Yesterday, an acquaintance asked me this question:
I have received an admit into XYZ college for the two-year MBA program with specialization in marketing. I have a month’s time before I join the college. Is there something useful I can learn in this one month?
Based on my experience, here’s what I think you could do:
- Understand how to use Microsoft Excel. You don’t need to get down to the programming level. A broad understanding of Excel’s features and capabilities is sufficient. If you have the time, you might want to get down to using basic functions. I recommend that you purchase the book “The Microsoft Excel 2003 Bible.” I haven’t checked if there’s a 2007 edition available.
- Improve your presentation skills – both as a speaker and as a Microsoft Power Point user. You will be using Power Point most of the time. Read up on blogs that specialize in professional presentation design (for example: Presentation Zen).
- Analyze or try to gather more information about news that you read in a business daily such as The Economic Times. Try and form your own opinion on the topic at hand. Effective research and analysis is a differentiating factor that can help you stand out.
What ever you do, don’t blindly jump in and start studying an academic subject.
{ 5 comments }
