Grad School Learning - beyond the textbook

While you do learn many valuable life skills in Kindergarten, I’ve found that I’ve learned equally valuable life skills and information from my grad school classes. Here are just a few snippets of wise information passed on to me from some very interesting professors and through my experiences thus far at DePaul.

Valuable Information That I’ve Learned from Grad School:

1. Grad school brings a whole new level of creeps & idiots who somehow slip through the cracks at the admissions office and end up in the same class as you and forces you to revamp your strategies for dealing with difficult people.

2. You are not only allowed to, but you should, ask your HR department at work about where YOUR pay falls within your salary grade and the schedule of your manager’s appraisal period.

3. Graduate professors all have a unique story and eclectic background. For example, I have had a management professor who is in several bands, a marketing professor who grew up in eastern Europe and has lived and worked many places across the globe and an economics professor who travels abroad to places like Vietnam to name a few.

4. A government deficit isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as long as it’s balanced by other factors.

5. All managers should be required to take at LEAST 1-2 management courses.

6. History repeats itself, making articles regarding business from 20-30 years ago relevant again today.

7. An INCREASE in an Asset account, such as Cash, is recorded as a DEBIT.

8. Obama’s chief economic advisor, former President of Harvard, once presented a scientific theory to explain why there are much more men than women in the natural sciences at high tiered universities with the following premises: 1) Women are smarter, on average, than men (a very normal curve). 2) However, men have more outliers – meaning there are more “dumber” men and more “genius” men than women. He was forced to resign.

9. Make yourself noticed – in class, in the workplace, among your friends – people will remember you better. Bad publicity is better than no publicity.

10. Keep an “Atta girl” folder on your work computer and add docs with date & description when other co-workers give you praise, completed projects and regular lists of things that you completed. You never know when this might come in handy!