I was surprised at how flexible Yale SOM’s curriculum design is and at the ways it can be tailored to individual interests. The GBS program only has one compulsory course, Business and Government after Communism. We have a wide range of advanced management courses, ranging from qualitative ones like Digital Strategy to quantitative ones like Policy Modeling and Game Theory. I also had the time and bandwidth to take a statistics course and a public health course, which gave me the opportunity to step out of my comfort zone to explore new areas and expand my networks.
The most important career resources at SOM include your classmates. We held a lot of coffee chats where we shared our industries and work experiences. My classmates walked me through industry outlooks I wasn’t familiar with, and that helped me refine my own career ambitions.
Then the student clubs took it to the next level. In the Finance Club, I received technical training in modeling and in data analytics. Panel sharing sessions by the Greater China Club added more perspective. I eventually became focused on a career path in the banking industry. A lot of mock interviews with classmates followed, then a lot of real interviews with employers, and finally I secured my dream offer.
The Yale SOM community is supportive and energetic. There are numerous social events and clubs with many opportunities to make new friends. The faculty are approachable and always ready to answer questions, both academic and career. I’ve had the chance to serve as an admissions ambassador for the GBS program. I’ve been able to network with applicants and share my experiences, and I was happy to see some of them join the program.
