Category — MBA

Was 2008 the year you knew you could have beat the market? Students of the Johnson School at Cornell University did just that. The student run Cayuga MBA Fund delivered a fourth quarter loss of just -1.29 % and actually came out ahead by 0.42 % for the year. Compared to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (down 33.8 %) and the S&P 500 (down 37 %) that’s no small feat. So how did they do it?

Key Word for Student Investors: Prudent

The Cayuga Fund’s strong performance was driven primarily by what Cornell MBAs describe as a ‘prudent risk management strategy’ that had shorts and longs performing comparably for the year.

“In spite of governmental efforts to prop up the financial industry and by extension, the equity markets, the economic picture remains very challenging and we expect this trend to continue throughout 2009. The Cayuga Fund intends to remain focused on generating absolute return through a combination of selective stock-picking and prudent risk management.” 

The top long performer (at at fourth quarter return of 65%) was Yanzhou Coal Mining Company (YCZ). This Chinese company mines, prepares, transports, and sells coal. It’s done well amid the growing global demand for inexpensive sources of energy.

The best short performer was American Apparel (APP), generating a return of 76 % in the last quarter. This company manufactures, distributes, and retails casual wear apparel for men, women, and children. Despite a weak retail segment, APP has performed well relative to many of its peers.

MBA Hedge Fund Creates Opportunities for Students

Cornell’s Johnson School created the Cayuga MBA Fund as an investment vehicle that aims to provide a competitive rate of return to its investors, but also serves to offer educational and professional opportunities to the Johnson School MBA students. By combining the cutting-edge research of faculty members with the participation of student portfolio managers, the fund provides a return far greater than that which is received by its investors.

Student portfolio managers, quantitative analysts, traders, and an investor relations manager all manage the fund under the guidance of faculty and outside investment advisers. Together, they work to achieve consistent positive returns that are uncorrelated with equity market benchmarks, and to maintain significantly lower volatility than the broader market.

Parker Center the Envy of Wall Street

The Cayuga MBA Fund also benefits from the support of Cornell’s Parker Center, which is a classroom for real-time stock quotes, international data feeds, and financial analysis software and data. This center is valued at more than $1.8 million per year in licensing fees. Representatives from Cornell say it’s as good as, if not better than, the resources found at many Wall Street firms. With this kind of return, who could argue?

What’s the lesson here? Either get yourself to business school, or give you money to someone who’s already there!

Once you’ve decided to apply to business school, the choices for obtaining your MBA can be overwhelming. Use the journalistic approach to cover all the angles. These questions, based on the 5 Ws of journalism, provide a nice framework on which to base your B School inquiry!

Why is business school the right choice?

Examining your motivations for pursuing an MBA is the first and most important step to choosing the right business school.

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Interested in business school? Looking for a school that will further your career? Not sure where to start or apply? Want to go to one of the premier top business schools in the world? Here’s a sampling of 10 of the best business schools around, both public and private, from around the United States.

Harvard Business School — Harvard University | Cambridge, Mass.
Choose from an MBA along with PhD programs in areas such as Accounting and Management, Health Policy Management, Marketing, Organizational Behavior, Technology and Operations Management and more. Learn more at http://www.hbs.edu.

Wharton School — University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, Penn.
Choose from a standard MBA or an Executive MBA. Wharton also offers an MBA/MA program in Global Business with advanced language training. Learn more at http://mba.wharton.upenn.edu/mba.

Chicago Graduate School of Business — University of Chicago | Chicago, Ill.
Choose from a full-time MBA, night and weekend MBA, or an Executive MBA. Chicago Graduate School of Business also offers a PhD program along with executive education and the Summer Business Scholars Program. Learn more at http://www.chicagogsb.edu.

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Guest article by Hans Christianson

It’s your first day on the job. You have mad skills. You’re armed with the latest technology. And you’re dressed to impress — clad in jeans, an unbuttoned shirt and crocs. Sound too good to be true? It’s not, if you have an Master of Business Administration in Digital Media.

The MBA in Digital Media is your all-access past to the entertainment world. Film, music, gaming, television and interactive media — you name it. You’ll build a solid foundation in business theory and concepts. And you’ll also take your education outside the classroom with internships, projects and industry events.

Learn to Speak Their Language
You have the latest idea. It’s going to revolutionize how movies are distributed. Or it’s going to save the ailing recording industry. If you could only get someone to take you seriously. That’s where the MBA in Digital Media comes into play. You’ll learn how to speak the language of business. You’ll be able to join in the conversation.

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Guest article by Lela Davidson

Considering an online MBA? Six-figure living may be mere months away, but before you check out the overwhelming number of offerings, get clear on your motivations. Start by asking yourself these questions:

1. Don’t I have something better to do?
Unless you’re after a position in an MBA-mandatory field, like investment banking, you’d better have a good reason. Articulating your motive will help you maintain momentum throughout the program. Plus, employers when ask, to make more money is not your best answer. Will an online MBA really increase your income? Or would you do better with a strategy of on-the-job advancement? Do your homework before signing up for more homework.

2. Who am I trying to impress?
All MBAs are not equal. You won’t land a job on Wall Street with online cred. However, if you lack hard skills like financial analysis, chances are good the online MBA will hold your spot on the executive track. Consider only accredited schools. Then look at reputation. There’s a huge difference between a traditional school like Texas A&M that also teaches online and proprietary, or for-profit schools. Phoenix and Capella may provide a comparable education, but B-School is all about branding. Then again, for non-business undergrads, a less prestigious MBA, paired with work experience, is often enough.

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