Good teachers and good classes

I like to consider myself a good teacher. (I'm not talking about how well I fulfill the whole job of professor; I'm simply commenting on my ability to teach a quality class.) I've won awards from students and from other professors that indicate that other people think so, too. That's all well and good.

Now that doesn't mean that I can't get better. It doesn't mean that the next class that I teach is going to be a rousing success. Of course, I hope that it will and expect that it might — but hope and expect are a long way from actually delivering such a course.

Lots of things have contributed to my teaching methods and style. Of course, I've worked with other professors whose work in the classroom I highly respect (Mike Gordon being a prime example). I've observed many great teachers over the years as a student (e.g., Fred Allvine and Eugene Comiskey at Georgia Tech) and as a professor (e.g., Dennis Severance and Judy Olson here at Michigan). I've also built up quite the library of books on teaching; here's a sample of my favorites:

• Making the most of college by Light
• What the best college teachers do by Bain
• Teaching at its best by Nilson
• Strategies for energizing large classes, edited by MacGregor et al.
• Leaving the lectern by McManus
• Classroom instruction that works by Marzano et al.
• Engaging large classes by Stanley & Porter
• Simulations and the future of learning by Aldrich
• E-learning and the science of instruction by Clark & Mayer
• Lessons from the cyberspace classroom by Palloff & Pratt

And that's a sample of the books; there are, of course, many other journal articles that I've read over the years that I've found valuable. These are books by researchers and practitioners (that is, researchers who study teaching and teachers) that tell me their take on what they found of interest when looking at the art and practice of teaching. All of these give me strategies that I might use in my future classes.

What does this have to do with you? Well, I would like to hear from students about their best experience in a classroom, and why it was so great. It can be about a full-semester experience and how it all came together on a specific day in just the right way; it can be about a specific day in one particular class that had a great impact on you — whatever. What I'm looking for are stories, especially from Michigan and Ross students, about their favorite experiences in specific classes. Go ahead and name names if you are going to do so in a positive light. I don't know of any professor that wouldn't love to hear that he/she did a great job.

And why do I care? Two reasons. First, in my current job as BBA Program Director I get to hear about all of the problems. What I'd like to do is have a series of positive examples that I can relay both to prospective students and to current faculty who are looking for inspiration. Second, I am currently working through the process of designing a couple of new classes. I want to hear about the approaches used by professors that students find interesting and not just those approaches that other academics find intriguing.

So, if you would take a few minutes, what I'd like you to do is leave a comment for this post that describes the project, in-class activity, assignment, or other aspect related to a class that you really enjoyed or found valuable. There's no deadline — so even if you're reading this years from now, please go ahead and post — but, on the other hand, the sooner you post your comment, the sooner I can take advantage of this information. Thanks!

Grades, college & life

I just had a chat with a student that reminded me of where many of you are mentally and emotionally in your journey through this school and through your life. And I thought I'd just pass on a few of the main points of this conversation to you.

Grades are important. They are a major component of the decision of admissions committees if you should ever decide to go to graduate school. They are also a major component of the weeding-out process for initial interviews for certain careers. Getting good grades is certainly better than getting bad grades. I got good grades and they certainly helped me in my academic career.

Grades are not important in many ways. They should not determine your self-worth. They are not who you are. They also should not be the reason that you try hard in school. You should possibly end up with good grades as a by-product of working hard in a class that you enjoy and that is important to you for some reason. Not the other way around.

You shouldn't work hard so that you get good grades; you should work hard (because you like something) and then possibly get good grades. This is a real important point. This is one of those "If I had only known then what I know now" things that adults say. Very few college kids understand this. Some of you never will. Some of you will get it during your mid-life crisis. And a few lucky ones get it while you're in college. I didn't get it until sometime in my late 30s.

Another point to be taken out of this: think of how "enjoyment" or "fun" or "goodness" fits into this whole equation. It should be related to the content of the class and how well the class is taught; it should not have anything to do with your grade. I've heard someone say "I didn't get a good grade in that class. I shouldn't have taken it." What?!? If you're taking a class because of a grade, or if a grade has something to do with how you value a class, then you're messed up.

You should take a class because you're interested in the topic. You work hard and try to learn the material. Note that I didn't say "You work hard and try to do well in the class." Wrong-o! You work hard to try to learn the material; as a result of learning the material, you then have a better chance of performing well on projects (and assignments and exams) and, thus, have a better chance of getting a good grade.

This isn't just a semantic trick or some philosophical mumbo-jumbo. It has to do with success. Take a moment to understand this chain of relationships: like topic —> try harder —> learn material better —> perform better —> better chance at good grade. If this doesn't seem right, apply the same concepts to playing a sport: like sport —> try harder —> learn skills better —> perform better —> better chance of winning. Now that makes sense, doesn't it? I'm just applying the same process to school work, that's all.

Still, when applied to school, this may sound hopelessly naive to you. You're probably thinking something like this:

"You don't take classes because you like them. Who likes their classes? You take them just to get through them. You take them to get good grades. And, at the end, if you're lucky, you get a good job because of them."

Well, I'm telling you right now that you might think this, but you would be wrong. The grade should not be the focus of your efforts; the process (the class and the material) should be the focus. Everything else will then flow naturally from that — including good grades on classes that you like and jobs that are related to this material that you like. Again, this is just like sports. Winning should not be the focus of your efforts; performing up to your capabilities should be your focus. If you do so, then winning will come. You can't (or, at least, shouldn't) measure your performance by whether you won or you lost — you should look at whether you prepared correctly to give yourself the best chance to perform well. If you did that, then you have to accept the outcome. As Bill Parcells says, "You are what you are."

Again, the process — in this case, the class and the assignments — should be the focus of your efforts. This statement might not make any sense to you but it's been a guiding statement in my life (since my life started making some sense, anyway). Don't focus on the end; focus on the journey. Focus on the process of learning. Focus on enjoying the class as you sit in it. Focus on the new topics that you encounter. Focus on the challenges that you come across. Focus on how you can apply what you learn to your life. And so on. In our life, all we have is what we do and who we come in contact with. You should focus on getting the most out of both of these.

If you're focusing on the process, you will become more engaged with the material. Having become more engaged, you will learn it better ... and off you go (as we discussed above).

I'm not encouraging you to not get good grades. I'm saying that I think you should focus on the learning process and let the grades take care of themself. I'm encouraging you to think about who you are, how you choose classes, how you think about your classes, and why you're in school. You'll be better for it because you'll learn more and enjoy your time in school more. And as a side effect, you'll also end up enjoying your life after school more. And I think that we can all agree that's a good thing.

Our BBA Program Office staff, and coming changes

The BBA Program Office is going to be hiring another BBA Student Advisor (like Katie's position that we hired for last year). This is the last piece of the BBA Program Office puzzle that Dean Bob Dolan and I agreed to two years ago when I started in my role as BBA Program Director. This person will allow us to add more outreach and more activities that involve the BBAs; however, it is also a necessary hire given that we will have about 1100 BBAs to advise next year instead of 720. This is a fantastic commitment by the Dean to the BBAs, and every future student will benefit from it.

This person will report to Rob Koonce (as Katie McCartney does) in his role as coordinator of all things related to a BBA's academic life once he or she is here — though, of course, not the stuff related to enforcement and interpretation of rules that Academic Services does (under Evonne Plantinga's steadying hand) — as opposed to their extra-curricular life stuff that Student Life (the group under Amy Cell's direction) handles. Erika Busch will continue to report to me, continuing in her role as liaison to the rest of the school, coordinator of BBA projects and events, and coordinator of communications and outreach for our department.

So, what does this mean to you?

• You should go to Student Life if you have any questions related to extracurricular activities.
• You should go to Academic Services if you have questions related to your degree audit, class credit issues, etc.
• You should come to Student Advisors in the BBA Program Office if you have questions about what classes to take or your program of study. You should also come to us if you don't know where else to go. We're real good at pointing you in the proper direction, in referring you to other departments in the Business School and in other parts of the University.

College students are still maturing

As described in a news release from Darthmouth University:

Two Dartmouth researchers are one step closer to defining exactly when human maturity sets in. In a study aimed at identifying how and when a person's brain reaches adulthood, the scientists have learned that, anatomically, significant changes in brain structure continue after age 18. ... The results indicate that significant changes took place in the brains of these individuals. The changes were localized to regions of the brain known to integrate emotion and cognition. Specifically, these are areas that take information from our current body state and apply it for use in navigating the world. ... "The brain of an 18-year-old college freshman is still far from resembling the brain of someone in their mid-twenties," says Bennett. "When do we reach adulthood? It might be much later than we traditionally think."

I'm bringing this to your attention because I sense a reluctance among students to come forward and ask for help from people who should be able to help them. Students should realize that asking for help from people who are there to help them is perceived as a sign of particular maturity and confidence and not as a sign of weakness and ignorance.

I fit into the pattern identified by the researchers. I know that I wasn't even an approximation of who I am now until I was in my early 30s. While I am still nowhere close to being able to keep my emotions close to the vest, I am now much better at being able to control my emotions and not allow them to rule my minute-to-minute activities. Even now, as a 43-year-old, I know that I think about relationships and situations much differently than I did when I was 30, let alone 20.

So, this is an admonishment to college students based not on the fact that I'm an old fart — though I'm getting there — but on actual science: Your professors, your parents, your advisors — all these people might actually be able to help you. Many of them actually think about things in a more advanced and sophisticated way than you do. We're not just dense; we see things and think about things in a different way, as being more interconnected and complicated. Going to your peers some times, many times, will not be enough because they are at the same stage of development. It's not that we're smarter than you; it's that we've had experiences that have shaped our brain (and, thus, our thinking) in a way that will happen to you but hasn't happened yet. It's not that you won't be able to think as an adult; you simply might not be physiologically able to do so at this stage of your development. We won't always give the right advice — we're not perfect — but we should at least be able to give you a different, and valuable, point of view.

Summer internships

It's that time of year — internship season. Looking over possible companies, bidding for interviews, preparing for the interviews, hoping for callbacks, preparing for a callback, the torture of that process, waiting for an offer, and — you can only hope — the strain of choosing among several good offers. This essay is, generally, not applicable to students who have to — get to! — go through this last step. I'm addressing this essay primarily to those students who are worried about their internship.

Let me get this out of the way right now: If you work this summer in any capacity, you have the opportunity to impress a future employer. Suppose that you want to work for some random industry (let's call it "Investment Banking") but you only get an internship in another industry (let's call it "not Investment Banking"). Your life is not over. Your career path is not set. You have not been proven a loser. You do not have to change your life and career goals. This is a wonderful opportunity; it is not punishment.

Let's look at the positives that might come from getting an internship — any internship. You will gain lots of transferrable skills. These are actually the skills that future employers are most interested in. You will gain experience working with a variety of people, not just other Ross Business School students. They might have, heaven forbid, grey hair, but they might actually treat you like a real human being after working with you for a while.

You will also gain experience getting things done in an organization. This is different than getting things done at school. You will have incomplete information and a less clear path to the information you do need. You will learn when to ask for help, when to ask for information, and when to just buckle down and get it done.

You will learn about organizational life. This is very different from academic life. You will learn to work with many bosses and many more co-workers, all with very different experiences and expectations than what you've come in contact with at school. You will learn to socialize, enough so that you have a network of friends but not so much that it gets in the way of getting your work accomplished. You won't have homework, but you might be expected to work until late at night. But other nights you will not have any work to do. No homework at all. You will just be able to explore a city, read a book that you actually want to read, go to a movie, rent a DVD — whatever! It's a very different feeling than always having homework hovering over your head.

You will learn about how a big company (or a small company) works. Either one would be useful. And they are quite different than each other, and quite different than how a university works.

You also might learn what you do not like to do — even if you actually did think you would like it going into the internship. This is a very valuable lesson. This will help you eliminate a bunch of companies that you might otherwise want to interview with. And do not forget that what you do not like now is not necessarily what you will not like in the future. Surprisingly enough, when you are 30 you will be different than you are now. (At least I hope so.)

You will make contacts that you will be able to use in the future. These contacts might be for future job recommendations. This person might be someone whom you hope will hire you at some point. And do not forget that these people can change jobs, too. Just because you wouldn't want to work in this particular company in the future, this does not mean that you would not have the opportunity to work for this person at another company. Every day that you are at your internship is an interview for some future position. You'll never know when you're meeting a person for the first time that might end up hiring you, or having the possibility of hiring you, in the future.

Finally, it is actually often easier to convert a "non-big-company" experience in which you get real responsibility into great talking points for companies in the fall (during your interviews for full-time jobs) than it is to convert the experiences you might get as an intern at a large company. Remember that it's not the company that counts, and it's not the position that counts, it's what you do in that position at that company — no matter what the position or company. (Thank to Al Cotrone for bringing this last point to my attention.)

So, take that internship. Keep a positive attitude. Work hard. Set goals. Get things done. Make yourself valuable. And have a good time.

Extracurricular participation for BBAs

The Ross School of Business BBA student certainly has a lot of clubs that he or she (I'll say "she" from now on) might participate in. The questions are:

• Why participate in the clubs?
• What clubs to participate in?
• How to participate in those clubs?

A student might have many reasons for participating in clubs — giving back to the community, strengthening connections with a culture, finding social activities, playing sports, or what not — but companies make important implications from looking at a student's set of extracurricular activities.

With this set of activities, a student sends a strong signal about her ability to manage her time, her ability to work in a group, and her ability and willingness to lead a group. A student should generally not have a long list of extracurriculars at any one time because that indicates that she is not able to make choices and she is probably limiting her ability to make significant contributions to those clubs. Even if the company isn't hiring in a position that seems like a leadership position, with most every hire it is looking for a person who might soon be able to handle small, informal leadership positions (running a subcommittee or group) and then, one day, be able to take on more significant, formal leadership positions (manager, director).

So, to answer the above questions: Participate in clubs for any of the above reasons; participate in the clubs that you are interested the most in; and work to accomplish things within the context and structure of the club. (I've written on this topic in a previous post.)

BBA Program Office goings-on

There is a lot going on in the BBA Program Office that you might not be aware of so I thought I'd give you a quick update.

Staff

I now have three people on my staff:

• Erika Busch: in charge of communications, coordination with the rest of the School and University, and on-going projects, among other things,
• Rob Koonce: in charge of academic advising, the Mastery Project, community outreach, among other things, and
• Katie McCartney: advisor to BBAs on academic and undergraduate life.

Workshops

Since the most recent workshops on going to law school (that the Law School put on for us) and living in New York City (that Katie and Tony Tsai put on) were so successful, we're looking into related workshops: living in Chicago, pursuing an MBA, pursuing a PhD, etc. Let us know — by coming by and chatting with Rob, Katie, or myself — if you have any particular requests that you think a good number of students might be interested in.

Visiting classes

Rob & and Katie are continuing to visit classes so that they might be in a better position to talk about them.

Career Guides

We are nearing completion on our career guides. These will provide students with a recommended list of classes for particular careers. We will publish these on our Web site for easy reference.

BBA Newsletter

Erika has been, and will continue to, publish the BBA Newsletter every two weeks. If you've been missing it, this email attempts to highlight events and resources that are, or should be, of particular interest to BBAs.

Orientation

We're working on BBA Orientation for next year. We've taken a long, hard look at the suggestions you made at the most recent Orientation and have incorporated many changes into our planning for next year's programming. Just FYI, we weren't too surprised by most of your comments. We saw the same problems that you saw. More on this in a later post.

Problem resolution

I've been working with students to help them resolve issues they had with professors last semester.

Washington Campus

We've been working with Professor Siedel to put on the Washington Campus program that will have its inaugural session this May.

Study Breaks

We're arranging to have a BBA Study Break again this semester. It was quite a success last semester in its first offering.

Printing problems

We've been talking with the Dean's office about the printing problems students have been having. We're getting close to resolution, I believe.

I just wanted to make sure that you know that we've been working hard for you this year — even if you haven't been aware of it! I have a fantastic staff, and and they make up a fantastic resource for you. I hope you can make the time to get to know them.

Changing businesses

A company does business long enough, and it probably thinks it's safe. Well, let's see:

• As of January 27, 2006, Western Union is no longer delivering telegrams.
• No matter how good it actually is (and no matter how many times I read it as a kid — yes, read it!), the Encyclopedia Britannica isn't exactly raking in the money any more, is it?
• GM, Ford. That's all I'm going to say.
• Sears and/or K-Mart.

I'm sure that there are a lot more, but these came immediately to mind.

To anyone who is of a certain age, the above list is shocking. If I had been told that those companies would be in trouble in their "core" businesses, I would have had trouble believing it.

The lesson: Don't ever be satisfied. Don't get comfortable. Keep working. Keep improving.

Having trouble with a professor

Periodically, students come to me describing some level of difficulty they are having with a professor (for whatever reason). Usually, by the time it gets to me, it's late in the term, it's difficult to address, and the solution is (frequently) not going to benefit the student much. So, let's now examine the process you might follow if you have trouble with a professor:

1. Talk to the professor directly. Be constructive. Have a conversation; don't accuse. Speak, listen, respond, and repeat. Work on determining if there has been a misunderstanding and clarify it. Figure out in this conversation what you can actively do to help the situation improve. Be clear about what you would like the professor to do to help the situation improve.
2. If the above process didn't seem to help, and follow-up meetings with the professor don't seem to be helping, then you should — early in this communication process — talk with a BBA Student Advisor (Rob or Katie). They should be able to provide an experienced viewpoint and will be able to give you advice on what next steps you should take.
3. Generally, if the above process fails to lead to a satisfactory conclusion, you should contact the professor's area chair. I would recommend that you stay in contact with an advisor leading up to this meeting. The advisor might also recommend that you come talk with me to get my take on things.

Why do I recommend that you talk with an area chair instead of with me when you're looking for further resolution? Because the professor's area chair is the person in charge both of setting the professor's teaching responsibilities and reviewing the professor's performance each year. In my role, I am not involved in supervising the professor in any way. I certainly can provide one professor's view of a situation (after all, I am a professor), but I am more like a liaison among students, faculty, area chair, and the rest of the Dean's Office than someone who has some power to yield in this situation.

Generally, I don't like to worry about these issues too much, and I generally don't have to. We have a very good faculty here at the Ross School and, on the whole, the faculty wants classes to go well for all concerned. Given the large population that we have, this isn't always going to be the case; however, following the above process should generally lead students and faculty to better conclusions than otherwise would be available.

Do what you love

Paul Graham has written a great essay "How to do what you love". What he says in this essay resonates quite directly with what I have told BBAs for many years but, of course, he says it better than I ever did. I highly encourage any Ross BBA to read this essay as you embark on your career.

The main point of this essay is that you should try to find a job that you enjoy because you will not only enjoy it, but you will do better at it. One of his main points is that you shouldn't decide on your career too soon. He writes about a friend who is a doctor but doesn't like her job:

How did she get into this fix? In high school she already wanted to be a doctor. And she is so ambitious and determined that she overcame every obstacle along the way --- including, unfortunately, not liking it. ... Now she has a life chosen for her by a high school kid.

This leads him to wisely recommend that it's better to "seek jobs that let you do many different things, so you can learn faster what various kinds of work are like."

If you are thinking about choosing a career, you should read this essay.

Helping to define a new class

Next winter semester I will be teaching an introduction to business class to freshmen and sophomores. This will be a very large class – 3 sections of up to 400 students each.

I am asking for a favor from you. Seniors especially. I want you to think about what you know now, what you knew then, and what I might be able to teach to underclassmen (and women).

I have created a wiki for this course at on my server. A wiki is a Web site that anyone who visits can contribute to. This site, and the course it reflects, is nowhere near being done. I'm still changing many things about it but I am narrowing in on a specific list of topics for the lectures. There is a page for the list of lectures. Each one of the class days is a link. Think about what you might want to be covered on any one of those days. Any time over the next month or so, contribute to the appropriate page. Simply add comments at the bottom of the page. I promise to thoughtfully consider any idea that you add.

When was the last time that you were asked to design a class? I bet the answer to that is "never." I hope you contribute, and reward the faith that I have in all of you. Please be sure to sign your name on the contribution so that I know who to go to if I have some follow-up questions. Thanks.

Goings-on in the BBA Program Office

It's been a while since I've given you any updates about what we're doing in the office so I thought I'd give you an update.

• Rob Koonce, the BBA Student Advisor, is fully engaged with the University, the School, and students. If you have any questions about what classes to take, or if you have any ideas about how to improve the BBA Program, come by and talk with Rob. He's a real dynamic guy, and cares a lot for students. Come by and chat sometime.
• We've been talking with LS&A Honors, the Residential College, the Comprehensive Studies Program, Office of Undergraduate Admissions, LS&A Advising — pretty much anyone who has anything to do with freshmen at the University.
• Erika Busch, the BBA Program Associate (she helps me coordinate BBA-related activities with the rest of the University), is coordinating the updating of the BBA Web site. We're trying to create a place for people to go for information about the BBA Program, whether or not they are high school students, freshmen, sophomores, BBAs, or other UM students.
• Erika and I are working on next year's orientation. We've gone through all — and, yes, I mean all — of the evaluations from last year's orientation. (Thank you very much!) We're probably going to cut it down to 1 day. We're going to make sure that we include interaction with your sections, interaction with ambassadors, and a keynote speaker. We're also going to be sure that Amy Cell, Director of Student Life, will be on the agenda so that students might have a better idea of ways that they can, and should, get involved with activities in the business school.
• Rob is also working on developing a study and quantitative skills program for freshmen and sophomores. We'll have a full announcement about this soon.

And, finally, we're beginning to plan for the transition to the new building. We still don't know when it's going to happen, but it's going to happen, so we've got to start thinking about all of the things that need to be done. More on this later.

So, in general, we're staying busy, trying to make the BBA Program better for you and future students. Any time that you think of something that we might want to know please come by and speak with either Rob, Erika, or me.

Finding old course evaluations

Before walking into a course for the first day, you might find it interesting to look at a summary of evaluations this professor has received. If you're a student at the Ross School, you can find this information at this Web site.

Evaluate professors fairly, consistently, and intelligently

It's getting to be that time of year again: course evaluations. (I have written on this topic before.) Course evaluations are very important to faculty, especially assistant professors and visiting and adjunct professors. For assistant professors, course evaluations are the major metric that goes into determining if a professor's teaching is adequate. For a visiting and adjunct professor, course evaluations are the major determinant of whether or not the faculty member has a chance at receiving another employment contract.

While the importance of course evaluations are of less formal importance to associate and full professors (who have tenure), they still tell the faculty how the semester went and provide guidance for ways to improve the course. This information is also used by the area chair to determine teaching schedules and by the Dean's office in doling out pay raises.

In any case students should take the responsibility of evaluating professors seriously. Make an effort to attend class on the day that evaluations are given out. This is as true for students who have gone to every class period as it is for students who stopped attending class a long time ago. If you have not been attending the class because you didn't value the way the professor spent the class time, then you should definitely go to class in order to fill out a course evaluation. If you don't go to class and fill out an evaluation, then you might as well be giving the professor your full endorsement.

Every year several courses get much higher evaluations than they should get because so few students attend class. I have seen professors get a 4.5 in a course --- a pretty good evaluation --- but only 15 of 50 students have filled out the evaluations. This isn't a reliable sample, but it's the only one we have to go on, so we have to use it. It would be interesting to know how those 35 students who didn't fill out the evaluations would have scored the professor, but students, faculty, and the administration will never know.

If you think the professor did a very good job promoting learning during the semester, then give him or her a 5. If the professor was average, a 4 is appropriate. (Remember, an evaluation of 4.2 or above is generally considered acceptable by the faculty when reviewing teaching performance.) If the professor should have been better (for example, if he or she frequently got in the way of the learning process and didn't seem to attempt to improve), then a 3 or lower is appropriate (and disappointing to the faculty member, and a strong signal to the School).

You should not evaluate professors punitively. You should evaluate them all on the same basis, and you should complete the process thoughtfully. The evaluation is important to the faculty member; it is important to the School; and it is important to future students.

Sharing documents for group projects

Group projects are a way life here at Ross. Computers are also deeply embedded in our lives. Combine these two facts together, and you come to realize that students need the tools to share documents that they create in the completion of their group projects.

The University has made two quite powerful tools available to students to support this activity:

• IFS: This is the long-standing, well-established --- if not well known --- way that the University has supported file sharing among students. It works very well. I've used it for years.
• CTools: This is new this year. CTools allows every student to create a Web site for every group project that is similar to those you see in CTools for a course.
  1. Click on Workspace setup
  2. Click on "New"
  3. Select "Project Website" and then click on the "Continue" button
  4. Fill in the descriptive information on the next page, and then click on the "Continue" button
  5. Select whichever tools you want to use. Be sure to select "Resources" if you want to be able to share files within your group
  6. Publish the site
  7. Click on the Tab with the site name
  8. Click on "Site info" on the left
  9. Click on the "Edit access" button
  10. Click on "Add participant"
      1. Put the uniqname of each member of your group in the "Username" textbox
      2. Select the button "Assign all participants to the same role"
      3. Click on the "Continue" button
  11. Assign each group member the "Member" role
  12. Notify each participant (or not)
  13. Click on the "Finish" button
  This site is now available for sharing files among just these group members.

Of course, these tools are not perfect. However, they go a long way to providing the tools that can make group projects and the associated file handling much better.

A "concentration" at Ross

The Ross School of Business does not have majors. Your diploma will say "Bachelor of Business Administration" but it won't say "Finance major" or anything like that. Just "BBA". But for many, many purposes (e.g., resumes) students like to label themselves, to state what it is that they're interested in. At times like these, the lack of a major can be problematic.

So, what's a student to do?

Essentially it comes down to a self-directed course of study, and you let the market determine the outcome. If you want to call yourself a finance concentrator, but you only take one finance class, you can still say that you have a finance concentration. But during interviews companies will find out that you haven't taken enough finance classes and you won't get any finance job offers.

So, you can call yourself whatever you want with whatever number of classes you want, but you should back it up with the appropriate set of classes.

And just what is appropriate? In different areas, a different number of courses seems to be needed for a concentration. It's probably 2 or 3 courses after the required course(s) in an area; however, this is just a rough rule of thumb.

In my time as BBA Director I haven't been able to find any official or even unofficial documentation on this very subject. Since I think it would be useful for students to have some direction in this matter, I have been gathering information from faculty and as many sources as I can find. Over the next few months I will be gathering information from seniors to help this process along. We'll be publishing this information in a new BBA Web page at some point.

BBA Student Advisor

I am very excited to announce that the School has hired its very first Student Advisor, Robert Koonce. Robert started Monday, November 29.

Who he is

Robert comes to us with a wealth of experience:

• Dept of Education (Washington, DC), Office of Vocational and Adult Education
• Assoc Athletics Director of Academic Support and Career Development, University of Maryland -- College Park
• Asst Athletics Director of Student Services, Tulane University
• Asst Athletics Director of Academic Services and Recruitment, University of Pennsylvania
• Assistant Academic Advisor, University of Michigan
• Research Associate, Office of the VP for University Relations, University of Michigan

Robert also has an MA and PhD/ABD in Higher Education Administration from the UM School of Education.

The above skims the top of Robert's qualifications. He's also brings a dynamic presence, one that I'm sure will help the School reach out to a broader audience, including younger students, parents, and the rest of the UM community. Robert is already well-connected in the University, including Undergraduate Admissions, Student Affairs, Engineering, the Athletic campus, and many others.

Please help me in making him feel welcome.

What the position is

The purpose of the BBA Student Advisor position is to be a resource for students and potential students who have questions, concerns, or issues about academics at the Ross School of Business. Typical questions for the advisor from current BBAs would be the following:

• I'm thinking about going into corporate finance (or whatever you say). What courses should I take this semester?
• I'm a marketing major (or whatever). Are there any particular courses in other departments that I should think about taking?

The advisor is also going to be a resource for high school students and LS&A students who are interested in getting in to the Ross School.

What's the timing of all this

Robert will be getting familiar with the School and University during December. Starting in December he will be available for counseling. I'll have an announcement at the beginning of the next semester reminding everyone of this.

Appropriate classes for sophomores

Recently a student asked me what classes he should take in the Winter semester of his sophomore year. He already has taken Acc272 and he is wondering whether or not he should take one of the core courses (perhaps marketing or finance).

My answer: I don't think he should take them early. He should take the core courses with his cohort next year. They will provide a good support network (both for helping and commisserating) in these courses. So, what should he take?

• English: 225 (Argumentative writing) or 229 (Technical writing). Both of these courses would be great preparation for the business school and for work, generally.
• Stats: 350 (Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis). The business curriculum is analytically challenging. This course prepares you well for the analytical work you'll be expected to do in the business school. You should know that you will be required to take a statistics class in the Ross School; however, if you feel weak in this area, this course can provide you a good leg up on what you will need to do while you are at Ross.
• Econ: Any of the 300-level econ courses (if you have already taken both 101 and 102) provide very nice preparation and education in an area that is the foundation of the study of business.

Are there other courses that you might take that would be good courses? Sure there are. These are just ones that come most quickly to mind.

Other criteria that you should use when deciding what courses to take are the following:

• Take what you are interested in! If you're interested in the movie industry, take a course over there. If you're interested in sports marketing, take a course related to that. But, by all means, think about what you want to do with your life or, assuming you do not know what that might be, what you are interested in on a day-to-day basis.
• If you can, come into the business school with enough credits so that you can take just four classes in your first semester in the business school. This can make all the difference in the world in your experience --- i.e., it can markedly reduce your anxiety level.

That's just about it. Take what you want to; don't rush to get in to the business school; and take good classes that train you to think, write, and analyze. What bad can come of that?

Three great opportunities

One of the key phrases used in marketing the Ross School of Business is "co-creation". This has all the markings of an empty marketing phrase, and I don't blame you for thinking that it is. But it's not, at least in my thinking. This term refers to the ability for Michigan students to make their educational experience what they want to make it, and to contribute to the formation of that experience. We have tons of options for students. One graduate of the School can have a very different set of experiences than another graduate, both inside the classroom and outside.

I have been made aware of several great opportunities for BBAs recently. You should take a look at each one and see if one is right for you.

Studies in Washington

I am currently working with two separate organizations about setting up programs in which students take some classes in Washington, DC. One of them involves one week in the summer and the other involves a semester of working and studying in DC. There will be more later, but the Michigan in Washington Program is having an informational session on Thursday, November 11 from 4:30 until 5:30 in the Eldersveld Room on the 5th floor of Haven Hall (in the PoliSci department).

Domestic Corps

Another opportunity is with the Domestic Corps. As it says in their Web site:

We are a fellowship program providing MBA and BBA students with challenging, action-based internship opportunities with nonprofits serving economically distressed, culturally diverse communities throughout the United States.

The Domestic Corps' Annual Report features Joe Ament's (BBA 2005) story about his assignment in New York City. The story on pages 4-5 is by James DeVaney, BBA 2001. This program is one that many students have found to be fulfilling. You should check it out yourself.

Solar Car

The Michigan Solar Car Project is something that you can get involved with during the year. Michael Brackney, BBA 2006, is the Project Manager for the Solar Car this year. He is always looking for more quality people to contribute to his team. This opportunity, like the ones above, provide another way to distinguish yourself from the crowd.

While you're here at Michigan, I hope you find a way to make yourself stand out in a positive, fulfilling way.

A great benefit

One of the really fantastic things about my job is that I come in contact with some really great young people. One of them is Chris Stallman, a junior-year BBA. I met him the first week or so of the school year, and got to know him better when we had lunch. If I could trade on inside information without getting in trouble, I'd invest in Chris (and several other students every year). I'd make money without a worry.

He's had dozens, if not hundreds, of articles and stories done about him because of the Web site he started while in high school. Take a look at the latest article.