October 25, 2011

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Penn State Smeal’s Day of Caring 2011

October 25, 2011 in Philanthropy by mdesai | Permalink

~ By Ankit, Goswami

Today is end of 1st week of Mod 2. It is difficult to believe that Mod 1 ended so quickly. Now when I look back and think about all the events and activities that I got involved with my classmates, one that absolutely stands out, is Day of Caring. It was a social activity organized by our Philanthropy Committee. The theme of this event was to participate in rendering help in form of serving domestic needs of physically challenged people. We were fast approaching our Final exams for Mod 1. So, I thought that this activity will bring in some much needed breath of fresh air in our hectic and busy schedule.

So, on this wonderful sunny day, around 16 of us from MBA program went to a house not much far from our school. The agenda for the day was to renovate the backyard, trim the bushes and paint the walls. All of us, especially the 1st years, were very excited as this was the first such activity where we were participating since joining Smeal. So, we all were looking forward to it. We interacted with a sweet lady, who was the caretaker of the house. We got our hardware and tools, divided the task among the groups and got started. I started off with my group digging at the backyard. We were suppose to dig 3 inch deep across a wide area, take out the mud and fill it with pebbles and stones. I doubt anyone had ever used these garden tools for such laborious work, but the feeling of working together for such a noble cause kept us fully energized throughout the day. Some of us were analyzing how the process should proceed, some of us began digging and remaining were dumping the mud to the other end. It was a very fun environment. We kept cracking jokes and taking pictures which kept our mood upbeat. We found many old stuff while we were digging, which soon began a great chatting topic. Some of the friends were trimming the bushes as well as painting the outside wall of the house. It was refreshing looking at all of my friends in this new role and new environment, so different from usual MBA class. After we took out the mud from the given area in the backyard, we had to fill in it with pebbles and round stones. Now, this was unloaded on the front side of the house. So as you might have correctly guessed, it provided another task for all of us to work on and yet have more fun. The most interesting part of this whole activity was that we came to know that even though there was a lot of work, it became much easier when we worked together in sync. It was like experiencing the principles taught to us in class.

Finally, after hours of team work, we had a beautiful backyard to show to the caretaker. The sweet lady came out to see our work. She was so happy to see the newly transformed backyard. As a token of appreciation, she had ordered pizza for all of us. Frankly, we all were very happy as all of were feeling hungry. All of us sat down on grass under the warm sun, eating pizza and talking to this lady. We were also joined by another women, who was in charge of an organization which organizes such activities. It was very informative knowing about how their organization works and how they try to help and support so many people with disabilities.

Soon it was time for us to leave. We conveyed our love and regards to the caretaker. We also showed immense interest to the lady responsible for this event for more such activities in future. All of us had final photo session before heading back.

Indeed it was an enriching experience. The personal satisfaction which I and my colleagues derived can better be experienced than explained. Needless to say, it also made friendship among us classmates much deeper as now we were tied with this new precious thread of social service in form of Day of Caring.


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Penn State Smeal’s MBA Day of Caring

October 25, 2011 in Philanthropy by mdesai | Permalink

~ By Ankit, Goswami

Today is end of 1st week of Mod 2. It is difficult to believe that Mod 1 ended so quickly. Now when I look back and think about all the events and activities that I got involved with my classmates, one that absolutely stands out, is Day of Caring. It was a social activity organized by our Philanthropy Committee. The theme of this event was to participate in rendering help in form of serving domestic needs of physically challenged people. We were fast approaching our Final exams for Mod 1. So, I thought that this activity will bring in some much needed breath of fresh air in our hectic and busy schedule.

So, on this wonderful sunny day, around 16 of us from MBA program went to a house not much far from our school. The agenda for the day was to renovate the backyard, trim the bushes and paint the walls. All of us, especially the 1st years, were very excited as this was the first such activity where we were participating since joining Smeal. So, we all were looking forward to it. We interacted with a sweet lady, who was the caretaker of the house. We got our hardware and tools, divided the task among the groups and got started. I started off with my group digging at the backyard. We were suppose to dig 3 inch deep across a wide area, take out the mud and fill it with pebbles and stones. I doubt anyone had ever used these garden tools for such laborious work, but the feeling of working together for such a noble cause kept us fully energized throughout the day. Some of us were analyzing how the process should proceed, some of us began digging and remaining were dumping the mud to the other end. It was a very fun environment. We kept cracking jokes and taking pictures which kept our mood upbeat. We found many old stuff while we were digging, which soon began a great chatting topic. Some of the friends were trimming the bushes as well as painting the outside wall of the house. It was refreshing looking at all of my friends in this new role and new environment, so different from usual MBA class. After we took out the mud from the given area in the backyard, we had to fill in it with pebbles and round stones. Now, this was unloaded on the front side of the house. So as you might have correctly guessed, it provided another task for all of us to work on and yet have more fun. The most interesting part of this whole activity was that we came to know that even though there was a lot of work, it became much easier when we worked together in sync. It was like experiencing the principles taught to us in class.

Finally, after hours of team work, we had a beautiful backyard to show to the caretaker. The sweet lady came out to see our work. She was so happy to see the newly transformed backyard. As a token of appreciation, she had ordered pizza for all of us. Frankly, we all were very happy as all of were feeling hungry. All of us sat down on grass under the warm sun, eating pizza and talking to this lady. We were also joined by another women, who was in charge of an organization which organizes such activities. It was very informative knowing about how their organization works and how they try to help and support so many people with disabilities.

Soon it was time for us to leave. We conveyed our love and regards to the caretaker. We also showed immense interest to the lady responsible for this event for more such activities in future. All of us had final photo session before heading back.

Indeed it was an enriching experience. The personal satisfaction which I and my colleagues derived can better be experienced than explained. Needless to say, it also made friendship among us classmates much deeper as now we were tied with this new precious thread of social service in form of Day of Caring.

Pictures from the event at: MBA Photo Gallery

MBA Association  - Philanthropy


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My beloved Penn State

October 25, 2011 in Uncategorized by Janice | Permalink

It has been more than two months since I came to Penn State. Talking in American way, “I’m doing great!”
For an international student like me, the new life was not easy: I’m living halfway across the world from my family and friends, exploring America – a totally different culture and getting back to school life with exams, homework and lectures. Sometimes, I even thought: “What the hell had I brought myself into?” But now, I feel that I have overcome the most difficult part of it with the help of people around me: my classmates, professors, program staff, housemates, and friends. Everybody is willing to help when I need. The collaborative environment here is genuine: we work together, learn together and grow together. It’s a big advantage you get from the close-knit program at Penn State.
Going to graduate school doesn’t mean attending class and getting grades only. At Smeal, I receive a great support for my future career. The school provides students with various resources needed for personal development and career search. Recently, we had Career Immersion week which I found very useful because it focused on improving our career management. I had chance to develop self-marketing plan, network building skills, interview skills, and met with company representatives to gain insightful knowledge about various industries and career tracks. This is another thing I love about the program.
And that’s not everything yet. I had so much fun joining the Philanthropy Day of Caring with all the painting and landscaping for the Arc of Centre County. I learned about other countries where my classmates come from, such as Romania, Ghana or Nigeria, through Diversity Days. We are going to celebrate Diwali, one of the most important festivals in the year of Hindus, with our Indian friends. I will participate in an Indian dance performance – I’m so excited about it. And it would be a big mistake if I don’t mention Penn State football. Despite not understanding much about the rules, I enjoy mingling in the crowds, cheering “We are…Penn State!” At such moments, I feel like a Penn Stater more than ever.
1/8 of my MBA path has passed, but many things are still waiting ahead. I’m ready and looking forward to Mod II with much more great experience. I believe that I had made a right decision to be a part of Smeal, a part of Penn State. I love my Penn State!


Why I am glad I chose Smeal

October 25, 2011 in Uncategorized by TC | Permalink

It’s now more than a year since I became a citizen of Happy Valley and in these 400 days, I have come to greatly appreciate something that Smeal has to offer to its students – a small diverse class.

Coming from a very competitive Indian educational system where grades can make or break a student, I tend to focus on academic excellence. But, over time, one realizes that some relationships you make in college can transcend a lifetime, and MBA is definitely not about turning into a number-crunching machine. So, when the class size runs into a couple of hundreds, you tend to miss out some awesome people and in most cases, it turns out to be ‘I know a guy who knows a guy who knows a guy’. Well, In Smeal, you just know all the guys.  I meet all my classmates at least once a week and though it might sound cliché, I think we are more like a family.  Not the ones having a silent thanksgiving dinner but the ones with a rocking Christmas party, only that Christmas comes every week. Be it the Mod end parties, thirsty Thursdays, Weekend tailgates or Camping trips, there is enough for everyone here and the small class size definitely helps one to bond with everyone and to learn from various cultures.

And the best part of this class size is that it truly represents a global program. We regularly have students from Asia, Latin America, Europe and the Oceania and every one of them comes with a rich cultural experience that is a key to understanding the diverse business conditions. Smeal tries to encourage this cultural diversity through events such as festivals celebrations, diversity buzz, Global Immersion, diversity dinner and much more. It’s only in Smeal where one can see an Indian, a Russian, a Saudi Arabian and a Canadian playing American sports before a Chinese dinner. In the past one year, I have seen the nationality differences vanish over time and I am sure that when I graduate, my personality would have been touched by this cultural diversity and this amalgamation will differentiate me in the marketplace.