Work load

In BusinessWeek’s recent ranking of undergraduate business programs, they reported that Ross School students report that they put in more hours per week studying than students at other schools. I wouldn’t dispute this. Probably surprisingly, while I think that putting in the work is a good thing, I’m not going to hang my hat on this and say that this indicates that we have the best students around. While I do think that we have the best students around, I’m not sure that this indicates this. To me, it simply indicates to me how interested they are in their studies, in getting a good grade, and in making sure that their transcript looks like they want it to going into each recruiting season.

I think this willingness to work hard is a distinguishing characteristic of Ross students. The fact that it’s distinguishing manifests itself in two ways. First, first-year students (from other schools and, especially, other universities) find the transition to the demanded and expected workload at Ross very difficult indeed. Many students have been able to get good grades in other schools without putting in the hours required at Ross; they find this new work load unexpected, at the least, and, more likely, hard to comprehend. “I’ve always been able to get good grades while partying three to four nights a week!” We hear this every year and we have to break the news that it’s no longer possible to live that way consistently and get the grades they are used to getting.

The second way that this willingness to work hard manifests itself is in the success that our students have both in getting good jobs in demanding professions (consulting, financial analysts, et al.) and in making quick transitions to successful performance in those jobs because they are so used to working long, hard hours. BBA’s wildly successful job placement record is a matter of public record so I need not go into that here. Their success in those jobs can be both inferred from the fact that these companies continue to come back to Ross to recruit and supported by personal anecdotes that I have heard from students and recruiters about how well the transition of Ross students goes relative to students from other schools.

Let me close by stating that we’re certainly not all-work-and-no-play. Not like that at all. More like work-hard-and-play-hard. Just don’t come to Ross and think “I’m smart; I’ll do fine.” Well, as far as I can tell, almost everyone here is both smart and hard-working — and if they’re not, they’re really good at fooling a lot of people a lot of the time. It’s a challenging and fun place to be.