Watson Graduate School of Management welcomes new MBA students to OSU

Friday, August 28, 2015

Oklahoma State University’s Watson Graduate School of Management welcomed this semester an incoming class of more than 100 MBA students studying online and at the Stillwater and Tulsa campuses.

The program hosted a two-day orientation for students studying at the Stillwater campus. On the first day, students spent time learning information about the graduate program. The students participated in a Myers-Briggs Personality Assessment session and a session on Awesome Business Communication and Social Media to better prepare for their graduate-level courses..

“I think it’s the best orientation I’ve ever done,” said Maialen Arrizabalaga, who is a first-year MBA student. “I learned things. It wasn’t like orientation on the MBA program, it was like a class and they taught me things I could remember or I could use for my future.”

Thirty-seven students spent the second day of orientation in downtown Oklahoma City at the Boathouse District. Although it rained, the students were able to tour the U.S. Olympic Rowing Training facilities and participated in a Dragon Boat Race.

This was the first time the OSU program tried this team building exercise, and according to the students it was a success.

Like many of the students, Jakayla Porter, a first-year MBA student from New Mexico was a first-time rower. “I’d never done anything like that before, so it was really fun,” said Porter, “Slowly, through the little exercises we did, we became a team and learned to row together and saw the difference it made when we were all rowing together.”

The students wrapped up the day with lunch in Bricktown with a few OSU MBA alumni. Here, students were able to interact and network with each other and the alumni.

Investment banker and OSU MBA alumni Zack Robinson attended the luncheon to speak with students. He believes alumni involvement in the program has a positive effect on current students and their outlook on the program.

“I like to think that we can serve as a resource to provide input about what they will do next, after school, said Robinson, a 2007 MBA graduate. “Being able to pour back in and share our experiences while we were there and then what we are doing now, and how that experience helped us. I hope it helps with the adjustment and hopefully with their success after school.”

Porter was excited to hear the alumni were once in the same position as the current students and have enjoyable post-graduate careers.

“It was very nice that they came and sat and talked to us,” said Porter. “Their paths may not have gone one certain way or exactly how they planned, but they’re still out there and they love their work.”

“In general, the qualities and skills they learned, they are using.”

With the success of this year’s orientation activities, the faculty hopes to revisit the Boathouse District and have a similar orientation luncheon next year.