Tag Archives: MBA Class of 2010

Penn State Takes Second-Place at Big 10 Case Competition!

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By Caitlin Votava, MBA Class of 2010

Every year, Penn State participates in the Big Ten Case Competition, hosted by Ohio State University. This year four students were asked to represent the Smeal MBA program for this competition: Sasha DiVirgilio, David Jones, Ian McFetridge and myself. Preparing for the competition meant meeting at least once a week with our advisor, Nancy Mahon, to learn about the rules and regulations, as well as watch past year presentations and prepare a few practice cases together. After a month of prep work, the day finally came to head out to Ohio. The competition kicked off with a tour of the business building and a welcome dinner held at Ohio Stadium, culminating with a walk on the field and tour of the stadium, which was really cool (despite the fact that we are, obviously, Nittany Lion fans). Continue reading →

Going for the Green: Climate Corps Fellow Aims to Change American Energy Statistics at Verizon

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By Ryan Mallett, MBA Class of 2010

While millions of people spent the weekend watching PGA golfers go for the green at Pebble Beach, or World Cup players chase a soccer ball across the green in South Africa, I began a search for a different kind of green. You know – the kind of green that you put in your wallet. I recently began my EDF Climate Corps fellowship with Verizon in search of energy efficiency savings that could provide the kind of green we all understand. It is also the kind of green that adds to the planet’s bank account instead of draining it. Continue reading →

APEX experience

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By Eric Zhang, MBA Class of 2010

APEX stands for the Applied Professional Experience (APEX) Program, which is a new course designed to give Smeal MBA students real working experience. Four or five students form a team and work with a company on a specific project. The companies this year represented a wide spectrum of industries, ranging from an insurance company to a brewery. It is a fun and challenging experience! Continue reading →

Graduation is just around the corner!

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By Oscar Lang, MBA Class of 2010

So, I finally got done with all the requirements to finish my MBA! Earlier this week I did my last presentation and the same day submitted the last paper for my Global Finance class. As you can imagine this is a bittersweet time. On one hand, I have achieved one of my goals in life: getting an MBA! I worked hard for the past two years for this goal and now I am ready to apply the knowledge and skills that I have learned. On the other hand, over these past two years I have met lots of wonderful people, including my peers, faculty, staff, and their families. It will be tough leaving this place behind and moving on to the real world, living and working in a place that likely will not be Happy Valley. Nonetheless, I look forward to continue developing my professional career and coming back to many Blue & White weekends in the future, where I can remember old memories and good times with my Smeal family! We are… Penn State!!!

MBA Teaching Awards

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By Ryan Chafin, MBA Class of 2011

B-school education here at Smeal has plenty of perks. Honor Code, Global Immersion, and great community spirit immediately spring to mind. However, these things are really just the icing on the cake. The substance of our education here, the cake itself, the ingredient that makes our time here at Smeal the heartiest and filling, is the outstanding classroom education that we get from our professors.
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Visitation Weekend

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By Nate Myles, MBA Class of 2010

Greetings from Smeal! My name is Nate Myles, and I am the VP Recruitment for the Class of 2011. As many of you know, the Smeal MBA programming hosted a number of prospective students earlier this month during our Annual Visitation weekend. The purpose of the weekend is to immerse candidates in the Smeal community. The weekend’s activities included case analysis, alumni panels, interactions with students, and various other activities to learn more about the program and the local community. Continue reading →

APEX does have its benefits…

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By Sara Paige, MBA Class of 2010

One of the projects my APEX team has been working on is market launch ideas for Polk Audio’s new speaker, the HitMaster.  Polk Audio, in sympathy to our pro bono work, offered to send us samples so that we could try it out.  A couple of weeks ago, I got the call that my new HitMaster was here. Although I don’t really have Guitar Hero or Rock Band (which the speaker is really for), I was pretty excited, because the audio at La Casa de Sara is pretty poor. Plus, after speaking with audiophiles over the last module, I was ready to upgrade a little. Continue reading →

Chile’s Earthquake from the Inside: Rising from the rubble

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After arriving in Santiago on Friday, February 26th at 9:30am, we decided to spend the day touring the Finance district. When the evening came, we set out to dine at a local Irish pub where we met two ex-pats who suggested a bar to go to for the night. A few of us decided to take this recommendation. Considering the two hour time difference, we were out later than expected. Close to 3:30am, the seventh largest earthquake to date struck. For those of us at the bar, we saw bottles and glasses come crashing to the floor all around us. We could see a mixture of terror and confusion on people’s faces. For those of us at the hotel, we were awoken by pieces of the ceiling falling to the floor after which we immediately evacuated. Continue reading →

Chinese New Year

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By Jiafei Huang, MBA Class of 2010

This was the second Chinese New Year I have been a part of at Smeal.   The food was great, probably even better than last year.   Karen and Lin’s Cantonese song was the only performance from the second years this time, which made it really special.   Bravo to Karen and Lin for bringing beautiful songs to us two years in a row.  Bob’s xi shua shua definitely lightened up the night.  It was the most entertaining performance to many of us. Hector, who excels in any eating competition, again won the dumping eating competition.

I will surely miss the diversified festival celebrations at Smeal:  Diwali, Lunar New Year, international potlucks and more!

THON at Smeal – Thank You!

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By Ron and Lena, MBA Class of 2010

Thank you for showing incredible support, compassion, and kindness as Lena and I danced for 46 hours to help fight cancer in THON 2010 this weekend.  You proved over and over again that we weren’t the only Smeal MBAs standing up against cancer–while we stood on the dance floor below, you stood in three-hour lines above so you could stand beside us for just a few minutes.  You crowded the pit section of the stands to show us that we were never alone.  You brought us snacks, toys, and games at all hours of the day and night to make sure we always had something new to do.  You made sure that whenever and wherever we looked up, we saw those familiar yellow Continue reading →