MBA: Flexible curriculum, fun & social life

Flexible curriculum is more than an academic asset. It can jazz up your social life. Unlike a lot of other schools where you are boxed into cohorts and sections, Chicago Booth is a free for all. There are no specific course requirements which hold you down in a silo.

However, I must admit that there are clear advantages to being in sections. You form deeper bonds with a small set of people. On the other hand, in a situation like at Chicago, you can choose which people you want to form those deep bonds with. This is really advantageous when you are very interested in meeting with people with shared interests. There are arguments and counterarguments. I will give them a pass and focus on what does flexible curriculum mean outside academics.

Due to flexible curriculum you can go to classes with a large number of of students in Chicago Booth academic system - first years full-time students, second year full-time students, PhD students, evening students, weekend students and students from the wider University of Chicago. This is a blank check to socialize - do whatever you want to do it.

Some students pick people they like and just work with them. Bad idea! Challenge your interpersonal skills and maybe work with people you don't like. In 20 courses, you can potentially work directly with hundreds of other students and impress them with your capabilities. Among my good friends at Booth I count part-time students, PhD students, undergraduate students and students from Law/Medical schools. It really worked for me because they give me access to other networks. Sure, full-time program network was my core network and priority asset. If I could tap other networks without much effort - why not? Booth facilitated it.

The opportunities to socialize are so immense that it is difficult to remain a nerd if you are one. You have to be really homophobic to not have fun!