens of things going on at any given moment. And with just 21 months to spend at Booth, every activity represents a trade-off—a deliberate choice that must be made.

Some of these tradeoffs are obvious: most students can only participate in one summer internship before accepting a full-time position, so it’s important to think long and hard about what experiences will help you make an informed choice about your post-MBA career. The bathroom scale is happy to remind anyone who forgets about the opportunity costs associated with going to a happy hour instead of the gym. And the rapidly diminishing balance of many students’ bank accounts is black-and-white (or, more accurately, black-and-red) proof of the positive correlation between short-term international travel and long-term Ramen consumption.

Other examples are more hidden. While Booth’s flexible curriculum and vast array of courses is part of the school’s unique draw, and the chance to take classes at other schools within the University was one of the things that sold me on Booth, with just 20 classes to take between enrollment and graduation, many students find themselves having to choose among award-winning professors in their final year. And though students are encouraged to get involved in a wide range of clubs, it is nearly impossible to take leadership positions in more than a couple without sacrificing quality and foregoing many of the rewarding experiences that come from being a co-chair.

My own experience is living proof of these tradeoffs. Last quarter, I was fortunate to have interviews at fascinating companies located in three different time zones, but each time I got a callback, I found myself having to cross plans off my calendar. As great as it was to save some money and catch up on sleep by having a low-key spring break, it was hard to see photos being posted to Facebook of my classmates sunning themselves on the beaches of Mexico or hanging out in Tel Aviv. And though I had to push marketing strategy back for a quarter, I had the great opportunity to take Building the New Venture with Professor Deutsch.

But the rewards have far outweighed the tradeoffs. I was thrilled to have the opportunity to interview at most of my top choice companies this year and am excited about my internship this summer at Groupon. While I haven’t made every Booth social event this year, I have been grateful to be able to spend a lot of time with my girlfriend. And while I would have enjoyed spending more time with the Epicurean and Marketing Clubs at Booth, being heavily involved with the Dean’s Student Admissions Committee (DSAC) has allowed me to meet some really amazing prospective and current students.

The best thing about Booth is the overwhelming number of amazing opportunities the school offers and the freedom that students have to chart their own paths. But the flip side of all that amazingness is what Booth students refer to as the Fear of Missing Out (FOMO). At a school where economics is held in high regard, it is fitting that the student experience is marked by being able to efficiently allocate your scarcest resource—time—to get the highest level of return. Booth offers so many great opportunities, but getting the most from the experience means focusing on those things that are most meaningful to you. And looking back on my first year, I am happy with the choices I have made!

Introducing the 2013-2014 DSAC Co-Chairs

Ever wonder how your Harper Center tour guide got his or her job? These guides, along with the other volunteers you see during campus visits or Admit Weekend, are members of the Dean’s Student Admission Committee (DSAC). DSAC is one of the largest student organizations on campus, given the enthusiasm that Booth students have for the school, and is led by eight Co-Chairs. We’d like to take this opportunity to introduce ourselves, Freddy Elorza and Matt Richman, as the new 2013-2014 DSAC Communications Co-Chairs. We manage The Booth Experience blog, Facebook, and YouTube content, as well as the newly launched Twitter feed.

Matt

I’m originally from the Philadelphia suburbs in New Jersey, and worked in the defense sector in Northern Virginia before Booth. I studied history as an undergrad, and got an MA in Soviet history from Penn. I really enjoy writing, so I got involved with The Booth Experience blog right away during my first year. I’m concentrating in finance and accounting here, and as much as I love my quant problem sets, I missed getting to express myself in prose rather than accounting ledger entries. I wanted to be a DSAC Co-Chair to help other students write about their unique Booth experiences, and to play a role in shaping the messages that prospective students get about Booth.

In addition to DSAC, I’m a member of the Public Speaking Group and the Investment Banking Group (I’ll be doing a summer internship this year at a bank in New York). I love Mixed Martial Arts and have trained regularly in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for the last five years. A few other Boothies and I get together to train and we are trying to form a student club for next year.

In my free time in Chicago, my wife and I enjoy spending time by the lake, checking out the city’s museums near our apartment in the South Loop, and trying new restaurants in far-flung Chicago neighborhoods.

Freddy

I’m originally from Bogota, Colombia, but my family moved to Miami, FL when I was three years old. I grew up in Miami (GO HEAT!!!) and went to undergrad at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University to study aerospace engineering. After graduation I had the great opportunity to teach high school. I really enjoyed teaching juniors and seniors, but after a few years I decided I was ready for a different setting. That led me to consulting as a career path and business school as the next logical step. Chicago Booth fits my personality really well. I can be a bit of a math geek but get to stretch myself to do things I haven’t done before, like help to write in this blog.

During my first year at Booth I was an active member of the Management Consulting Group, Net Impact, DSAC, and Booth Soccer Club. I will be one of the DSAC Communications Co-Chairs for the next year. I’m most excited about our new Twitter page—follow us @TheBoothExp!

In my free time I enjoy traveling and nature hikes. During spring break I spent nine days touring the National Parks in the Southwest. I went to Zion, Bryce, Arches, and Grand Canyon National Parks. It was an amazing trip, and I highly recommend it to anyone.

Freddy and Matt thank the outgoing Communications Co-Chairs, Dana Fortini and Beth McNamee, for the excellent job they have done with the group and for increasing the visibility of student-led communications outlets at Booth. We look forward to continuing their work, as well as adding some new initiatives. Follow The Booth Experience on our new Twitter feed, and be on the lookout for short videos illuminating the daily lives of Booth students, and multimedia blog posts focusing on unique student experiences at Booth.

Finally, please meet the other 2013-2014 DSAC Co-Chairs!

Tracey Jackson, Admit Weekend
Megan Portanova, Admit Weekend
Josh Hirschland, Campus Visit
Amanda Needham, Campus Visit
Tolu Oyekan, International Recruitment
Cristina Pereira, International Recruitment



We look forward to sharing The Booth Experience with prospective students!

A-Team Perspectives

Admit Weekend is a great opportunity for admitted students to experience life as a Chicago Booth MBA. Admits learn about the Booth curriculum, tour Chicago neighborhoods, and have plenty of time to get to know prospective and current Booth MBAs. The “A-Team” is a group of volunteers who are members of the Booth Dean’s Students Admissions Committee (DSAC), and who are responsible for planning all of the weekend’s activities. Here, several A-Team members offer their perspectives on Admit Weekend.

--Matt

Tiffany Lee, International Captain

I ultimately chose not to take the 15-hour flight from Hong Kong to attend Admit Weekend here at Booth, and boy, did I regret it. Many of my fellow first years still often fondly refer to the “you-had-to-be-there-moments” of their own Admit Weekends. So, I chose to do the next best thing when I became a Booth student—help plan Admit Weekend and convince international admits to not make the same mistake I did. What I like about being International Co-Captain is that not only do I get to interact with potential new classmates from all over the world, but also, I am able to use my past experiences to help make the selection and transition process easier for students that are moving to the US for the first time. For example, my co-captain and I created a moving guide that is tailored for international students to answer any questions they may have, such as where to buy winter clothes and which country captains they can reach out to. We hope to see many international students at Admit Weekend and in the coming school year!

Marina Lidow and Amanda Litzenberger, Partners Captains

Working on the A-Team and planning Admit Weekend has been a great experience! Both of us attended Admit Weekend last year with our partners and were inspired by how the weekend was not only a great opportunity for us to interact with and learn about Booth, but also a wonderful way to show our partners what the next two years would really be all about. As Partner Co-Captains we help plan and execute the partner-specific programming for Admit Weekend. Through events such as panel discussions and conversations about neighborhoods, we illustrate the Booth partner experience, clarify what to expect, and answer questions about Chicago. It has been a great experience making new friends with each other and the rest of the A-Team, and also getting to know the members of the incredible partner community at Booth!

Emily Stetler, Music and Stage Captain

I had such an amazing experience when I attended Admit Weekend last year that I knew I wanted to be a part of it this year. As Music & Stage Captain, I am responsible for planning all of the music that you will hear throughout the weekend as well as the slideshows showcasing life at Booth. Given my love for music, this role enabled me to embrace my inner DJ in an effort to help create a fun, high-energy weekend that you won’t forget. Being on the A-Team has been a great opportunity to work alongside my classmates and meet the incoming class, who we are excited to have join us next year!

On behalf of the A-Team and Booth Admissions, we look forward to meeting you all this weekend!

Black Tie, Dancing, Camaraderie, and…Jellyfish?

As the Winter Quarter draws to a close, Matt Tracey recaps one of the quarter's biggest events: Winter Formal. You can check out all of the glitz and glam of the evening on PhotoBooth's Facebook page.

Dana
***

Chicago Booth’s “Winter Formal” came with a bang three weeks ago...what an event. On the surface, it is what it sounds like: an elegant evening affair characterized by shiny black tuxedos, dashing cocktail dresses, food, drink, and photos galore. But Winter Formal, Booth-style, is so much more than that.

Socially, the Formal is rather unique in that it brings together so many people all at once. “Semi-formal” in the fall quarter, for example, involved only first-year students (that event was fantastic in its own right). Furthermore, our weekly bar events all over the city of Chicago involve both first-years and second-years, but total turnout—although strong—pales in comparison to the 800+ who eagerly attend the Formal. The end result of Winter Formal is a rich social experience that, beyond providing ample opportunity for friend-to-friend interaction, enables students to meet and talk with a number of new and different classmates as well as helps students experience nearly the whole Booth community in all its awesomeness. Connecting with so many peers at once reminds us that not only are our immediate friends and classmates so great in so many ways, but the entire Chicago Booth community is as well.

The Who/What/Where/Why/When
Who? Chicago Booth students. Roughly 800 of them, both first-years and second-years (and their significant others). What? Winter Formal. An epic social event that—in the twilight of winter quarter—gives students and their plus-ones a chance to unwind, share some quality time, dance, talk, look awesome in front of one another, and... Where? ...watch some dolphins and beluga whales chase each other around the Shedd Aquarium, a Chicago landmark that features—beyond the aforementioned dolphins and whales—a pretty sweet collection of aquatic life (including a rather unique jellyfish exhibit). This venue offered something for everyone. Those who wanted to eat could do so liberally at one of the many buffets; those who wanted to drink could find an open bar probably within 100 feet of wherever they found themselves at a given moment; those who wanted to dance could hit the dance floor for the Harlem Shake, Booth edition; and those who wanted to carry on a real conversation (yes, there were plenty of those as well) could meander off into one of the Aquarium’s many scenic corridors and park themselves on a bench. Why? Fun, obviously. That and friendship, camaraderie and celebration, all wrapped into one. When? Every year during winter quarter (February 23rd this year).

While a number of first-year students still are evaluating internship opportunities (depending primarily upon target industry), many attended Winter Formal having just emerged from the recruiting process. For those recently finished with recruiting, Winter Formal was an awesome reintroduction to the Booth social scene. For those students still pursuing internships (first-years) or full-time positions (second-years), Winter Formal served as a reinvigorating break from the process—and the perfect opportunity to share interview stories in a relaxed environment.

The Bottom Line
The sense of community amongst the students at Winter Formal was powerful, and the opportunity to celebrate life at Booth together pushed school spirit to a new high. The people make the Booth experience what it is. Check out some photos from the event here: Winter Formal 2013

Already looking forward to the next occasion for which I have to solicit help tying a real bow tie,
Matt Tracey

The Faces of Follies: A First Year’s Inside Look

With auditions this past week (and a fun karaoke event last week to get the Booth community excited), the Harper Center has been abuzz about Follies. With a multitude of ways for students to get involved, whether it's singing, writing, dancing, or producing, Follies is an excellent way to showcase the talent we have at Booth (and we have fun doing so!). Check out footage from last year's show on the Follies YouTube channel.

Dana
***

Follies. It’s an essential part of the business school experience. This is the annual extravaganza of musicals, skits, dance numbers, scripted videos and anything else that will entertain an audience of razor sharp tongue-in-cheek business school students. At Booth, the show is set for May 10th, which gives us all enough time to properly reflect on what makes us unique, and sometimes tragically funny, to an outsider looking in. This is one of the biggest events on campus that fully engages both the first- and second-year classes; for the second-years, it is a sort of farewell ode to the past 2 magnificent years, and for first-years, it is a milestone celebration of endurance. For everyone, it is the chance to prove to the people you rubbed shoulders with in crop circles or sort of met on the Metra that you have real talents (being a Powerpoint deck master doesn’t count).

I am a first-year who was lucky enough to get involved with Follies from the very beginning. I was first introduced to Follies during Admit Weekend, and being a big fan of musicals and improv, I knew this was something that I wanted to be a part of. As far as I know, Follies is the first student group to recruit for first-year co-chairs, and the first-year co-chairs were already actively involved in the planning and coordination of the show as early as the beginning of the winter quarter. The content of the show is written by a group of students, which collectively form the Creative Team, who meets biweekly to brainstorm ideas and performs scripts out loud. Over time, an overall theme emerges, and it always highlights an irony or dynamic within Booth that everyone recognizes. This year, the theme, or title of the show, is still kept under wraps, but rest assured that no matter what the theme is, hundreds of Boothies will unite for one hilarious night to poke fun at ourselves and our experiences.

Together, the team of 7 first- and second-year co-chairs manages not only the creative process but also the mountain of logistical, financial and marketing aspects of the show. We have some support from the Graduate Business Council and the Booth administration, but we need to make sure that we are getting sponsorships and driving ticket sales proactively. More importantly, we need to manage the sheer number of people involved in the show, from actors and dancers to the writers and technicians. I’m looking forward to being on the other side of the judging process during auditions when dozens of Boothies hoping for a break in Hollywood (that’s Plan D after banking, consulting and entrepreneurship) will give their best shot at Follies stardom. Since this is an entirely student-produced and student-funded show, spring quarter will be extremely busy with coordinating marketing and selling efforts and making sure that everything and everyone is set for the big day. After all, we have to uphold our high caliber reputation among the top-tier business schools not JUST in academics but also when it comes to bringing down the house with a well-timed musical parody.

Why are you here and not somewhere else? Be part of Chicago’s growing entrepreneurship and VC scene

Well into winter quarter, Career Treks continue to take place. This week, Liz Han shares her passion for venture capital through her experience on the Venture Capital Trek that took place a few weeks ago and her role as an associate for Hyde Park Angels.

Dana
***

Sand Hill Road. It’s one of the most famous streets in Silicon Valley and home to venerable venture capital firms such as Kleiner Perkins and Draper Fisher Jurvetson. It was also one of the places I visited a few weeks ago as part of the Venture Capital trek to the Bay Area organized by the Entrepreneurship and Venture Capital Group (EVC) at Booth. Over the course of two days, nine students visited seven of the most well-known VC firms in the US, including KPCB, Sutter Hill Ventures, and Accel Partners.

In a whirlwind of 48 hours, we were fully immersed in the vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem that exists in the Bay Area. In nearly every office we visited, there were entrepreneurs meeting with partners and advisors in brainstorming and planning sessions. To hear experienced general partners and operators discuss start-ups they founded and scaled, and their investments in companies such as Facebook and Amazon, was inspiring to say the least. And all of this was made possible because of the long-standing relationships these VC firms have with students and alumni at Booth, which certainly makes me appreciate being an active member of Chicago Booth and EVC.

While I was awed by the concentration of talent and at times intense atmosphere in the Bay Area, the trek also made me more excited about the growing entrepreneurial community in Chicago and the opportunities to shape its growth. As a current Associate at Hyde Park Angels (HPA) and Hyde Park Venture Partners (HPVP), an angel group and VC firm that still maintain close ties to the school having been founded by Booth alumni / professors, I feel lucky to meet aspiring entrepreneurs on a regular basis to discuss their ideas, business plans, and companies. I found myself impressed by the depth and diversity of the start-ups I learn about and the passionate group of entrepreneurs I interact with through office hours, demo days, and events such as Technori Pitch. Through my experiences at HPA and HPVP, I have seen a rich variety of start-ups ranging from ecommerce to healthcare and everything in between. In fact, one of my favorite places is 1871, a large open working space that is the ideal spot for start-ups to develop and grow. The energy and buzz there is almost tangible, creating an environment in which start-ups in completely different sectors can collaborate and work side by side.

Perhaps there is no better reflection of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Midwest than that found in the microcosm of Chicago Booth. There is an active and open group of driven entrepreneurs that is supported by the Polsky Center and through programs such as the Entrepreneurial Internship Program (EIP) and the New Venture Challenge (NVC). This is a remarkable time to be at Booth and I, for one, am excited to be part of and shape the entrepreneurship and VC community at Booth and in Chicago.