"Buying the War"

A great documentary on the IRAQ war and role of US media in the propaganda. I usually stick to the MBA and life theme on this blog but this time around I couldn't really resist sharing such an excellent piece of work.

Home Page
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/btw/watch.html

Directly to the video
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/video_popups/pop_vid_btw1-1.html


Enjoy!

Games we play - Recruiting for Summer Jobs

Its that time of the year where more than anything you need confidence and self-belief. We dropped our resumes and cover letters to several companies for Summer intern positions over the winter break. They are now coming out with close lists for interviews. Everyday we hear about the lists we made it on and ones we didn't. With 320 excellent candidates, this is where the quality of Darden students makes this process very competitive. Though at a personal level I don't feel any tension or competition with my classmates as I know them very well, respect them for their abilities and have an equal stake in their success. Reality at the end of the day is that we need to make the close lists to get interviews and if one does, other does not.

There are about 250 job postings for 320 students with over 50% open to internationals. Needless to say that everyone would walk away with an offer, most people with more than one. The question really is about fit and whether you managed to get exactly what you want.

Its not the same across the board. Some areas are more competitive than others e.g. management consulting which has the most interests. Most consulting companies had over 100 students apply for 25-30 interview spots. Investment banking is also competitive but (too my surprise) Darden is very strong in this field and attracts lots of Investment Banks. Marketing and general management can be equally competitive depending on the companies and specific positions. Darden having a general management and case based curriculum develops skills that appeal to wide variety of industries and functions. Hence there is a great breadth of opportunities available.

The full process from the start present itself like a game - competitive yet organised and sporting. So as I head back to my preparation drill, I say to myself "Let the games begin"