Welcome to the More Than an MBA podcast!

In this episode, Kai tosses formality to the wind and hosts an organic coffee chat with fellow 2nd year MBA classmates Meron Daniel and Carlos Navas. Meron talks about navigating the MBA program and being relentless no matter what life throws at you; Carlos shares deep sentiments about his approach to life, which is to be intentional in everything you do, and Kai discusses the financial strains of the MBA program and briefly touches on the international student's worst nightmare: deportation.

Welcome then to an authentic, unscripted dialogue about life as an MBA student between three good friends. It's a conversation filled with personal stories, silly banter, and...a promise of the possibility of Ethiopian coffee in the foreseeable future.

We hope you enjoy this episode!

Date uploaded: Monday, 28th November 2022
Host: Kaihan Lin
Guests: Meron Daniel and Carlos Navas

Show Notes:
(0:34) Technical glitches, a shout out, and introductions (some)
(2:36) Meron's take on her MBA experience
(3:31) Navigating through the MBA application process
(6:06) On scholarships via Consortium and Forte
(9:05) Fate or luck brought all 3 of us together
(10:35) When shit hits the fan...
(12:37) The MBA: A continuous journey of self-reflection
(14:42) Kai opens up on financial struggles
(16:05) Meron: on perseverance, diligence, and relentlessness
(17:38) Carlos: "Stepping out of my comfort zone"
(23:16) The MBA: Transactional or life-long connections?
(30:27) Cultural Peeve: English
(35:52) Cultural Peeve: The color of one's skin
(36:55) Be humble, you must
(43:42) Deportation: An international student's worst nightmare
(44:23) Takeaway #1: Of mentors and good friends
(46:35) Takeaway #2: Consistent self-audit
(47:44) Takeaway #3: Always be intentional
(49:54) A cheesy outtake

Email: MBAA
LinkedIn: GW MBAA
Podcast: More Than an MBA

[Others]
Meron's LinkedIn
Carlos's LinkedIn

Eden sits down with Dr. Christopher Kayes, Professor of Management and chair of the Department of Management at GWSB, and Dr. Shyam Giridharadas, Adjunct Professor of Management at GWSB, to discuss and debunk three business myths. Both bring their experiences in research, consulting, and higher education to this conversation.

We tackle the myths that (1) networking is superficial, (2) asking for a mentor is awkward, and (3) leadership can't be taught. First we define networking, mentorship, and leadership. Then we explore those negative feelings attached to networking, why being and having a mentor is so important at school and at work, and how Dr. Kayes and Dr. Giridharadas both teach leadership at GWSB.

Learn more about Dr. Kayes and Dr. Giridharadas at business.gwu.edu.

Welcome to the More Than an MBA podcast!

In this episode, Kai introduces Angelica Lozano. Angelica is a 1st year Global MBA student at George Washington University. Kai got to know her earlier in the summer through LinkedIn and Zoom, while she was still living in her native Colombia.

Angelica was formerly in marketing and international business. Before coming to GW, she worked in the Marketing team at a real estate company, and focused mainly on digital marketing strategies.

To mark the start of the Fall semester, we thought it apt to have Angelica share with us her experience so far as a 1st year MBA student. Angelica discusses what keeps her busy, the actions she takes to overcome difficult subjects, balancing MBA and personal life, and her vision 2 years from now when she graduates.

We hope you enjoy this episode!

Date uploaded: Monday, 26th September 2022
Host: Kaihan Lin
Guest: Angelica Lozano

Show Notes:
(0:33) Introducing Angelica Lozano
(1:38) What possessed you to decide on an MBA?
(2:41) The MBA: everything you ever dreamed of?
(3:46) What keeps you busy?
(4:23) On worries
(5:41) But on the flip side...what do you enjoy doing?
(6:17) What advice worked, so far?
(7:25) And the Bane of Angelica's Existence is...
(8:10) How do you overcome challenging classes?
(8:27) Asking for help is never easy!
(9:42) On MBA-Life balance
(11:28) Facing the tricky question: Do I have the time?
(13:03) What do you look forward to?
(14:08) What have you gained so far?
(14:29) "Everything is created twice."

Email: MBAA
LinkedIn: GW MBAA
Podcast: More Than an MBA

[Others]
Angelica's LinkedIn

We are back to school, and second-years are so excited to welcome first-years!

In this bite-sized episode, Eden collected what second-years wish they knew as a first-year. Hear advice as you start your MBA. Some of us wish we knew where to put more of our energy last year or how to be our own accountability partners. Others recommend getting to know your professors as much as you get to know each other, and to practice intentional networking. Together, we can learn from all of our experiences.

And keep an eye out for more information about first-year/second-year mentors soon!

Welcome to the More Than an MBA podcast!

We're introducing a mini-series on Diversity. Each episode will consist of a short interview with a guest and will be released bi-weekly in the month of August. Hope you enjoy it!

For this episode, we invited Khaled, who was born and raised in the Middle East. Khaled moved to the US in late-2018 and has been working at Hanover Research (a market research company), a company based in Virginia. He's now a Senior Client Engagement Director at the company. While working full-time, Khaled took on an MBA at GWU and recently graduated in June 2022. He was able to complete his degree in less than two years! Khaled is a proud husband and father of a one year old boy.

Date uploaded: Monday, 22nd August 2022
Host: Kaihan Lin
Guest: Khaled Halabi

Show Notes:
(0:34) Introducing Khaled Halabi
(1:05) Khaled, in his own words
(2:40) Challenges of Covid
(5:31) of Lenses and Perspectives
(8:48) The importance of choice
(10:21) Listen, listen, and listen some more
(11:34) Kai: on the Sponge and the End Goal
(13:29) Khaled's support factors
(15:18) Let's start by being less sensitive!
(17:26) Immersing yourself into the greater good

Email: MBAA
LinkedIn: GW MBAA
Podcast: More Than an MBA

[Others]
Khaled's LinkedIn

Happy summer! Whether you’re diving into an internship, taking classes, traveling, or anywhere in between, there are lots of different ways to spend the warmer months away from the semester. 

In this episode, Eden talks to GMBA Ad and Ikenna, PMBA Chris, OMBA Marissa and Jordan, and AMBA Zach about their summer plans. As we hear voices from each GW MBA program and learn about their summer plans, remember that we can stay connected off-campus, too.

Ad tells us why he chose a different path than a summer internship, Ikenna offers advice on how to snag that summer internship early on in the school year, and both Chris and Marissa let us in on their balance between traveling and taking classes online. Jordan says summer classes have been a seamless transition for her, and Zach shares that GW's campus is somewhat of a ghost town over the summer.

Don't forget to stay connected with the GW MBAA on LinkedIn all year round!