The Weekly Update – Professional and Online MBA: January 14, 2016

Program News & Announcements

Jenkins MBA Family Basketball Party – RSVP by January 18th

The Jenkins MBA program and MBA Student Association (MBASA) will co-host a pre-game reception (food, hot and cold drinks, cash bar) in a heated tent on the South Plaza at PNC Arena prior to the NC State vs. Miami basketball game on Saturday, January 30th. We are excited to announce that we already have almost 250 RSVPs to this event. To register and to reserve your tickets, visit the EventBrite page – which also has more details.

UPDATE AS OF FRIDAY, JANUARY 15: TICKETS ARE SOLD OUT. If you already requested tickets, we will confirm your ticket request by January 19.

We still welcome your RSVP to the Pre-game Reception. In addition, we have secured a large-screen TV and will keep the tent open (and stocked with food) for the duration of the game.

Meet-up Groups for Online MBA Students Happening This Weekend!

We are excited to announce two new student run meet-up groups for Jenkins MBA students, with events coming up in both Charlotte and in Wilmington. All of our MBA students who live in the area are welcome to attend – no RSVP necessary. These are casual events for our distance students to get together, network, and share ideas.

Wilmington Online MBA Meet-up
January 16th at 2 p.m.
Bombers Beverage Company -108 Grace St., Wilmington, NC 28401
Student Contact: Rachael Beatty at rabeatty@ncsu.edu

Charlotte Online MBA Meet-up
January 16th at 4:30 p.m.
Firebirds – 6801 Northlake Mall Drive, Charlotte, NC, 28216
Student Contact: Harry Tidaback at hrtidaba@ncsu.edu

New Sustainable Ventures Track in Lulu E-Games

If you’re developing a new idea or working on a start-up, consider entering the university’s annual startup competition called the Lulu eGames. The Lulu eGames awards cash prizes with in-kind awards, such as a year-long community membership to HQ Raleigh. In addition to prizes, it’s a great opportunity to get feedback on your startup from leading entrepreneurs across the country. This year the competition features a new B Corp Champions Challenge with $9K in prizes for sustainable ventures promoting social and environmental change. The track is supported by the Poole College Business Sustainability Collaborative and several NC B Corporation champions: Seventh Generation, The Redwoods Group, HQ Raleigh, Murphy’s Naturals, and The Loading Dock. To learn more about each track, how to enter the competition and have your questions answered, please visit ei.ncsu.edu/egames. There will be several eGames Info Sessions, including one on January 28th at 7 pm in Nelson Hall 3220.

Call for Applicants for the 2016 – 2018 Class of B Impact Fellows

B Lab and the community of Certified B Corporations are excited to open applications for the second year of the B Impact Fellows. The B Impact Fellows (formerly the B Corps Fellows) will spend two years immersed in the movement of people using business as a force for good, learning from leaders in the community of Certified B Corporations, and enabling all companies to measure what matters. Senior Fellows positions are available for MBA-level students, creating opportunities for mid-career professionals to start their path in the impact economy. Visit their website to learn more or to apply!

Looking to buy or sell an MBA textbook?

Or looking for the best deals on where to buy textbooks, according to your classmates? Check out this Google Doc for more information.

Academic Advising

Advising Reminders + Census Date

Attention all professional evening and professional online students with 25 or more credit hours – be on the lookout for an upcoming email from your advisor about completing your Plan of Work prior to fall registration, which opens in March. As a general reminder, all of our professional evening students should contact Deborah Wilkins (deborahadvising@ncsu.edu) for advising help and assistance, and all professional online students should contact Sarah Pickely (sarahadvising@ncsu.edu) for advising questions and help. We have also made many changes to our website over the past few months, so if you have general advising questions, it’s a great place to check for quick answers (specifically the Academic Advising and Policies and Procedures pages). The Academic Advising Syllabus is also a great reference point for information and important deadlines/dates. Don’t forget that Census Date – which is the last day to add a course with permission of the instructor & last day for tuition refunds due to dropping a course or changing from credit to audit – is January 20th! 

Career Management Center

Poole College of Management Career & Internship Fair – Spring 2016

The PCOM Career and Internship Fair will be held on Friday, February 5th from 10 – 3 pm at the McKimmon Center at NC State. A list of attending employers can be found here; note that each employer indicates what majors they are recruiting for, so be sure to look for MBA to see if the companies you are interested in are interested in you!

Professional Evening & Online MBA Job Search Bootcamp

When: Saturday, January 23rd, 8:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Where: RTP Campus, 1 Davis Drive
Register: Please RSVP on Joblink (events > workshops) by 5 p.m. January 21st (please cancel at least 24 hours in advance if you can no longer attend)

If you have now reached a point in your MBA career where you need advice on job hunting, interviewing, resume writing, or any other job hunt related help, this is the event for you! The CMC will discuss what services they provide to professional students as well as cover what to expect out of the corporate recruiting cycle. This event is exclusively for Professional Evening & Professional Online MBA students.

Student Clubs & Club Events

Join National Association of Women MBA’s – NAWMBA

The National Association of Women MBAs (NAWMBA) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to empowering female business professionals, to assisting women into leadership positions in business, and to enhancing the diversity of the workforce worldwide. NAWMBA focuses their programs in four key areas: Education and Professional Development, Mentorship, Networking, and Collaboration. All dues-paying MBA Student Association members are welcome to join NAWMBA for free using the coupon REGSTUMEM2016. For a detailed list of the benefits of joining NAWMBA, please visit the NAWMBA website for detailed membership benefits. If you are interested in joining NAWMBA and are not a member of MBASA, please contact your MBASA President, Gavin Hough, about membership. And save the date for the NAWMBA 2016 annual conference, which will be held on October 20 – 22nd in Stamford, CT!

Professional Events & Networking

Raleigh Chamber Young Professionals Network Event: Lessons From My Younger Self – January 21st, 7:30 – 9:30 a.m., PNC Arena

Wouldn’t it be great to have a time machine? To be able to travel back in time and impart the lessons you now know to your younger self? Life doesn’t work that way, but there are things others’ experiences can teach us. Hear from Tim Guiliani, president and CEO of the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce, as he shares his story and the lessons he’s learned along the way. If you are interested in attending, please RSVP to Claire Jefferies at csjeffer@ncsu.edu by January 15th. These are available for free on a first come, first served basis.

 Poole College of Management Wells Fargo Executive Series: Greg Sheu, ABB, January 27th, 4:30 p.m

Please join the Poole College of Management for a talk from Greg Sheu, President of the Americas Region at ABB on Wednesday, January 27th, 2016 from 4:30 – 5:30 p.m. Sheu will speak on the topic “Making the Workplace & Manufacturing Floor Smarter & More Efficient Through the Internet of Things.” This event is free, but registration is required to attend. For more information and to sign up, visit our website here.

The Physics of Football: February 8th, 6:30 p.m.

The Goodnight Scholars Program is excited to announce “The Goodnight Scholars Program Presents: Ainissa Ramirez” scheduled for Monday, February 8, 2016 at 6:30 p.m. in the Talley Student Union Stewart Theater. Dr. Ramirez, a science evangelist, co-author of “Newton’s Football,” and former associate professor at Yale University, will explore the science behind America’s Game in her presentation “The Physics of Football.” Combining her mastery of science with her love for the game, Dr. Ramirez will use empirical evidence and witty humor to address the complex evolution of modern football. Fans of the gridiron or scientific research will find Dr. Ramirez’s narrative compelling and entertaining, resulting in a new appreciation of the relationship between science and athletics. More information is available at goodnight.ncsu.edu.

Women for Success: The 2016 Lift Benefit, February 27th, 8 p.m.

Women for Success is excited to announce their third annual Lift Benefit, to be held on Saturday, February 27th starting at 8 p.m. at the Citrix rooftop in downtown Raleigh. In the last two years, the Lift Benefit attracted more than 400 attendees and raised over $21,000 to promote economic independence of disadvantaged women in the Triangle. Join Women for Success this year for a memorable evening! For more information and to register, visit this link.

Upcoming Dates to Remember:

January 18: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day – no classes + university holiday
January 20: Last day to add a course with instructor permission
January 21: Raleigh YPN Event: Lessons From My Younger Self
January 27: Wells Fargo Speaker Event: Greg Sheu of ABB
January 30: Workshop for International MBAs
January 30: NC State vs. Miami Basketball Game & Tailgate
February 5: PCOM Career & Internship Fair
February 8: The Physics of Football
February 27: Women for Success Lift Benefit
March 2: Drop/Revision Deadline – last day to drop a course/withdraw, without a W grade
March 7 – 11: Spring Break – no classes
March 25: Spring Holiday – no classes
April 26: Reading Day – no classes
April 27 – May 5: Final Exams
May 7: Spring Commencement

Meet a Jenkins MBA: The Weekly Spotlight 

Name: Nick Taylor, Professional MBA
Employer & Job Title: Locus Biosciences, Inc.; Co-founder and Lead Project Manager
Hometown: Rocky Mount, N.C.
Previous Degrees & Institutions: B.S. in Plant Biology and Science Education, NC State; Masters of Microbial Biotechnology, NC State

Q: Tell us something about yourself that we might be surprised to find out.
A: I am an amateur mycologist and love going mushroom hunting.

Q: What’s the most fun or enlightening experience you’ve had in the MBA program so far? 
A: The most fun and enlightening experience has come from the MBA 576/577 HiTEC program, where I worked with an NCSU PhD candidate who was developing a novel enzyme with huge life-saving and commercial potential. Working with my team and a HiTEC Executive-in-Residence, Locus Biosciences was conceived and founded to develop novel antibiotics to treat bacterial infections that are resistant to a wide range of current antibiotics.

Q: What’s the best piece of advice anyone has ever given you?
A: This advice wasn’t given directly to me, but Steve Jobs once said, “The minute that you understand that you can poke life and…something will pop out the other side, that you can change it, you can mold it. That’s maybe the most important thing. It’s to shake off this erroneous notion that life is there and you’re just gonna live in it, versus embrace it, change it, improve it, make your mark upon it.” I found that interview online a few years ago, and to be honest, it probably had something to do with returning to pursue the MMB/MBA.

Q: Suppose someone offered you a week’s vacation anywhere on Earth – all expenses paid, no cost to you. Where would you go, and what would you want to see/experience while you’re there? 
A: I think it would be great to go to as many 3 Michelin Star restaurants as possible in a week. It would probably be the only time I would ever Instagram my food.

Q: Speaking of food, what’s your favorite “comfort food,” and when do you like to make and enjoy it?
A: My comfort food is General Tso’s chicken. I don’t know how to make it, but I always enjoy it. No Michelin Stars needed.

Q: What’s your favorite song to cheer you up, get you pumped up, or ready to face the day?
A: Recently it has been “Long Live the Chief” by Jidenna. It’s a great track that reminds me, “You can either sink, swim, or be the captain.”