I wondered what this course would be all about. With so little business background in my undergraduate studies, it was a term I hadn't seen before. Or at the least hadn't paid attention to.
Turns out this class makes a lot of sense. It's started out with a refresher of statistics. Everyone has been down that road to get into MAB (or has to cover a stats prerequisite during the early stages of the program).
We're covering a lot of material pertaining to regressions -- learning to judge the validity of data sets and population samples. It is very different from our other course, international policy, but fits really well with the types of things we learned in last year's courses.
It's different this time around.
This trip to Manhattan is definitely different than last year's sessions. The year two students can't claim it's easier -- but it is different. Less stress. Lacking the tensions. The courses seem more "do able".
I'm not sure that the program is a lot different in the second year. I believe it is most likely that the students are different in year two. We have adjusted to the pace of the MAB program. We know it is possible to cover major economic concepts in four days of learning; we have experienced the process of dicing through many long chapters of a text book in just one week.
Moral of the story: year one is training camp and it pays off big. Year two keeps you in the game, but you're a seasoned player by the start of the season!
I'm not sure that the program is a lot different in the second year. I believe it is most likely that the students are different in year two. We have adjusted to the pace of the MAB program. We know it is possible to cover major economic concepts in four days of learning; we have experienced the process of dicing through many long chapters of a text book in just one week.
Moral of the story: year one is training camp and it pays off big. Year two keeps you in the game, but you're a seasoned player by the start of the season!
What's your international policy?
It's Monday morning. Start of the first session of 2009. MAB students from across the world have gathered in Manhattan. Year one students are about to embark on their journey into agribusiness education. Year two students are topping the hill, headed towards the downhill side of the program.
Today's first item of business is International Policy with Dr. Woolverton. It's a new topic. Different from the more mathematical courses we've had thus far.
We're a smaller group now, compared with our first trip to campus last year. But we're a mighty crew. A year wiser and mostly up for the challenge of year two.
I'll let you know how our first glimpse at international policy turns out.
Today's first item of business is International Policy with Dr. Woolverton. It's a new topic. Different from the more mathematical courses we've had thus far.
We're a smaller group now, compared with our first trip to campus last year. But we're a mighty crew. A year wiser and mostly up for the challenge of year two.
I'll let you know how our first glimpse at international policy turns out.
Back in Manhattan.
It's the beginning of year two. Today we start session #1 of the MAB program. One of the highlights of today's activities is meeting the incoming class and catching up with classmates.
We're only in for a few hours of meetings and orientation today. It's the calm before the storm; a week full of classes and lectures, projects and testing. Yes. Testing. A sneak-peek at the syllabus shows we're in for an exam by the end of the week in at least one of our classes.
Tonight we have a social activity with faculty and classmates in Aggieville. If you're unfamiliar with K-State's campus and the Manhattan community, the Aggieville region is the epicenter of "extracurricular" activities. A billboard in town advertises over 100 shops, restaurants and bars in the neighborhood.
Don't let the hectic pace of things scare you. The on-campus sessions include plenty of fun times and laughs, too!
We're only in for a few hours of meetings and orientation today. It's the calm before the storm; a week full of classes and lectures, projects and testing. Yes. Testing. A sneak-peek at the syllabus shows we're in for an exam by the end of the week in at least one of our classes.
Tonight we have a social activity with faculty and classmates in Aggieville. If you're unfamiliar with K-State's campus and the Manhattan community, the Aggieville region is the epicenter of "extracurricular" activities. A billboard in town advertises over 100 shops, restaurants and bars in the neighborhood.
Don't let the hectic pace of things scare you. The on-campus sessions include plenty of fun times and laughs, too!
Campus bound.
I'm headed back to campus tomorrow. It's a week in Manhattan, Kansas, as we kickoff the second year of the MAB program.
I feel good about the trip, excited to catch up with friends from the program. I am also anxious to start the next round of courses. We're tackling agriculture policy this session, which is one of my keen interests. I am hopeful that this course can shed some light on a thesis topic for me. We're also jumping into econometrics; I don't yet know what that means. But I'm optimistic that it will be a great learning opportunity. Tune in on Monday and I'll fill you in.
We're not the new kids on the block this go 'round. I'm packing light and planning on a lot of class time. I'll catch up on sleep when I return home in a week.
I'll try hard to keep things updated on the blog during this trip.
I feel good about the trip, excited to catch up with friends from the program. I am also anxious to start the next round of courses. We're tackling agriculture policy this session, which is one of my keen interests. I am hopeful that this course can shed some light on a thesis topic for me. We're also jumping into econometrics; I don't yet know what that means. But I'm optimistic that it will be a great learning opportunity. Tune in on Monday and I'll fill you in.
We're not the new kids on the block this go 'round. I'm packing light and planning on a lot of class time. I'll catch up on sleep when I return home in a week.
I'll try hard to keep things updated on the blog during this trip.
Welcoming the new class.
One of the highlights of the upcoming January campus session will be meeting the new group of students joining the MAB program. Last year I was one of the "new kids" as part of the Class of 2010. This year we'll welcome -- I think slightly more than 30 students -- the class of 2011.Each year the MAB faculty and staff pair up current students with the new ones during the campus session; it's a mentoring system where the incoming can asking questions of the previous class and also have someone to meet and greet them when they first arrive on campus.
It's a big benefit to know someone ahead of the campus session. My mentor last year was great at helping me prepare for the first week of classes. She also shared some helpful tips on navigating the first courses in the program and provides some insight on surviving year one.
I just dropped an e-mail to the two students I'll be mentoring this January, in hopes of connecting with them ahead of the campus session. They sound like really interesting individuals and I'm anxious to meet up with them in Manhattan.
Close to the industry.
One of the most interesting parts of my MAB cohort make up is the number of farmers, farmer-spouses and children of farmers in the group. It's a great benefit when we're studying agriculture issues and learning about the economics of agribusiness and production farming.
The perspective they provide and the experiences they share help to enrich the discussions and make the concepts all the more applicable. Not everyone has the direct ties to a working farm, but those who do are glad to share their experiences and it seems those who don't have the ties are glad to listen and learn something new.
I've been thinking about those classmate farmers more this fall; we're close to completing the Risk Management course. Most row crop farmers in the U.S. have battled weather this year in one way or another. Many of them have faced increased input costs and volatile commodity markets.
I know several of my classmates are dealing with a later harvest on their family's farm. It's an especially busy time for all of them -- but it's nice to have them in the program, too, reminding all of us how close we live and work to our industry of Agribusiness.
The perspective they provide and the experiences they share help to enrich the discussions and make the concepts all the more applicable. Not everyone has the direct ties to a working farm, but those who do are glad to share their experiences and it seems those who don't have the ties are glad to listen and learn something new.
I've been thinking about those classmate farmers more this fall; we're close to completing the Risk Management course. Most row crop farmers in the U.S. have battled weather this year in one way or another. Many of them have faced increased input costs and volatile commodity markets.
I know several of my classmates are dealing with a later harvest on their family's farm. It's an especially busy time for all of them -- but it's nice to have them in the program, too, reminding all of us how close we live and work to our industry of Agribusiness.
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