enrolling for a summer school - good or bad

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vinodhinir: Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts; Posts: 5; Joined: Fri Aug 05, 2011 9:45 am

by vinodhinir » Wed May 02, 2012 10:36 pm

Hi

I am planning to apply for Stanford and Harvard summer institute,although am not very sure if they will add any value to my resume.

A quick info on my background.

I have finished my undergraduate in engineering and have an experience of 6 years in the IT sector.
My college GPA is 8(out of 10).

I plan to do my MBA next year and I am currently preparing for my GMAT.
I am just thinking of applying for the summer courses mainly because of the following reasons.

1) Improve my resume as I fall under the very common cadre - "IT female from India". Will the summer course add a little value to my resume ?
2) Have an in-house experience of the creme-De-la-creme colleges as I intend to apply for these colleges after am done with my GMAT.
3)I am looking for a course that focuses on entrepreneurship or general management.There is one course SIGM that Stanford offers for general management.Will these courses be helpful when I pursue my MBA
4) The courses costs a little too much in my opinion.Is it worth taking this course by shelling out a considerable amount of money from my pocket?

Please pour in your suggestions.
Also Can anyone throw some light on any other specialized courses offered by any other college ? I would be happy to research before I zero in on one course.

TIA

Source: Beat The GMAT — Research MBA Programs | Wed May 02, 2012 10:36 pm

EricAllen: Legendary Member; Posts: 852; Joined: Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:08 pmFollowed by: 64 members; Thanked: 144 times

by EricAllen » Mon May 07, 2012 7:06 am

I actually participated in the Harvard Venture in Mgmt Summer program and it was definitely a pipeline to go to business school. It was a great experience for me and I would recommend it. I don't think a summer course in management or entrepreneurship is really going to provide you with any real edge outside of showing your interest in business, so take a course your interested in, but don't expect it to be a real differentiator. I generally recommend courses for people with less than stellar GMATs or limited quantitative backgrounds (you don't fall into either category), but feel free to pursue a course if is peaks your interests. If cost is a factor, find a course that is more cost effective.

I hope that helps.

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money9111: Legendary Member; Posts: 2109; Joined: Sun Apr 19, 2009 10:25 pmFollowed by: 79 members; Location: New Jersey; Thanked: 109 times; GMAT Score:640

by money9111 » Fri May 11, 2012 7:20 pm

I think the way to think about any type of summer class is not - "Will the summer course add a little value to my resume ? " but rather "Will I be able to apply things that I get out of the class in another type of setting that can add value." Look beyond the prospect of putting a name on your resume. If it was as easy as that then everyone else would simply do that too.

I should caveat that by saying that this does not pertain to quant courses where one is trying to build an alternative transcript.

Best of luck!

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