Funny question about personal conduct at business school

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bpolley00: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 192; Joined: Wed Jul 11, 2012 5:04 pmFollowed by: 5 members; Thanked: 20 times; GMAT Score:650

by bpolley00 » Sun Jan 20, 2013 3:59 pm

Hey everyone, here is a goofy question. Are you allowed to make jokes and such in class if it is relevant to the topic? I have a goofy personality and tend to make relevant, good spirited jokes in class that; thus far, all of my professors and classmates usually enjoy. Is this ok conduct as long as I am still getting A's in Graduate school and it is pertinent to the subject or is everything 125% utterly serious, no fun allowed, and I will be immediately ostracized as soon as they realized who they accidentally just let in? Because quite frankly, some of the topics they still teach in school such as Modern Portfolio Theory and the postulates to the Ricardian trade model etc. are kind of comical. All the Finance/ Econ buffs out there should know what I am talking about. GOD FORBID A guy have a sense of humor. Do you think I should tone this down a bit before I go? Anyways, Thanks in advance for the responses, as obviously considering I have never been to graduate school I don't know 100% what to expect yet. Thanks Guys!

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Source: Beat The GMAT — MBA Student Life | Sun Jan 20, 2013 3:59 pm

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Tommy Wallach: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 451; Joined: Thu Jan 21, 2010 11:58 amFollowed by: 120 members; Location: New York City; Thanked: 188 times; GMAT Score:770

by Tommy Wallach » Sun Jan 20, 2013 5:23 pm

Hey Bpolley,

A sense of humor is an asset anywhere you go, and business school is not any more uptight than any other graduate school experience for a relatively serious subject (medicine, law, business, science, math). That being said, if you're the type that's constantly interrupting in order to make jokes, that'll probably get on people's nerves. But I don't imagine this in any way specific to business school. : )

-t

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bpolley00: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 192; Joined: Wed Jul 11, 2012 5:04 pmFollowed by: 5 members; Thanked: 20 times; GMAT Score:650

by bpolley00 » Sun Jan 20, 2013 8:25 pm

Tommy,

Of course my jokes don't interrupt class and are, hopefully, pertinent to the discussion at hand. Thanks for the reassurance, perhaps it will be one of those things where you have to get a feel for the culture at the specific school. I have just found, from prior experience, that if you think something is easy and have fun with it then it will tend to be more enjoyable. Some people may find that I may come off as "unprofessional" at times, but I feel that if my work speaks for itself then having the personality that doesn't take it too seriously is kind of funny. But I guess that is just me. It is nice to hear an insider's opinion as, like I said, I have obviously not been to graduate school yet. Your advice and time are always appreciate Tommy.

Sincerely,

Brian

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brianlange77: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 417; Joined: Mon Jan 07, 2013 8:49 pmFollowed by: 93 members; Location: Chapel Hill, NC; Thanked: 132 times; GMAT Score:750

by brianlange77 » Sun Jan 20, 2013 8:46 pm

bpolley00 wrote:Tommy,

Of course my jokes don't interrupt class and are, hopefully, pertinent to the discussion at hand. Thanks for the reassurance, perhaps it will be one of those things where you have to get a feel for the culture at the specific school. I have just found, from prior experience, that if you think something is easy and have fun with it then it will tend to be more enjoyable. Some people may find that I may come off as "unprofessional" at times, but I feel that if my work speaks for itself then having the personality that doesn't take it too seriously is kind of funny. But I guess that is just me. It is nice to hear an insider's opinion as, like I said, I have obviously not been to graduate school yet. Your advice and time are always appreciate Tommy.

Sincerely,

Brian

B -- Tommy's on-point here, but, like many other places in life, there's always a spectrum. Glossy brochures only do so much -- as much as you can, try to pound some pavement at your most targeted schools. Each has a unique feel and you might find that might 'reorient' your list a bit.

BTW -- B-school culture is fundamentally a bit different than med/law school. Why? Because 95+% of people at b-school have actually gone out and earned a paycheck and have some grasp for life in real world. Med/Law school a bit different, b/c <5% can say the same. (I'm making the numbers up, but you get the point.)

-Brian

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Michael@VeritasPrep: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 380; Joined: Wed Aug 19, 2015 9:49 amFollowed by: 7 members; Thanked: 13 times

by Michael@VeritasPrep » Sat Oct 24, 2015 4:50 pm

Yea, you should definitely be careful with your sense of humor. Especially in a classroom environment, it can be very disrupting if someone is constantly cracking jokes. Even worse, what if they are not funny? In business school, much of your grade is based on positive classroom contributions. A sense of humor can be your greatest asset or your biggest enemy. It's all in how you deploy it. My suggestion, do it sparingly.

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brianlange77: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 417; Joined: Mon Jan 07, 2013 8:49 pmFollowed by: 93 members; Location: Chapel Hill, NC; Thanked: 132 times; GMAT Score:750

by brianlange77 » Sat Nov 07, 2015 5:56 pm

Michael@VeritasPrep wrote:Yea, you should definitely be careful with your sense of humor. Especially in a classroom environment, it can be very disrupting if someone is constantly cracking jokes. Even worse, what if they are not funny? In business school, much of your grade is based on positive classroom contributions. A sense of humor can be your greatest asset or your biggest enemy. It's all in how you deploy it. My suggestion, do it sparingly.

I'll slightly disagree here -- IMHO, I think much of b-school is about learning who you want to be as a person / individual contributor / business leader in your future. I couldn't tell you one 'grade' I got in b-school (Duke) and I don't think my career is any worse off for it.

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Michael@VeritasPrep: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 380; Joined: Wed Aug 19, 2015 9:49 amFollowed by: 7 members; Thanked: 13 times

by Michael@VeritasPrep » Sat Nov 14, 2015 12:26 pm

Yes, you can definitely learn about who you are and who you want to be as a leader. But, especially if you want to lead teams, you need to be respectful of your teammates and classmates. The last thing you want to do is potentially offend someone with your sense of humor. People have been fired or sued for far less than a bad joke. Have fun, be yourself, but be respectful of students and teachers who are learning in class.

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