Marketing research students take a class first semester called "Current Topics in Marketing Research." This class focuses on either actively applying the learnings from our Marketing Research class or witnessing applications in the business world. Therefore, the class includes lectures by industry professionals, site visits to companies, and interactive projects like the one described below.

Two members of Proctor and Gamble's Consumer and Marketing Knowledge (CMK) team led our Current Topics class on September 26. Both Marketing Research and Brand students attended the lecture which first focused on ethnographies. From ethnographies, we were briefed on the methods and insights garnered from "Shop-Alongs." Shop-Alongs are one-on-one depth interviews that attempt to gather insights into the shopper's psyche by exploring behavior, perceptions, attitudes, etc while in the context of a real-world retail environment. After the presentation, one Brand and one Market Research student were paired to go into a store and accompany a shopper (recruited by a research company) as they shopped for beauty products, in particular shampoos and conditioners. Our focus was on gaining insights into the Pantene brand.

I was paired with a second-year Brand student who had performed several Shop-Alongs during his summer internship at SC Johnson. He encouraged me to take the lead and to use this as a learning experience - I accepted ;) It was a great opportunity to engage in real-time with a consumer and figure out - What are the right questions to ask? How should I probe further to get a deeper insight? Am I recording the consumer's perceptions accurately and in her own words? Another significant learning experience, that I had not anticipated, was in my conversations with my Brand partner about his past Shop-Alongs. It was just an overall fantastic applied experience.

After the Shop-Alongs, all students returned to school for a debriefing on insights gained. Based on these insights we generated strategic actionable recommendations. The class was perfect for someone like myself - new to the field and ready to get my feet wet!

So you know how I said it wasn't all work here at the Wisconsin MBA? Well this past Friday was the Graduate Business Association's Golf Outing. Just imagine...beautiful sunny day, temperatures in the high 70s, soft green under your feet.

Yeah I had to imagine it too. Another obligation conflicted with the Golf Outing, so I wasn't able to attend. Probably good for everyone there actually. I have only ever played miniture golf....and let's just say it's not on my list of strengths. Good for you readers too though, because we have a first-year A.C. Nielsen student guest blogger, Michael Kirk , to describe the day. (if the link doesn't work, it might not be posted yet)

So without further adieu...

Today marked the 5th annual GBA Golf Outing. The outing was held at the spectacular University Ridge golf course. The event brings together representatives from a number of the MBA program's recruiting companies, students, and staff. It is held to raise funds for GBA-sponsored student activities, services, and programming. In return, students give back to the community by donating their time and energy to worthwhile causes. This year's outing was a rousing success. The weather was perfect--a golfer's first concern. The day started out with a lunch with company representatives, which provided an excellent opportunity to talk to individuals that are on similar paths to the ones we'll soon be taking in our internships or full-time work. Then the fun started. The great thing about a "scramble" format, is that it caters to golfers of all levels. My team was led by the shot-making Patrick McIntyre, a 2004 joint JD/MBA graduate who now works in Finance at Best Buy. Our foursome came up with some clutch shots to have a strong finish at 8-under, just short of the winning score. A particularly memorable moment came at the "Beat the Dean" hole (we all placed bets, donations to the GBA, on whether we could hit the ball closer to the pin than the Dean...if we did, he covered our donations)--All four of us had nice shots, but the Dean was able to put his in line with Patrick, who was a great sport and gave the tie to the Dean. Everyone had a great time, and a big thank you goes out to the participating companies and the GBA members and Wisconsin School of Business staff that helped put on such a first-class event. I can't wait for the 6th annual!

In an earlier entry of mine entitled "Well Hello," I described the Wisconsin Experience - the orientation at the Wisconsin MBA program. This orientation and the MBA experience itself is a little different for international students. Therefore, as the year goes on, I will include this international student perspective on things like orientation, the interviewing process, classes, and just life in general here in Madison.

Paul Hahn, a fellow first year at the A.C. Nielsen Center, has been kind enough to start off the international student story with his experiences during Orientation. Enjoy!

You're still jetlagged, struggling to get used to the new time zone. Or perhaps it's your first time in this strange and distant country...

As with any other international MBA student, you've probably left your whole life behind - friends, family, job - to name a few, and flew half away around the world to this quaint city of Madison, having mixed feelings of anticipation and anxiety.

That's the sort of emotions I had when I first came to Madison, all the way from Seoul, South Korea, which wasn't even a month ago. So if you are somewhere out there, in Asia or Europe or wherever, and are thinking about an MBA here at Wisconsin, it's ok to feel a bit overwhelmed at the whole process of packing up and flying off to a new country. I know I was at first.

But thankfully, to help all the international students ease into the MBA experience, the School of Business' Student Services held a MBA International Student Orientation a day before the actual Orientation started, so that we can better adjust to the program, as well as life here in the USA.

The MBA International Student Orientation was held in a very friendly and cozy atmosphere, with approximately 25 students from all over the globe. We were introduced to the faculty and staff, as well as about the following MBA orientation and the actual courses to follow.
The Career Management team also provided really useful information, such as career searching strategies and resources tailored to international students, as there can be some obstacles in the career searching process in the United States due to reasons like visa sponsor issues.

Also, international students are required to submit a variety of forms and documents - health insurance, tax forms & social security applications if you have an assistantship, to name a few, and it is easy to get swept away by the whole process, but the Student Services team lines up all the relevant schedules so that you don't get overwhelmed by it.

All in all, I think all the international students really appreciated this extra day to prepare ourselves for the journey that awaits us - if you've been keeping up with Sunaina's blog entries, you'll probably get a feel of how things can get pretty hectic once the semester begins.

But don't worry - if I can get through it, I'm sure you can too!

Paul J. Hahn
1st Year MBA,
A.C. Nielsen Center for Marketing Research

The interview season for Marketing Research students starts early in the semester - around the first week of October. What, you ask, could we possibly be interviewing for one month into our program? The answer my friends - the summer internship.

Between our first and second years, MR students spend 10-12 weeks working at top companies all over the US. Not only is it an incredibly opportunity to apply all that we learned in the classroom BUT it could also lead to an offer for full-time employment. So the interview process for these internships is intense and important.

Part of the preparation for October is the "mock interview." You basically sign up to do an informal, practice interview with a representative from a company. General Mills, Kraft and Heibing all sent a member of their organization.

I interviewed with General Mills. It was an incredibly collaborative process. Right at the beginning I was asked what my goals were for the mock interview. My resume was reviewed, practice questions were asked, and feedback was provided. For someone like me - who is a career switcher and had never gone through such a formal "suit and portfolio" interview process - it was incredibly helpful to get a sense of what I should expect.

And for me, thinking about interviewing is exciting. Everyone here goes through two difficult years of schooling with the goal of getting a fantastic job. So starting to see that horizon and getting a taste of what's to come is exciting!
But for now...back to classes.

Have a great week everyone! And if you're interested, there's an article below by Business Week.

Math Will Rock Your World

Week one has come and gone. Like any program, the first days of class included a lot of discussion about what's to come. By the end of the week, however, the pace picked up and we were jumping right into the subject material.

Here's a brief introduction to what my course load is like. Most first semester courses are the "core" business courses.

Marketing Management: Jan Heide
Prof Heide's approach to teaching is learning through case analysis. Throughout the semester we discuss about 13 cases.

Intro to Financial Management: Kenneth A. Kavajecz
Prof Kavajecz's class is intense. A known "cold caller," you always have to be on your toes. However, he is able to explain finance in a way that even I can understand it.

Financial Accounting: Holly Skaife
Prof Skaife, always with a smile on her face, leads us through the comprehension and construction of financial statements and explains a range of other accounting topics.

Data to Decisions: Qing Liu
Though reserved in her demeanor, Prof Liu brings an enthusiasm for the subject matter that makes Excel interesting to work with for extended periods of time.

Marketing Research: Neeraj Arora
Prof Arora comes off as the incredibly intelligent, reserved type. But then you see some of the visuals he uses on his lecture slides, and his quirky (and refreshing) sense of humor comes out.

Managerial Communications: Scott Troyan
Prof Troyan, with his self-deprecating sense of humor, explains what works and what to avoid in communicating our messages.

Current Topics in Marketing Research: Kristin Branch
Kristin describes this class as "applied experiential learning," bridging what we learn in the classroom with the workplace.

On top of courses, I have a Project Assistantship with the A.C. Nielsen Center. Some MBA students (across concentrations) have these assistantships, which involve working either within the school or with outside companies. It provides benefits like acquiring applied experiences and paying for tuition.

So there is a whole lot going on! And honestly, I feel incredibly overwhelmed. In a way it's all very exciting, because I am just so engaged in classes, work, and activities. There's never a dull moment. But finding balance and calm amongst it all is a goal of mine for this semester. Work/life balance - It's a pervasive theme. Good luck to all of us, right? ;)

The subjects of "mock" interviews is on the menu for next wk...