The Spring break is finally here!

Over the past ten years, I have had the opportunity to experience winters all across United States - Missouri, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Illinois, California and now New York. While, I enjoyed the cold winters in Massachusetts and hated the awful wind chills in Illinois, I have mix feelings about the winters in Ithaca. It’s been rather cold but surprisingly pretty this year here in Ithaca…

From shrubs to tree tops, Ithaca was drenched with heavy icing during last week’s freezing rain. The roads were slippery and we had our alert antenna ON all the time, especially when it came to driving on the hilly landscape of Ithaca ;). It was hence not surprising to bump into classmates who wanted to get out of Ithaca!

Well, the spring break is finally here and by tomorrow almost everyone would be out of Ithaca! While many of my classmates have left to meet their families, some have flown to enjoy the warm weather in Mexico, Virgin Islands and Panama. Others, who are actively seeking jobs in high-tech industry, have flown to Silicon Valley for the “Day in the Bay” event organized by Career Management Center at Johnson School. In case you don't know about this event, its an off-campus interview event held with West Coast employers for both full-time and internship positions. It is also a great opportunity for Johnson school students to network with one of the largest Cornell Alumni organizations that is located in northern California.

For me however, the spring break is a big relief from the hectic 16.5 credit course load and an opportunity to catch up my backlogged startup workload. It is also a great time to meet my three-month niece, Priti for the very first time and celebrate my father’s 73^rd birthday in Washington DC with all my close family members. I am really looking forward to it...

But, before I disappear into my startup workload and family events, I want to share with you some of the campus photographs I took in the past few weeks. I hope you enjoy them, for winter in Ithaca is not all that bad!

Two submissions completed, three more to go...

Yeah, that's what is going through my mind right now:) It's amazing how time has swiftly passed by and the finals are already here...

Like other AMBAs, I have been pretty happy with the coursework in Johnson School but this semester brings in something special for me. My courses in spring enable me to work on some aspects of my startup through various project assignments for credits!

This flexible integration of coursework with real-world projects is something that truly makes the Johnson School program worth while. Everything from writing a B-plan to product pricing can be addressed through courses here. If you are considering a 2-year program and are interested in entrepreneurship, I strongly recommend that you plan your courses ahead of time so that you are well prepared to launch your firm by the time you graduate.

As I plan for my graduation in May I have been bombarded by emails from prospective students who currently face the tough decision of choosing an MBA school. I have been pretty happy with the program so far. Since, I have been asked by many prospective students, to list the changes I hope are done in the program, I am listing the two things I really hope are taken into consideration by Johnson School in the coming years.

First, it’s about providing specific courses for AMBAs during winter break. There are tons of club activities and events one can participate and learn from leadership roles. But I personally feel that there is no substitutes for courses offered in Johnson school. The faculty is really awesome and it's sad if one misses out on some of the unique courses offered by world-class faculty. So, I do think Johnson school should consider reshuffling or offering some courses over the breaks, especifically for AMBA students. Why AMBA? Well because we folks only have two semesters to select our electives. Unfortunately, most of the courses are offered either in fall or spring.

Second, some of the courses such as like Financial Statement Analysis and Oral and writing communications should be made a part of the core. Although these might seem irrelevant courses, I think good presentation, writing skills and ability to understand the balance sheet is crucial for tomorrow’s industry leaders.

I will indeed be following up on these suggestions with Cathy Dove, our Associate Dean. I am not sure whether these suggestions will be implemented soon, but one good thing of being in small school is that every student gets and opportunity to raise his/her opinion which will be heard...

Anyway, with 2 down and 3 more to go on the submission front, its time to get back to my third case deliverable. I will get going now and hope to catch up with you very soon. Good night!