First-term MBA - Busy is an Understatement

Hello, my name is Jill Krivacek and I am a first year student at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. I graduated from Notre Dame in 2007 and after working for Countrywide and Bank of America I decided to pursue an MBA to grow my strategic business acumen. The decision to leave a good job at a great company in a tough economy was difficult, but I know that my decision will pay off as I strive to be a senior leader at a Fortune 500 company.
I am now beginning my fourth week of school, fifth including our orientation. I have met some great people at the University of Illinois. Even before stepping on campus, the Admissions Team was supportive and informative throughout the application process. The Dean and his staff, the professors, the alumni, our career services department, and my fellow classmates have all been extremely impressive. I can tell I am creating a great network here.
Although I have only been down in Champaign for a month, I feel as if I have accomplished so much already. I have completed a written case competition for NAWMBA which is to be presented the first weekend of October at their National Conference. This week also marks “mid-terms,” since our classes are broken down into eight week modules and our Career Fair. It seems most employers are optimistic about the hiring prospects for MBA students. I have also joined some great organizations on campus: IBC (Illinois Business Consulting), GFA (Graduate Finance Association), WIB (Women in Business), the Kola Foundation, and the Service Association.
My days and nights have been filled with class, study group sessions, group projects, networking events, an internship search, and meetings for the organizations I am a member of. I had a recruiter ask me after looking at my resume if he thinks I am spreading myself too thin. I simply responded that I came to Business School to challenge myself, further develop my knowledge, and extend my professional network. I believe my experience in B-School will be directly correlated with the inputs of time and effort, and so far it has been great.
Please leave any comments or questions you may have. Cheers!

Jill Krivacek, Forté Fellow
Class of 2012, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign