Category Archives: Academics

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Academics, Career, Paul

Recruiting Series: I. What Do I Talk About?

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After a week’s hiatus, I’m back to address some questions that I have been asked by some third-year students. As my usual blog style, though, I’d like to talk about some of the week’s tidbits first.

Congratulations to Texas Basketball

Tristan Thompson (13) shoots over a defender.

Congratulations to the Texas Men’s Basketball Team for kicking off the season with two victories in the 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer. Good luck this season, and I look forward to supporting the team in their next game against Illinois on November 18.

New Concept Statement?
Don’t look now, but it looks like Concept Statements No.1 and No.2 may be gone! Check out SFAC No.8, which was completed with collaboration from the IASB.

The Fed will Buy $600B of Treasury Securities
(Why is this important again? Umm, because we’re business students, and we live in this country.) The Fed announced last week that it will buy Treasury securities in an attempt to stimulate the economy. The hope is that interest rates will be pushed even lower, encouraging people to go out and spend. (Recall the composition of GDP.) There are concerns about what this policy will do to inflation and asset bubbles. Here is the Fed’s official statement, and here is an article to supplement it.

Anyway, onto the main topic.

What do I Talk About When I’m Talking With Recruiters?

Johnny Carson hosted The Tonight Show from 1962-1992.

There will only be one Johnny Carson, but that doesn’t mean you have the option to remain unseen and unheard during recruiting season. One of the questions I receive from third-year students is What do I talk about?! This is totally a valid question, and it’s more of an art than a science. From being there, I know that I had to somewhat reinvent myself in order to survive. From being the quiet guy in the corner to being a guy who would orchestrate the conversation, I’m going to relate what I had to do in order to escape anonymity in recruiting season.

First off, before telling you topics to talk about, know that I am not the best at this skill. The art of conversation is extremely difficult, and it is still something that I am learning today. (Just when I thought I had mastered the skill, I realized I had developed the opposite problem—I don’t shut up.) Learn from classmates who are really good at this. Second, I can’t stress the importance of being well-rested during recruiting events. You’ll be energized, and, perhaps even more importantly, you’ll be better able to think before you speak. There’s nothing worse than finally having the confidence to carry a solid conversation, and then blurting some faux pas….with confidence. You need to be mentally alert, and when you are, then you have the opportunity to get crafty and use elements such as wit, humor, emotion, etc. Continue reading Recruiting Series: I. What Do I Talk About? →

Academics, Paul, Student Life

Avoid These Five Habits of Mine to Stay Healthy

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by Paul Nabhan

Avoid These Five Habits of Mine to Stay Healthy

As I sit here by my computer sniffling and trying not to cough, despite a modest accrual of phlegm, I think to myself that this is my own fault. After successfully avoiding my October Cold for the past two years, I find I regressed back to my freshman habits this semester and can probably pinpoint exactly what accumulated to this minor obstacle.

You probably don’t need me to tell you why it’s important to stay healthy, even if it’s just a cold; nevertheless, lest you find yourself doing what I’m about to describe, you can correct it before all of your assignments are due.

Thus, as somber as I will probably ever sound in this column, I present five of my habits you should avoid in order to stay healthy so as to not fall behind in class. For those of you who know me, enjoy the reticence while it lasts, since I don’t stay sick for long.

First though, here are some thoughts since the last column:

Mark Twain publishes his autobiography

Famous for his all-white suit, lectures, and novels, Twain once commented, "Do not put off till tomorrow what can be put off till day-after-tomorrow just as well."
Famous for his all-white suit, lectures, and novels, Twain once commented, “Do not put off till tomorrow what can be put off till day-after-tomorrow just as well.”

Yup, he just finished it.

No, of course not.

He wrote it a century ago, and his wishes were that it not be published until 100 years after his death. The weird thing? Twain told his story out loud, and someone took dictation. Moreover, the piece is not a chronological story from beginning to end but more like a journal, skipping around to what he thought at the time. Robert Hirst, the curator of Twain’s papers at UC Berkeley, actually described the piece to “a kind of blog.”

This might be interesting to read at some point when there is no class, but probably more so because of Twain’s stand-up comedy approach to very serious matters.

Congratulations to Longhorns for Defeating Nebraska

I have to put this here. In a game that was never pretty and where no one was betting on the Horns, the offense outrushed and outgained the Huskers, committing only four penalties and never turning over the football.

Job well done, and I’m looking forward to supporting the team this Saturday against Iowa State at home!

Habit to Avoid: No Sleep

Along the way, I developed this reputation for being someone who pounded the books at all hours of the night. While yes, when work needs to get done, I will push myself and sacrifice the hour of sleep here and there, in reality this could ultimately be a dangerous trait to develop into a habit. Continue reading Avoid These Five Habits of Mine to Stay Healthy →

Academics, Austin, Jarrett, Student Life

Four Things You Might Consider

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By Jarrett Cocharo

Attending a new school takes a lot of adjusting. You will inevitably be thinking, “That is not the way things are supposed to be done.” Or you might think, “That is the coolest thing I’ve ever seen any university do.” For my first blog post, I thought I would make a list of little things that surprised me about the MPA program, McCombs and the University as whole.

1. Homework and Reading: When I entered graduate school, I figured it would be much like the stories I heard about law school. Very little homework. Lots of reading and one or two big tests per class each semester. I was wrong. You can expect anywhere from 4 to 12 homework assignments per class, three tests per class and three cases (group or individual) per class each semester. Not to mention you could have papers in some of your classes. I use a weekly to-do list to keep track of what assignments I have to turn in for the coming week, and I use Google calendar to schedule my group meetings around my classes and recruiting events.

2. Media Services: Located on the third floor of the business school, McCombs Media Services allow students to check out laptops, computer mice, camcorders, still cameras and tripods among other things. Continue reading Four Things You Might Consider →

Academics, Jonathan, Student Life

Tips for Success

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by Jonathann Giammarco

I can say without reservation that any ego I had coming into this program has been thoroughly stamped out with an unmerciful string of below top-of-the-curve marks in my accounting classes. These results were not the result of flimsy efforts. Almost all came at the tail end of long long hours in the library and an endless stream of practice problems. I have been continuously experimenting with my study routine and have finally been rewarded with some recent breakthroughs. I figure it might be helpful to share a few of the practices I have recently adopted and a few strategies that I have abandoned.

What hasn’t worked for me

Doing the reading: I deeply regret how long it has taken me to downgrade the importance of textbook readings in my list of priorities. When you mix 15 credits worth of classes with a full recruitment schedule, time is gold, and three long chapters out of your textbook will sink you like a lead weight. Since the beginning of the summer semester, I have stubbornly and irrationally clung to the idea that “doing the reading is important.” Now, a semester and a half wiser, I know what is really important: studying class notes, maximizing the lectures, and doing plenty of homework problems. Any time spent reading the textbook is better spent reviewing my notes, doing extra practice problems or catching up on sleep.

Late nights: I always tell myself that it is better to sleep well than to study well, but I never follow my own advice.  Continue reading Tips for Success →

Academics, Career, Riny, Student Life

My Accounting Story: Not Your Typical Daytime Drama

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by Riny Varghese

Why accounting? My family, friends, teachers, recruiters, almost everyone has asked me that question. To be honest, I’ve been asking myself the same question every day. Growing up, it never crossed my mind that I would be an accountant. So how did it all begin? This isn’t your typical afternoon soap opera…This is the story…

Decision to pick accounting

I graduated high school with a set goal that I would be a journalist. However, after realizing that it was not the career I could see myself doing for the rest of my life, I let go of this goal and decided to consider other options. I went to a community college in California, where I took so many random classes, none of which would lead me to a clear career path. I went through a period of confusion and frequently switched majors. I thought I was going to be an engineer, a computer scientist, a pharmacist, or an English teacher. I was in a state of panic, because I didn’t know what to do with my life. That’s when I decided to take the careers assessment test at my college’s counseling center, and voila–accounting was one of the most compatible careers for me. Coming from a family of engineers, I did not know anything about this field. I decided to take an accounting class and liked it. Close to the end of the semester, my accounting professor talked with me to ask if I was interested in majoring in the subject. I told him I was considering it, but he reassured me that it is a great field to get into and that he could see my potential to do well in the subject.

Transferring to the McCombs School of Business and the MPA program

I was very excited that I got into the No. 1 Accounting program in the nation. Unfortunately, my first semester in the program was far from a smooth ride. I was struggling to keep up with all my classes, and I felt that I was very unprepared for the rigor of courses in McCombs, not to mention the MPA program. It was the first time I received C’s on my exams.  I questioned my abilities, my motivation, my career path–why am I in accounting? I went through another period of confusion. I was about to switch majors again, when I realized that I was just trying to escape failure. I am not a quitter. I changed my perspective and learned to appreciate my classes, regardless of how hard they were. I realized that I’m in school to learn and not to get a 4.0. This perspective took so much pressure off my shoulders. I enjoyed accounting again, which is why I am happily blogging about it.

The Tax Track

So now that I’m firmly determined to do accounting, which accounting path should I pursue? Continue reading My Accounting Story: Not Your Typical Daytime Drama →