The B-school, a B-school
Ed Tsue, BBA2 etsue@umich.edu
Issue date: 1/26/04 Section: Opinions
The first real insight I got about the way the business school really was came from Kyle, my Accounting 271 instructor. 271 is a class that all hopeful students have to take before applying to the BBA program. You can imagine, then, all the anxious, after-class questions Kyle got about how to "get in" to the b-school and what the b-school "was like." Kyle was a good guy, a fair instructor and entertained our often sophomoric questions with patience. One time, I distinctly remember someone asking, "How hard do they grade in the b-school?" Kyle smiled, and replied, "Well, they call it the B-school for a reason. Everyone gets B's."
Two years later, as a graduating senior, I still recall that answer and-it's true, the B is a popular grade. But I also discovered that our school was not only the B-school, but a B-school. B-rated, that is. Mediocre. Average. Run of the mill. Ordinary. Apparently, the same "a few good, a few bad, mostly in between" distribution our school has imposed on its students, it has imposed on, or rather, settled for itself.
Before I continue, let me first say that I am not a smart kid. I do well enough in my classes, but I am by no means "that guy" with the 4.25 average (and trust me, I know quite a few of those in the B-school). But what I am is a student. A student, like you, that gets excited when learning and frustrated when not-and very conscious of under what circumstances each occur. I, like many of my peers I'm sure, looked forward to "getting in" to the B-school. As an applicant, this institution had reached a "legendary" status in my mind-the stepping stone to opportunity (gee, I passed on NYU Stern, Cornell ILR, and Georgetown for the chance to get in, didn't I?). Perhaps it was the presence of such high hopes that induced such deep disappointment. Maybe I expected too much.
I am not talking about our rankings. I am not talking about our "re-branding" effort. I am not talking about how many scholarly papers leave the doors of Davidson. I am talking about what is most dear and immediate to me as a student. I am talking about what it means to not just a great academic institution, but a great school. You know, as in, learning and teaching?
Two years later, as a graduating senior, I still recall that answer and-it's true, the B is a popular grade. But I also discovered that our school was not only the B-school, but a B-school. B-rated, that is. Mediocre. Average. Run of the mill. Ordinary. Apparently, the same "a few good, a few bad, mostly in between" distribution our school has imposed on its students, it has imposed on, or rather, settled for itself.
Before I continue, let me first say that I am not a smart kid. I do well enough in my classes, but I am by no means "that guy" with the 4.25 average (and trust me, I know quite a few of those in the B-school). But what I am is a student. A student, like you, that gets excited when learning and frustrated when not-and very conscious of under what circumstances each occur. I, like many of my peers I'm sure, looked forward to "getting in" to the B-school. As an applicant, this institution had reached a "legendary" status in my mind-the stepping stone to opportunity (gee, I passed on NYU Stern, Cornell ILR, and Georgetown for the chance to get in, didn't I?). Perhaps it was the presence of such high hopes that induced such deep disappointment. Maybe I expected too much.
I am not talking about our rankings. I am not talking about our "re-branding" effort. I am not talking about how many scholarly papers leave the doors of Davidson. I am talking about what is most dear and immediate to me as a student. I am talking about what it means to not just a great academic institution, but a great school. You know, as in, learning and teaching?
