Halfway point

Finals are done and I am halfway through so it is time to review my classes again. This semester was the first time where every class I took was a class that I wanted to take. As I have said before, MIT is very open about their curriculum. After the first summer (where we take care of a large chunk of LGO specific classes) and the first Fall where we take the MBA core, you can pretty much take whatever you want. I reviewed these classes earlier in the semester so I will only really add anything new or note any changes of opinions that I have had.

1.155/2.963/3.577/6.938/10.816/16.862/22.82/ESD.72 Engineering Risk-Benefit Analysis – This class is exactly what I expected it to be. The decision analysis part was interesting but I would honestly only recommend it if you are looking for relatively easy engineering credits.

15.281 Advanced Communications – As I noted earlier, I took this class because I needed additional practice speaking in public. Presenting to a hostile audience was a great experience and I would highly recommend the class for that one event.

15.402 Finance II – You should not graduate from Sloan without taking this class. Period. This class covers the financing fundamentals for a business from a practical point of view. You will finally understand how and why companies issue debt versus equity and how a company making a good product and growing can go into bankruptcy. Again, this is a MUST take.

15.521 Management Accounting and Control – Once again, accounting was fun because of the teacher. This is twice in a row I have had a great accounting teacher (see my fall core semester post). To me, this is another must take. In my limited work experience, you spend hours arguing over the internal accounting numbers (which are so often worthless for trying to make a business decision). This class will give you the tools you need to deal with the bean counters.

15.615 Basic Business Law for the Entrepreneur and Manager – This class is good if you have not taken a law class before (some people take a generic law class in undergrad) or if you are an international student. And of course, if you want a class that requires minimal effort, this class will deliver.

15.792 Proseminar – Not much to say here. This is a great part of the LGO program where we get to hear people speak about a variety of topics.

15.871 System Dynamics – This class was a bit disappointing for me. I ended up dropping the second half of this course because I did not feel like the time I was spending was worth the effort. I’m still glad I took the first half of this class because it showed a number of examples of how bad people are at solving problems and recognizing delays in the cause and effects loop.

ESD.941 Tiger Teams – This was a good experience even though my group had a very easy project. Working with a new company and getting to see a different industry (how chocolate is made) was worth the time and effort. I would also say this class helps prepare you for your internship where you have to come into a new environment where you are essentially an outside consultant and complete a project with the help of others. It’s like a mini internship.