I have been dead to the world…
When we got back to Indy a week from yesterday, we had a relaxing couple of days. I had a college friend, Jen, down for those three days and we had a good time catching up, it had been too long. But that also meant I didn’t have time to post here.
I also knew that the day I got back to work, I’d probably be working 10 hour days plus to make sure a lot of work got done by Friday. Doing business in China means we have to plan ahead, and since we’re going to Las Vegas in February of 2008, we really needed to have all artwork to China the Wednesday I got back. The more time they had, the better.
I got the artwork finished in some state, minus final approvals on Wednesday night after 11 hours of work. But the artwork didn’t actually make it to China until Friday, as originally planned, after two more 10 hour days.
On top of that, my boss left this morning for a whirlwind week sales trip down south to start selling our awesome product. He needed two fully stocked graphic catalogs of our designs before he left. One was 9 pages and was designed completely from scratch, and the other one was 20 pages, and that might as well have been designed from scratch. Over 200 mocked up product illustrations later, and 13 hours on Saturday and 13.5 on Sunday and we are finished (57 hours total over 5 days).
I haven’t had time to post here, or do anything else. In a time when my wife has needed me most, I haven’t been able to be there. Chalk it up to timing, something you can never control. But this is a really big exciting moment for the business, and I am confident we are going to see some results next week when he returns. Not to mention my boss is really good to me, giving me some time off to make up for the weekend time, and he got us a couple of lunches while we were working…
So, to any of you who have emailed me and read this, sorry I haven’t been able to get back to you. Sorry to my wife. I feel like things will be a little more normal until the 19th. We’ll see. I may have some more things that need to be done before I can pick up and leave, but with the show in Vegas in the third week of Feb, maybe I’ll have time to do all of that in early February.
Oh, and on a final note, I squeezed in one meeting this week at the business school. My first two classes are Economics and Business Law and those start on the 14th, so I am pretty excited and nervous. I have different motivations this time around, but I had trouble with a simple Econ 101 course in college. I blame that on the Russian prof. I had thought I wanted to take it then to get some “business” knowledge, but truth was I wasn’t mature enough to be truly motivated to excel. It’s a different story this time around, I couldn’t be more serious.
Hopefully there will be more to come.
Visting PearsonVue Test Center Indianapolis
Last night was the night to finally get up to the northside and check out where I am going next week for my test. I know right where the Pyramids are, but I wasn’t sure where in the building I was going. But it is pretty easy. Suite 2080 on floor 8 is right off the elevator. One less thing I have to worry about on test day, where I am going. (Plus I got a Christmas gift that was only available on the northside.)
With less than a week left now until my test, I have a lot of mixed emotions. Questions about whether I am ready or not, but relief that I am done studying. It is challenging, and I appreciate the focus I have had to have in order to reach my goals, it emulates what I will need to do when I enroll in an MBA program and prepare me for that rigor. But I do like having a sense of finality, that I can move onto something new, and it will feel good to get back to some sort of normal life, even if it is only for a little while.
Choosing a date for the real GMAT
I think I have decided to wait and see what my test score is from the practice exam to guage when to take the real GMAT here in Indianapolis. I am still on the fence about how important it is to push to get into Kelly, and I want to see if I have a good base to start from with my score this weekend, or if I will need to study that much longer to be ready.
If I get a good score, I will hope that there are still test dates open in November. If I score not where I think I should, then I will have to see what my timeframes would be if I would wait to apply officially in April. That would give me time to take the classes necessary to go to Kelly as well for the pass/fair statistics and accounting courses.
Indianapolis testing centers and time tables for the GMAT
Found out today some information for the next step. I don’t have to have taken the GMAT before I submit my application, but I have to have an estimated time frame that I anticipate I will.
I found it a touch difficult finding information about the testing centers in Indianapolis. Apparently there is only one location in all of the city? It is on the northside, by the pyramids, and the testing is done by Pearson.
But, there are two positive things. It appears that tests are given on almost a daily basis. So, as long as I choose enough in advance my options aren’t too limited. Plus, I found out that the largest amount of lead time I would need is 20 days. That is the maximum amount of time that it should take them to grade the test and have it in the hands of the university of choice.
I figure that if I get the exam in sometime in late November, I should be right on track. I am eyeing the 17th, a Saturday, which after I take the practice exam would give me one month of crazy work to study and prepare for the exam and then hopefully be done with it. That isn’t too long of a time to endure.
Supposedly everything you need is at MBA.com. The site is nicely designed, and is very informative. I don’t know why I found it so hard to believe that the only testing location in Indianapolis is the Pearson location. I had to sign up on the website to have access to most of the information, and it was a lengthy process. I knew that I would be using the site more than likely as I went through this process so it was worthwhile.
I just wish this was spelled out a little more in most university literature.
Registered for the GMAT practice exam
I had plans for that weekend, but fortunately those individuals that I have plans with were flexible and allowed me to still take the test. I am all signed up, and it is the perfect amount of time. I plan on starting on Monday, study every night for up to 2 hours, and then see the areas I need to improve on.
All the while I had said, I am going to go to Kelly Business School. Their education ranks up there among other business schools nationwide, but, would that education take me out of Indiana? It is too early to make that decision, but the school is downtown. I can’t emphasize enough how convenient it is to have the University of Indianapolis less than 2 miles away, Hell I could bike to it if I felt like being gross.
There is one piece that concerns me. Granted, they both require the GMAT, so there is a certain level of inherent quality associated with that. But, U of I’s suggested score is 525-535, where Kelly is 600-650 and they still turn away 50% of their applicants. I would be remiss to not want the apparently better school on paper who wants the higher GMAT score. (800 possible points)
I will just have to take the exam and see where I fall. I may not have an option, and have to rely on soft skills to enhance my application.
University of Indianapolis infosession at Valle Vista in Greenwood
I have lost count. I think this is only the second one of these that I have been to, but it may have been the third. But finally, my ducks are in a row to pursue this with as much gusto as I desire. I have been working hard since I graduated, and I knew soon in that if I wanted to secure the future of my family, and if I wanted to get into a less subjective career, this just may be my best option.
The University of Indianapolis evening MBA is very appealing, but one of the biggest qualities they push in their literature is the personal attention you get when you enroll in their program. They have a great teacher to student ratio, and they say that they are there to help their students succeed. I think that most programs would say that, but from the moment I walked into the room and there were 4-5 professors there greeting me, wanting to know more about me, I was convinced that what they said was the truth.
The next immediately, and possible most important step to take is to plan for the GMAT. There is a free practice exam at the U of I campus in almost two weeks, and that is a great way to simulate the real test and get some real results to help focus the study sessions on areas of weakness.
It’s exciting, and it’s time to get to work.
