As one MBA class comes to an end, another begins

Just do it – step outside your comfort zone

Mansa Shroff, came to the MBA class of 2023/24 from Mumbai, India, with a career journey from a microbiologist in the USA to patent law and working with startups. With the science piece and the startup skills, Mansa felt an MBA would be the next step forward in her career, to get more management and particularly finance experience for her next steps.

We asked her what she might do differently, if she could start her year over.

“I think a lot of people have mentioned that the Cambridge MBA flies past really quickly, and when you are new and excited, you are very energised to do everything possible.

Mansa says – ‘Do it!’.

She continues, “I think it’s really important to force yourself to take things outside of your comfort zone, to meet people who you may not usually speak to and take classes that absolutely make you feel uncomfortable.

“So, I forced myself to meet people, and I went to finance clubs and took classes that I felt might be something I wouldn’t be good at but would be a great learning experience. I attended speaker events where it’s not my area of knowledge, so I didn’t know what they were talking about, but went away with a piece of advice or news that I could carry forward into all these things.”

Mansa says, “The one thing I would love to tell myself at the start of the year is manage your time really well. The MBA goes fast, and you are juggling so many things – your social life, your studying and classes, your family and sleep! And you are juggling these elements all together!

“Be mindful about your priorities, your personal goals coming into the MBA. Maybe a priority for that month or just that week, and these will change as time goes on.

“Your priorities evolve because you are going to grow with the MBA.”

Mansa expands, “I started the first term focusing on my grades and my experiences, so I went to the right conferences and met new people. After the first two terms my grades were pretty good, so I started to attend more conferences, I took up a new hobby, archery – which I had never done before. I also got more involved with the King’s College Entrepreneurship Lab, which gave me a platform to further hone my leadership and management skills.

But Mansa adds, “Within all that I also had to take care of my mental health. You should, as a student, also think about your family and your friends.”

FOMO is very real on the MBA, you will always feel you are not doing enough. But you can do little things that make you really happy, that make you fulfilled.

“So, I would say for people starting the MBA, learn the art of time management, learn the art of prioritising, because there’s always going to be something that you think you’re going to miss out on.”

Enjoy it more  – a journey of self discovery

Gabriel Loaiza Hidalgo, from Ecuador, was working for Citi Bank in Ecuador before studying for his MBA. An MBA was always one of his career goals. After 8 years in the financial sector, he wanted to improve his leadership and communication skills.

“I found an MBA was the best combination and the best programme that could help me do that.”

He looks back to the start of his MBA year: “If I could go back to the beginning and start over again, I would just enjoy it more.

“I think that when you arrive here, they tell you it goes by very fast, but you don’t really realise it until it’s the end.

“So maybe, I would suggest, take more opportunities to go to different conferences and meet more people and just enjoy more of the experience because once it’s over you really don’t know how fast it goes.”

Being far from home and being part of a different culture, Gabriel explains the experience, “The Cambridge MBA programme is very diverse. You have people of many different nationalities, so you can really feel the diversity of the programme. You have people from many different regions, many different countries that have different cultures. And it’s amazing to understand their different points of view and how they try to see the different solutions to a problem. It’s a great experience to understand the importance of diversity and how it can help lead to better decisions.”

Gabriel concludes, “Cambridge has been a journey of self-development for me. I have been able to grow my network, learn new skills, and make a lot of friends along the way.”

Dealing with FOMO – there is so much to explore

Romit Kapoor, from India, had been working in Dubai before his MBA.

He started as a robotics and automotive engineer in India and after moving to the Middle East he transitioned into strategy consulting, later focusing on consulting in tech -working within public policy, supporting and developing startups.

That’s when he decided to make the leap and do an MBA.

“What would I do differently?” he asks.

“When you come in, there is going to be a lot of talk about FOMO and how to deal with it, and Cambridge Judge offers a vast number of resources to help you deal with it across the MBA year.

“I thought to myself I won’t get FOMO as I will just do everything and for the first couple of weeks of term I did just that, I said yes to everything, so I could know what is out there and later on I could narrow it down to what I actually liked doing and not doing!”

He continues, “So I wouldn’t change that. Say yes to as many things as you can.

“What I would change, perhaps, is to say yes more – as there is just so much to explore here.”

You have to prioritise some things over others. “I wish I had explored more of what Cambridge has to offer just because we are here for a very short, very concentrated, very, very intense period of our lives.”

“For me Cambridge is all about possibilities,” he continues,

“You can come here as whoever you were before, and you can honestly start off with a blank slate if you choose to.

“If you come with specific interests, Cambridge gives you those opportunities to explore a little bit deeper into it and have fun at the same time. The University offers a safe space to let your mind wander and explore all that it wants to. And there are very, very few places on this earth that allow that.”

Stop and take a breath – appreciate all that happens

British National, Juliet Powell, came to the MBA with a background in marketing and PR, previously working as a Senior Client Manager for a PR firm based in London.

She reflects on the first few weeks of Michaelmas Term, “If I were to go back to the beginning of the MBA, having been at the end of it now, I think what I would do differently, if it’s possible, is just to stop, take a breath, and reflect on all the incredible things that you have exposure to and that you do, and all the incredible people and diverse people that you meet.

“This MBA year goes incredibly quickly and it can feel like you are on fast forward.”

She continues, “I would say just be as open as you can to the opportunities that are coming your way.

“I think it’s such an extraordinary year and there’ll be opportunities that you never even thought of. At the start, be open with the people that you meet and the many opportunities that come your way and with the many conversations that you have.

“I think that would be the most valuable piece of advice I can give. Just be open.”

As the new University of Cambridge term starts and we welcome the Cambridge MBA class of 2024/25, we can reflect on the thoughts of Mansa Shroff, “I think the part of the MBA that I fondly remember from day one when I came in, I told myself, Cambridge will be exactly what I make of it.”