So Cesc Fabregas signed for Barcelona this morning, the Nigerian Under 20 football team lost in the quarter finals of the Junior world cup last night and my pot belly has refused to evolve into a six pack....despite depriving myself of 'junk' food for the past few days....so its safe to say that i'm on the lookout for a 'pick me up' this morning....
The countdown continues....in about a month, i'll be packing my bags and heading out to Heathrow for what would hopefully be a mind blowing year of fun, stress, knowledge acquisition and even more fun! I am excited while nervous....excited at the possibilities that lay ahead and nervous at the total deviation from the familiar. I would be going into a city where i have no friends or even anyone vaguely familiar. I am particularly apprehensive about food. I am a Nigerian and by definition we love spicy food...our entire diet is brimming with spice. I've never been out of Nigeria for longer than a week before and I remember heading straight to a beer garden or restaurant from the airport to save my tongue from the blandness it had had to endure all week. Luckily, practically everyone would probably have an issue or the other. But first things first, I need to get my Visa issued.....in Nigeria, the UK operates a drop box system where you download and fill the forms, include all necessary documents go get your biometric data captured, and submit the form. It typically takes about 3 weeks to a month so fingers crossed.
I've been thinking about setting goals for the year. I read in an Oxford Alum's blog that you can only do two of three things well in Oxford.....Academics, Socials and Sports. Academics for me is absolutely key....its my intention to get on the dean's list (A list of the top performing students in the class) so as to counter my relatively weak undergraduate gpa. It might be an issue during recruitment season when companies have their pick of the best business school talent in the world. I would also need to look for 400 hours during the year to study for CFA. So that leaves one more slot....do i pick socials or sports. Now socials are important, afterall one of the reasons to come for an MBA is to create an extensive international network and you can only do that by socialising extensively. I also like sports...football is absolutely critical to me and i've been looking forward to the annual MBA Tournament in paris since i first started considering going back to school. I would like to believe I can engage in both and still do well in class. I guess time would make that decision for me.
Finally, the thorny issue of finance! My wonderful parents (bless them) have given me most of the money required. I have estimated that the entire year would cost me about £54,000 pounds....thats a very conservative estimate by the way. After also throwing in my life savings, i just, only just have enough to cover my expenses for the year. Its a tough decision to have to make......a significant investment. But like someone once put it, its not too much to pay for the priviledge of being an Alumni of the great Oxford University for the rest of your life. Unfortunately, the school has very limited loan and scholarship options so it has to be 100% self funded. This is something the school needs to change. We're (some of the incoming students) looking to work on this with the school.....
On that note, I leave you to mourn the demise of my once great club......
Monday, August 15, 2011
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
CFA Level Three....Finally!
'Dear Adebayo Oluwaseun Babalola,
Congratulations. I am very pleased to inform you that you passed the June 2011 Level II CFA exam. You are one step closer to achieving your goal of earning the globally respected CFA charter.'
I got the email yesterday and after waiting for over 24 hours without receiving this...
'Dear Adebayo Oluwaseun Babalola,
We apologize for having misled you. You did not pass the exam. But on the real though, how could you think a nitwit like you would pass our 'prestigious' exam? Kindly re-register for the level 2 exam if you want to continue claiming to be a 'Level 2 candidate.''
I can safely scream...YAYYYYYYYY!!! I'm just glad that i've crossed this bridge....third time lucky i guess. Now the question is...do i attempt to take the level 3 exam while at Oxford next year. It will be extremely tough...deadlines are crazy and from the stories i've heard, my all-nighters would be taken up by Oxford. I will pay for the exam because i need to be registered for level 3 to have it reflected on my CV and then make a judgement call on how much study time I need to allocate to the exam without affecting my performance in school.
Oxford Update: Trying to round up the admin tasks. Sent in my student contract last week and should receive my SBS email address soon. Also about to apply for the UK visa....hopefully there'll be no issues with that. Also getting to know more of my classmates via our Facebook group....it's extremely active and someone's always discussing something which is nice and makes it easier to communicate. I've also been selected to blog for SBS on the official blog page http://mba.sbsblogs.co.uk/....another Yayyyyyy!!!! I requested to be considered and sent a link of my blog and the request was accepted.
Happy times....now reaching for a glass of wine....
Congratulations. I am very pleased to inform you that you passed the June 2011 Level II CFA exam. You are one step closer to achieving your goal of earning the globally respected CFA charter.'
I got the email yesterday and after waiting for over 24 hours without receiving this...
'Dear Adebayo Oluwaseun Babalola,
We apologize for having misled you. You did not pass the exam. But on the real though, how could you think a nitwit like you would pass our 'prestigious' exam? Kindly re-register for the level 2 exam if you want to continue claiming to be a 'Level 2 candidate.''
I can safely scream...YAYYYYYYYY!!! I'm just glad that i've crossed this bridge....third time lucky i guess. Now the question is...do i attempt to take the level 3 exam while at Oxford next year. It will be extremely tough...deadlines are crazy and from the stories i've heard, my all-nighters would be taken up by Oxford. I will pay for the exam because i need to be registered for level 3 to have it reflected on my CV and then make a judgement call on how much study time I need to allocate to the exam without affecting my performance in school.
Oxford Update: Trying to round up the admin tasks. Sent in my student contract last week and should receive my SBS email address soon. Also about to apply for the UK visa....hopefully there'll be no issues with that. Also getting to know more of my classmates via our Facebook group....it's extremely active and someone's always discussing something which is nice and makes it easier to communicate. I've also been selected to blog for SBS on the official blog page http://mba.sbsblogs.co.uk/....another Yayyyyyy!!!! I requested to be considered and sent a link of my blog and the request was accepted.
Happy times....now reaching for a glass of wine....
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Countdown to Oxford....
Sitting in my hotel room in Ghana, watching Paris Hilton on Piers Morgan's show complaining about fame and its bad side. Bad side? Can we switch places please (without the sex tape of course). Came to Ghana to write my CFA level 2 exams (for the last time i promise). The exam went ok...studied hard, but the CFA is anything but straight forward, so fingers crossed. I promised to paint the town red yesterday after my paper but those plans went down with a whimper as a little rain and the allure of guilt free tv defeated the almost non existent party animal inside me.
So CFA out of the way, I can now drool about resuming at Oxford in September. Whats been happening? Well, mostly administrative stuff.....got admitted to Green Templeton College and....ok, let me explain the Oxford collegiate system to you. Oxford, being Oxford, had to be different from other schools. Its sorta like a holy trinity....the University, the College and the Department. The University, handles examination and other University wide activities. The department handles lectures and other academic related functions and the college is where you are accomodated and enjoy other extra curricular activities. This is probably a less than precise description but i'm sure you get the picture. So to illustrate, I have been admitted to the University of Oxford. I will be provided accomodation and partake in other extra curricular activities at the Green Templeton College and be lectured at the Said Business School.
I've secured a flat at the Rewley Abbey Court (RAC), literally round the corner from Said Business School. Its a two bedroom flat and i'm scheduled to share it with an Israeli scientist....a fellow SBS student. Decided to stay at RAC because of its proximity to the school...walking or cycling 20 minutes everyday in the dead of winter doesn't exactly appeal to me. Downside however is its called off site accomodation as its not within my college grounds so i might not really interact with non-mba students as RAC is understandably populated by MBA students. But consulting with a number of current MBAs helped me make my decision as i'll be spending 98% of my time at SBS. We've (MBA students) also been communicating with each other via facebook and google....should be a fun group!
But for the next few months, i'll just cruise through work while I mentally unpack in my flat at the Rewley Abbey Court.....
So CFA out of the way, I can now drool about resuming at Oxford in September. Whats been happening? Well, mostly administrative stuff.....got admitted to Green Templeton College and....ok, let me explain the Oxford collegiate system to you. Oxford, being Oxford, had to be different from other schools. Its sorta like a holy trinity....the University, the College and the Department. The University, handles examination and other University wide activities. The department handles lectures and other academic related functions and the college is where you are accomodated and enjoy other extra curricular activities. This is probably a less than precise description but i'm sure you get the picture. So to illustrate, I have been admitted to the University of Oxford. I will be provided accomodation and partake in other extra curricular activities at the Green Templeton College and be lectured at the Said Business School.
I've secured a flat at the Rewley Abbey Court (RAC), literally round the corner from Said Business School. Its a two bedroom flat and i'm scheduled to share it with an Israeli scientist....a fellow SBS student. Decided to stay at RAC because of its proximity to the school...walking or cycling 20 minutes everyday in the dead of winter doesn't exactly appeal to me. Downside however is its called off site accomodation as its not within my college grounds so i might not really interact with non-mba students as RAC is understandably populated by MBA students. But consulting with a number of current MBAs helped me make my decision as i'll be spending 98% of my time at SBS. We've (MBA students) also been communicating with each other via facebook and google....should be a fun group!
But for the next few months, i'll just cruise through work while I mentally unpack in my flat at the Rewley Abbey Court.....
Sunday, March 13, 2011
End of Part One...
My day started with the typical nervousness and incredulousness of such big days....I woke up at 4am and immediately checked my email account....nothing! I got to work and tried to appear productive while hitting the refresh button every ten minutes....nothing! I went on a few online forums (gmatclub, papalguy) where fellow mba applicants were waiting nervously all over the world....nobody had heard anything!
At about 12 noon, I went into a meeting that would go on to last two hours.....tried checking my email account several times on my blackberry but couldnt seem to log on. It was probably for the best because the managing director of my firm was in the meeting and i cannot say for sure what my reaction to getting the email would have been! Meeting over, I bounded down the stairs and ran to my desk.....three unread mails! One of which was from the admissions guys at Oxford! Of course I checked the irrelevant emails first and then slowly clicked on the one that mattered....
'Dear Adebayo
I am delighted to confirm the decision of the MBA Committee to'
I blacked out for a second, my colleague said I started thumping my chest like a gorrilla but to be honest, he's not a very credbile source.....I remember standing up from my desk, smiling and looking decidedly retarded! My colleagues noticed of course and converged round my computer to read the rest of the email...
'offer you a place on the 2011-2012 programme.
Your interviewer was very impressed when they spoke to you during your interview and the MBA Committee has agreed that you meet the very high standard expected of an Oxford Student.
We hope very much that you will accept the Committee's offer and join the 2011-2012 class. We aim to welcome another class of around 230 to the next MBA, allowing each student to benefit from close supportive and constructive relationships with Faculty.'
There is no better feeling than opening up that email that tells you all your work has paid off....one of your dreams has come true...you have achieved what you set out to achieve.....
This marks the end of the first chapter.....and the beginning of a new one....
At about 12 noon, I went into a meeting that would go on to last two hours.....tried checking my email account several times on my blackberry but couldnt seem to log on. It was probably for the best because the managing director of my firm was in the meeting and i cannot say for sure what my reaction to getting the email would have been! Meeting over, I bounded down the stairs and ran to my desk.....three unread mails! One of which was from the admissions guys at Oxford! Of course I checked the irrelevant emails first and then slowly clicked on the one that mattered....
'Dear Adebayo
I am delighted to confirm the decision of the MBA Committee to'
I blacked out for a second, my colleague said I started thumping my chest like a gorrilla but to be honest, he's not a very credbile source.....I remember standing up from my desk, smiling and looking decidedly retarded! My colleagues noticed of course and converged round my computer to read the rest of the email...
'offer you a place on the 2011-2012 programme.
Your interviewer was very impressed when they spoke to you during your interview and the MBA Committee has agreed that you meet the very high standard expected of an Oxford Student.
We hope very much that you will accept the Committee's offer and join the 2011-2012 class. We aim to welcome another class of around 230 to the next MBA, allowing each student to benefit from close supportive and constructive relationships with Faculty.'
There is no better feeling than opening up that email that tells you all your work has paid off....one of your dreams has come true...you have achieved what you set out to achieve.....
This marks the end of the first chapter.....and the beginning of a new one....
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Cranfield MBA Interview
I had my Cranfield MBA interview yesterday. The Cranfield School of Management is in Bedford, on an isolated old airforce base. I got on the National Rail train from the London Euston Station to the Milton Keynes Central station (cost about 17 pounds for a one way ticket). The school usually sends a complimentary bus to meet interviewees at the station. Unfortunately, my train was a tad delayed so I had to take a taxi to the school (should cost about 16 pounds).
I was very well received by the Director of the MBA program and he took me upstairs to his office to commence the interview. He thanked me for making the effort to come all the way from Nigeria and asked me to give the pre-arranged 3 minute presentation. Cranfield provides a topic that the interviewee would talk about for 3 minutes at the start of the interview. Mine was about a piece of legislation i would like to see enacted in my country. I talked about the lack of a freedom of infomation bill and how its impeding good governance and accountability in Nigeria. I also gave an example of how Senators in Nigeria don't account for money given to them for constituency projects. The tricky part was the timing....I had a 50 second band around the 3 minute mark within which i could make the presentation (i.e 2 1/2 minutes to 3 1/2 minutes). Anything outside this band would be penalized.
After the presentation, he questioned me further about the bill.....is it currently under consideration? is there any lobbying being done? Thankfully, my geeky interest in politics paid off as I was able to answer the questions satisfactorily. He then proceeded to the traditional MBA questions.....why mba? why now? Have I applied to other schools?What are my plans post MBA. The good thing about doing two interviews so close together is that you learn from the first one....during the Oxford interview, i was nervous and tense while i was calm and relaxed during the Cranfield iterview (wish it was the other way around though).
Generally, the interview went well and I got a feeling I was in (though u never know). Thing is, even before the interview I had started to have reservations about Cranfield. Its clearly a good school with top faculty but I'm unsure if its best placed to help me achieve my goals. What are my goals?
I want a brand that would open doors for me all over the world. I want to meet exceptional people and create a network of lifetime friends from all over the world. I want to improve as a private equity professional. It was never in doubt that Oxford is better placed to help me achieve these goals but i've just started to question Cranfield's ability to help me achieve any of the goals at all.
While the Cranfield brand is a good one, it is by no means door opening (not in Nigeria at least). There are very little finance courses (not to talk of private equity specific courses) so i'm unlikely to gain specific PE skills.
Still thinking about it though.....
P.S There's absolutely nothing to do in the town....beware!
Addendum (25th February 2011): I got an admit with a £5k scholarship! Now dancing away.....
I was very well received by the Director of the MBA program and he took me upstairs to his office to commence the interview. He thanked me for making the effort to come all the way from Nigeria and asked me to give the pre-arranged 3 minute presentation. Cranfield provides a topic that the interviewee would talk about for 3 minutes at the start of the interview. Mine was about a piece of legislation i would like to see enacted in my country. I talked about the lack of a freedom of infomation bill and how its impeding good governance and accountability in Nigeria. I also gave an example of how Senators in Nigeria don't account for money given to them for constituency projects. The tricky part was the timing....I had a 50 second band around the 3 minute mark within which i could make the presentation (i.e 2 1/2 minutes to 3 1/2 minutes). Anything outside this band would be penalized.
After the presentation, he questioned me further about the bill.....is it currently under consideration? is there any lobbying being done? Thankfully, my geeky interest in politics paid off as I was able to answer the questions satisfactorily. He then proceeded to the traditional MBA questions.....why mba? why now? Have I applied to other schools?What are my plans post MBA. The good thing about doing two interviews so close together is that you learn from the first one....during the Oxford interview, i was nervous and tense while i was calm and relaxed during the Cranfield iterview (wish it was the other way around though).
Generally, the interview went well and I got a feeling I was in (though u never know). Thing is, even before the interview I had started to have reservations about Cranfield. Its clearly a good school with top faculty but I'm unsure if its best placed to help me achieve my goals. What are my goals?
I want a brand that would open doors for me all over the world. I want to meet exceptional people and create a network of lifetime friends from all over the world. I want to improve as a private equity professional. It was never in doubt that Oxford is better placed to help me achieve these goals but i've just started to question Cranfield's ability to help me achieve any of the goals at all.
While the Cranfield brand is a good one, it is by no means door opening (not in Nigeria at least). There are very little finance courses (not to talk of private equity specific courses) so i'm unlikely to gain specific PE skills.
Still thinking about it though.....
P.S There's absolutely nothing to do in the town....beware!
Addendum (25th February 2011): I got an admit with a £5k scholarship! Now dancing away.....
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Oxford Said MBA Interview 2011
Although I was interviewed by only one person (a director in the school's career services department), one other person was present....my brain. I feel like my body and brain were seperated during the interview and as such it was a three person conversation. How did it go? Read on......
Interviewer: Hi, Can I get you anything?
Bayo: Hi, I would like some water please...
Brain: You nitwit! Did you just ask your interviewer to get off his chair and get you water like some errand boy?
Interviewer: Sure.....one second....returns with water.....Ok, so why do you want to get an MBA?
Brain: Yes! Go for it Bayo! We've practiced this question a thousand times.....remember?
Bayo: Confidently adjusting pose.....I chose to come and study for an MBA because i feel that,.......pause....because i feel that...
Brain: OMG! How did I get stuck with such a dumbass? Why on earth are you stammering? You should know this thing like the back of your hand!!!!!!!
Bayo: mumbles something about private equity, and the need compensate for the poor quality of management teams in Nigeria.
Interviewer: Scribbles some notes......
Brain: You see, he's writing that you are a total waste of space! He's furious that he has to listen to you dribble on and he'll rather be playing ping pong with a wall right now....
Bayo: still mumbling about private equity and poor human capital in Africa
Interviewer: Ok, why Oxford?
Brain: Surely, you can't mess this up? Honestly, if you mess this up, I will haemorrage!
Bayo: Ok, Ok, I can't afford a Brain Haemorrage during an interview.....Oxford has a 900 year history of educating leaders, I want to be a part of that history. I'm also attracted to the school's private equity institute and the opportunity to learn from the world's leading practicioners in PE.
Brain: (Speaking pidgin english) Na God save you.....
Interviewer: What would you bring to the class?
Bayo: Now sounding confident.....I think I bring a unique perspective to the class. There can't be a lot of people in the class who practice private equity in emerging markets so i'm confident i can be a good platform to validate some of the theories taught in the private equity in emerging markets class.
Brain: So a couple of good answers and you think you have arrived? I am ashamed of you! You practiced these exact same questions over and over again and you still couldn't sound smooth and suave.....you disgust me! If you rob me the chance to spend a year in this place, I will never forgive you!
Bayo: I have worked in financial services all my career and believe i would be in a position to help my less quantitatively oriented classmates during group work as I expect they'll help me in subjects I'm not familiar with. I also believe I would contribute to the class in social and sporting way as i play football and would seek to represent the school in the MBA tournament in Paris....
Interviewer: smiling.......Big win for Arsenal on Wednesday eh?
Brain: Ok....i know i warned you not to include the fact that you support Arsenal on your CV....who does that?
Bayo: Yes, Lagos went beserk after the match. You would have thought it was Nigeria playing......long discussion about football where Harry Redknapp, Graham Taylor and Watford were mentioned by the interviewer and I threw in a 'It'll go downhill for Harry Redknapp as soon as he gets the England job'.....
Brain: you're lucky that the arsenal thing worked out in the end...
Interviewer: I see you want to work in a private equity firm focused on emerging markets.....Well, to be honest, they don't exactly come banging on my door asking for MBA's how do you intend to secure a job like this? Can you name five of such companies?
Bayo: Well, I'm particularly attracted to the IFC because of its focus on the social impact of its investments....
Interviewer: Well, the IFC is not exactly a private equity firm
Bayo: Yes i realise that but the skill set requirements are similar. Companies like Emerging Capital Partners, Aureos Capital, Actis, Kingdom Zephry would also be attractive to me. I also intend to secure a study leave from my current employers.
Interviewer: That's smart....
Brain: blushing......Okay, maybe you're not so dumb afterall....
30 minutes up......
Interviewer: Thanks for coming Bayo.....enjoy the rest of your open day
Bayo: Thanks Derek....Have a good day
Interviewer: Hi, Can I get you anything?
Bayo: Hi, I would like some water please...
Brain: You nitwit! Did you just ask your interviewer to get off his chair and get you water like some errand boy?
Interviewer: Sure.....one second....returns with water.....Ok, so why do you want to get an MBA?
Brain: Yes! Go for it Bayo! We've practiced this question a thousand times.....remember?
Bayo: Confidently adjusting pose.....I chose to come and study for an MBA because i feel that,.......pause....because i feel that...
Brain: OMG! How did I get stuck with such a dumbass? Why on earth are you stammering? You should know this thing like the back of your hand!!!!!!!
Bayo: mumbles something about private equity, and the need compensate for the poor quality of management teams in Nigeria.
Interviewer: Scribbles some notes......
Brain: You see, he's writing that you are a total waste of space! He's furious that he has to listen to you dribble on and he'll rather be playing ping pong with a wall right now....
Bayo: still mumbling about private equity and poor human capital in Africa
Interviewer: Ok, why Oxford?
Brain: Surely, you can't mess this up? Honestly, if you mess this up, I will haemorrage!
Bayo: Ok, Ok, I can't afford a Brain Haemorrage during an interview.....Oxford has a 900 year history of educating leaders, I want to be a part of that history. I'm also attracted to the school's private equity institute and the opportunity to learn from the world's leading practicioners in PE.
Brain: (Speaking pidgin english) Na God save you.....
Interviewer: What would you bring to the class?
Bayo: Now sounding confident.....I think I bring a unique perspective to the class. There can't be a lot of people in the class who practice private equity in emerging markets so i'm confident i can be a good platform to validate some of the theories taught in the private equity in emerging markets class.
Brain: So a couple of good answers and you think you have arrived? I am ashamed of you! You practiced these exact same questions over and over again and you still couldn't sound smooth and suave.....you disgust me! If you rob me the chance to spend a year in this place, I will never forgive you!
Bayo: I have worked in financial services all my career and believe i would be in a position to help my less quantitatively oriented classmates during group work as I expect they'll help me in subjects I'm not familiar with. I also believe I would contribute to the class in social and sporting way as i play football and would seek to represent the school in the MBA tournament in Paris....
Interviewer: smiling.......Big win for Arsenal on Wednesday eh?
Brain: Ok....i know i warned you not to include the fact that you support Arsenal on your CV....who does that?
Bayo: Yes, Lagos went beserk after the match. You would have thought it was Nigeria playing......long discussion about football where Harry Redknapp, Graham Taylor and Watford were mentioned by the interviewer and I threw in a 'It'll go downhill for Harry Redknapp as soon as he gets the England job'.....
Brain: you're lucky that the arsenal thing worked out in the end...
Interviewer: I see you want to work in a private equity firm focused on emerging markets.....Well, to be honest, they don't exactly come banging on my door asking for MBA's how do you intend to secure a job like this? Can you name five of such companies?
Bayo: Well, I'm particularly attracted to the IFC because of its focus on the social impact of its investments....
Interviewer: Well, the IFC is not exactly a private equity firm
Bayo: Yes i realise that but the skill set requirements are similar. Companies like Emerging Capital Partners, Aureos Capital, Actis, Kingdom Zephry would also be attractive to me. I also intend to secure a study leave from my current employers.
Interviewer: That's smart....
Brain: blushing......Okay, maybe you're not so dumb afterall....
30 minutes up......
Interviewer: Thanks for coming Bayo.....enjoy the rest of your open day
Bayo: Thanks Derek....Have a good day
Oxford MBA Open Day
I arrived in the city of Oxford to the magnificent sight of the Said Business School building.....a fantastic piece of architecture... I was received most graciously by a smiling Liz Buckle (the MBA Marketing Officer) and then ushered into a room filled with other people from around the world also looking to do their MBA at Oxford. There were two nice Singaporean architects working on projects in Morocco, Egypt and other countries in the middle east, a Norwegian management consultant who, together with a few of his friends started a small spin off consulting outfit in Norway, a Ghanaian PhD holder from Warwick, a Chinese gentleman who owns a software development company among others.The day started off with a nice presentation by Darren (a member of the admissions team) where he laid out some facts......they had well over a thousand applications last year most of which were from Asia and North America. They extended interview invites to about 500 people and admitted about 232 people an implied yield of 50% post interview and about 20% post application.
We had a question and answer session with current students where they were supposed to cut the 'bullshit' out and tell it like it is. To be honest, there wasn't much bullshit to cut out because the earlier presenters were all frank and honest. This was followed by lunch where we got to talk and network which was excellent.
The next activity was a presentation by the MBA Director....he was nice, frank and funny and tried to give his presentation in a way such that it answered important questions like 1 year or 2 year, Oxford or Wharton and Europe or North America. I left at this point to have my interview (more on that later).
I returned just in time for a brilliant lecture in Strategy by a Professor at the school. It was hands down the most brilliant and funniest lecture I'd ever been in and i must say it left me wanting to have such lectures for a whole year (yeah i know they must have gotten their most entertaining lecturer to do this but it doesn't matter, if all their lecturers are a quarter as entertaining and brilliant as he is, i would have no complaints)
This was followed by a presentation by the Director of the school's career service (he interviewed me (gasp!)). He was also very surprisingly frank. The crux of his message was....don't expect companies to want to rush you just because you have three freshly minted letters in front of your name. Its a recession and employers are no longer in the habit of paying people £60k a year to 'find' themselves......you must bring something to the table on day one! He also encouraged people who had unique experiences, cultural advantages and skill sets to focus on those unique attributes and use it to sell themselves during their job search.
I stayed and chatted with a few people before heading for the Oxford station for my train back to paddington. The school is literally next to the station and as such commuting via train is hands down the easiest way to get to the school. Just get to the popular paddington station in central London and board a 'first western' train and stop at the Oxford station (I think the train's final destination is Hereford).
My post open day impression? I now reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally want to attend this school.....
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