The Short List

The plan is to go for a PhD in Management.  I'm targeting top business schools across the country, so tonight I sat down and pored over the various schools, first creating a comprehensive list of the schools I think I'd like to attend. 

I'm focusing on top-20 schools for the moment.  I've got a few "aim high" type schools (the ones with the "name"); a few top 10 schools that I think I've got a pretty good chance of getting in to; and a few 10-20 schools that I feel really good about.  My list currently has 13 schools:

• UCLA
• UC Berkeley
• University of Washington
• USC
• University of Maryland
• Cornell
• University of Texas at Austin
• Stanford University
• Columbia University
• University of Minnesota
• University of Pennsylvania
• Harvard Business School
• Carnegie-Mellon University

They're generally listed in order of preference (although, there are a few that might shift up or down a slot or two, depending on which criterion I'm focusing on at the moment).  The things that are important: quality of the program (obviously), particularly in the areas of Strategy and Organizational Behavior; researchers I'll be working with (I want to work with people who are interested in stuff that interests me); location (I'd LOVE to stay in California--and so would Shawna); how horrible the weather is where we eventually move (Minnesota really freaks me out).

More to come in coming weeks.  For now, I've got to focus on the GMAT.  I took it a little over a year ago (to get into the Drexel LEAD MBA program), and got a respectable score (680), but I'm pretty sure that, with a little studying, I can land at least a 730 (of course I'm shooting for perfect).  So I bought a voucher for this extraordinarily expensive 40 hour GMAT course; it starts tomorrow (10 hours in a classroom on a Sunday; doesn't sound incredibly exciting). 

I'll let you know how that goes!

Here Goes...

So, I'm on this journey that, basically, represents an enormous life change for me.  Let me tell you a little about me:

I'm 30 years old, have been married for almost eleven years to the lovely Shawna (my partner-for-life and best friend), and have two children (Alexis, 8, and Gentry, 7).  I've got a wonderful job and am finishing up my MBA this year. 

And I think I'm gonna go get a PhD.  Which is huge.  Because it means quitting my job; devoting four or five straight years to study, research and writing; probably moving (which is kinda stressful, because I'm not very capricious).  It's also huge, though, because it means pursuing something I love.  More about that later, though.

Thing is, I like to write, and it helps me to sort myself out if I write down what I'm thinking.  And, maybe there are others out there who have something to say about this whole process.  And, if so, I'd love it if you'd weigh in. 

At any rate, this is just to let the vast, unhearing digital universe know that I'm committed.  'Cuz it's written down.