Internship. Over

I took a bit of a hiatus while from posting blogs while on internship.  Not sure if that's a good thing or not but internship is over, got some time off and I'm very ready to get back to class.

This is my job for two weeks

Internship was a great experience however.  Worked at National Grid with a great group of people, as well as two PhD students in the Operations Research Center (ORC) at MIT (project would NOT have gotten done without working with Matt and Anna).  The project was fantastic, but easily the most challenging I've ever worked on.  Without going into all the details... the idea is utilizing weather forecasts to help National Grid better understand the effects of major storms on their assets so that they can properly plan for major storms.  Project had a lot of bumps in the road, gathering and cleaning data was difficult, finding the right model to use was a challenge, and we all know how bad weather forecasts can be.  However the team at National Grid, Matt and Anna, and our advisors was an incredible team to work with and I can't speak highly enough of the experience. (Now I just have to write a thesis....)

Taking two weeks off between internship and the start of next semester (something I recommend ALL STUDENTS DO).  Went back to Buffalo for a golf tournament that my family hosts to support several charities that benefit current and future service men and women of our country.  For those that don't know my younger brother, Blake Whipple, was killed in action in 2010 and we have a tournament in his name.  Event was a great success (perhaps not my golfing ability...) but everyone had a blast and we raised a lot of money for some great charities.

We didn't golf well but we had the most fun

BACK TO SCHOOOOL!

New semester is about to start off and I very much plan on enjoying this semester.  First fall was a blast but I took a pretty heavy course load then went on internship.  The plan now is to knock out a lot of MBA credits (saving the rest of my engineering for the last semester), watch college football, enjoy every C function, and just enjoy being back at school.  The LGO program is great and internship experience was excellent, but I feel like I've been away from school for a LONG time and I really want to enjoy this semester (while still doing well in school).

Best of luck to all the first years with their orientation this week, on-cycles LGO's enjoy the rest of your internship, can't wait to see you at midstream review, and to the rest of the second years lets enjoy this last year because this (SHOULD) be the last time we're in school again.

'15's Enjoy Your Summer!!

It's been a LONG time since I've lasted posted and I'm sorry about that.  Largely because since February I've been on my internship at National Grid.  While it's going great the project is extremely challenging but the value to National Grid will hopefully be worth the effort.

I won't spend a lot of time on the details of the internship yet (I'll post much more about it as it comes to a close in  August).  But I am working with two PhD students from the ORC (not an attribute of all internships but it's a great opportunity) and we're developing models that will assist National Grid in planning for major storms such as hurricane and severe snowstorms.  Understanding the effect of the weather and the expected damage holds incredible value for National Grid to properly plan for the storm and return service to its customers quickly.  As one might guess it is an incredibly difficult problem to solve but I'm lucky to have a lot of support both from MIT and National Grid and hopefully the project will produce a great product.

And of course at this time of the year the new blood is coming in and will be starting off their LGO experience and I'm terribly jealous.  If the incoming class has half the fun that we had in our first summer they'll learn quickly that they made a great decision to come to the LGO.

You 15's will be essentially the only students on campus...and actually at times it makes it feel kind of dead.  But it creates an amazing opportunity for you to really bond with your LGO class.  You will have all of your classes together, you will spend a lot of time with your summer groups, and if our class is any indication you'll spend a lot of time at the Muddy,  Thirsty Ear, and sailing (all are highly encouraged).  The ONE thing that I think some of the 14's regret about the summer is that sometimes we felt we worked too hard/much.  While everyone should work and take full advantage of the opportunity...remember you're getting two degrees from MIT.  If you'd like some credentials...remember, you're going to be just fine.  So enjoy the summer, believe it or not, it's going to be the only time when you and your fellow LGOs will have that much time together (sometimes it might feel like too much time).

Why going to the LGO is the easiest decision you'll ever make

First off I'd like to apologize for my very serious hiatus on blogging.  I'm currently on my internship and it has been an EXTREMELY fast process.  The fact that I'm almost half way through is actually quite scary.  I'll discuss my project and its status in a subsequent post (that will not be three months out I promise).

BUT if you are reading this you have likely been accepted into the LGO....now what?  Well first off congratulations are in order and you're probably asking yourself a million questions about whether or not you should accept the offer to attend.  I'm clearly biased but I am telling you right now that you WILL MISS A HUGE OPPORTUNITY IF YOU PASS THIS UP!!

I know it's a lot.  LGO particularly has a very fast turn around from the day you get your acceptance package and your first day of class in June.  Not a lot of time to make find a new place to live, potentially move across the country (or to a new country), leave your current job, if you have kids get them set up in new schools potentially, finding the money to pay for it (this likely means loans for most of us...), etc. etc.  It's not fun, I won't lie....but it's not impossible either.  And in the end ultimately very much worth doing.

Not coming will mean you will lose out on one of the few MBA/MS programs that exist, the opportunity to connect with a very large Sloan and MIT engineering community, gain exposure to partner companies and see their manufacturing facilities first hand, become part of an increasingly diverse and talented alumni base, and meet some of the best people you will ever know.

There's also the obvious benefit of having two degrees from MIT....those kind of speak for themselves

Even last week (I unfortunately could not go on any of these trips due to my commitments with internship....this is an off cycle only problem) students from the LGO and greater Sloan were on plant treks in India and Brazil and many other assorted vacation spots. I shamelessly highjacked one of Sarah Clarke's (LGO '13) photos from their India trip and one from the LGO international plant trek.

While I didn't get to go on International Plant trek the domestic plant trek was by far one of the best educational experiences I've had since coming to school.  Gaining exposure, even briefly, to those different companies and understanding how their individual operations affect their business provided enormous insight my understanding of industries today.  Only a program like that LGO with its unique relationship with partner companies can offer something like that.

I've spoken with some admits already and while many of them have been extremely excited about the program, some concerns I have heard about are financial, logistic relocation, and workload.  I'd like to take a few moments to address this real quick.

First off...workload.  You can do it.  They wouldn't have accepted you if you couldn't.  And while yes there are likely to be one (probably two) semesters that are pretty brutal, I can assure that all of us LGO's still have social lives, still go to C functions, are still involved in clubs, and for the most part have retained our sanity.

Second...financial concerns.  These are legitimate.  Graduate school isn't cheap, the Boston area isn't cheap either.  BUT this program does give a fellowship which does help with costs.  There are scholarships available, TA positions can help offset costs, and if you go work for a partner company after you graduate, your last tuition payment is on them.  Yes you will likely need loans.  Especially in today's economy that gives some people a lot of concern.  But more than anything your earning potential increase will do so much more for you than the tuition bill.  It is a lot money, but LGO alumni everywhere are very successful and I don't know of one that has said that they felt the financial burden has held them back in any way.

Finally logistics.  It is a quick turn around.  Finding a new place, dumping your old, and re-locating is never fun.  Especially on such a tight time frame.  And this won't be the only time you move most likely.  You'll probably move again for internship, then back to Cambridge/Boston to finish up courses, then after you graduate you'll move to wherever you accept a job.  This can be particularly stressful if you have kids or an SO where re-location might not be so easy (I am not particularly knowledgeable on these issues as there weren't a factor for me, but if these are concerns for you I highly suggest speaking to some LGO's who have very much dealt with these problems).  Unfortunately there's no easy answer here either.  BUT there has never been an LGO who has regretted making these moves.  The experiences you have are always worth it.

Open House is coming up and I really hope you have made plans to attend.  It's a great time to meet potential classmates and current students.  Many people use this time to work out some of those re-location logistics while they're in town.  If nothing else the three class party is always a great time, and an excellent reminder that LGO's work hard and play harder.

5 Flights, 4 Bus Rides, 8 Companies and 2 Weeks

So Plant Trek is over and no one got left behind (I don't think...).  As part of the LGO program all students are required to go on our domestic plant trek across the United States and visit with our partner companies during IAP in the first year.  And this year was a resounding success (aside from a stomach flu epidemic, the occasional person being left behind, and everyone forgetting what time zone they were in).  I won't go into gory detail of each company here but I'll talk about some of my personal favorites.

First the run down:

It's as fun as it looks...

1. Novartis - Raleigh, NC
2. GM - Lansing, MI
3. Amazon - Lebanon, IN
4. Cat - Peoria, IL
5. Nike - Portland, OR
6. Boeing - Seattle, WA (an Amazon dinner here as well)
7. Dell - Austin, TX
8. Amgen - Los Angeles, CA

Two weeks to visit all of those sites, meet with the companies, tour their manufacturing facilities, and somewhere in there sleep and have a good time (which there was no short supply of). 

We started out at Novartis but I'm going to table talking about them for a moment as (for me anyway) they were a similar experience to Amgen so I'll talk about both of those at the end.

We should bring back white walled tires

My personal favorite stop was GM.  For me it was the epitome of a production line.  It was not only an impressive sight but we got a really good opportunity to speak with their front line workers.  They actually put us through a simulated work environment where we build wooden cars on a production line to help us really understand the stress of working on the line, learning to pull the andon cord, etc.  I'm told that past years students got to test drive cars off the line which we didn't have the opportunity to do.  BUT after our tour we were taken to the GM heritage center for dinner with GM folks and a phenomenal show room of cars.

Amazon I'm pretty sure practices black magic because I'm not sure how anything gets of out of there.  This is not a comment on them being inefficient or their facility being unimpressive.  It was just simply overwhelming how much inventory they had at their distribution center and the operational madness that would have to occur to get everything in one door and out the other.

One day...

Going to Cat was another very exciting trip.  Mainly because it was such a contrast to the GM production facility.  On the GM plant floor you are talking about a line that is constantly moving and stations that have takt times in under a minute.  Compare that with Caterpillar where if you want a D-11 track type tractor (say that ten times fast) with a completely customized set up, you will be waiting on the product for a significantly longer time.  Regardless the facility was equally as impressive.  We actually got to see a demonstration in what was basically a very large adult sandbox and much of their equipment demonstrating the ability.  They wouldn't let us actually drive the machines but we did get to play around in some simulators and climb around the real thing.

Portland as a city was my personal favorite.  Despite never having sunlight it is a really cool city.  Lots of great micro brews, great tourist attractions, overall a great a experience.  LGOs also had the option of going to the Nike employee store which I took full advantage of (I spent over $200...after a 50% discount...I'm not proud of it).

In Seattle Boeing showed us the facilities where they make the 737 and 787 (the new Dreamliners).  The facility where they make the 787 is the largest building in the world by volume.  And for a reason (those planes are REALLY BIG).  This facility was also quite overwhelming as the sheer magnitude of transporting the fuselage is incredibly difficult.  They literally had to make a new plane, called the Dreamlifter to do it.  I could try to explain it but I couldn't do it justice but I highly recommend googling it.

My personal favorite from Boeing was the engines.  They are just massive pieces of engineering and I just couldn't get over them.  If you look at the picture to the left someone (I can't remember who) is standing just next to the the one on the right and it gives a you real appreciation for the size of one those monsters.

Dell didn't have any manufacturing that we go to see but we did get to meet and speak with Michael Dell, founder and CEO of Dell.  We also got to play with a lot of their new toys and tour their design and engineering areas.  Gold Troung is also the proud owner of an XPS 13 that they auctioned off to a lucky student.  I only hate her a little bit for winning...

4 Plates of all you can eat BBQ

Some of us LGOs went out for all you can eat BBQ in Austin as well and learned that there is in fact a limit.  We went way too far past it...  I still wasn't even that hungry for lunch the next day 

And lasts but not least this brings us to LA where we saw Amgen.  Both Amgen and Novartis are probably the most foreign to me as I am NOT a chemical person in any way.  For me when we tour a facility where they make vaccines and other drugs it looks strikingly similar to a brewery tour just with more safety protocol.  Obviously that's not the case, but it was definitely interesting to get a glimpse of what goes into making these products.  We gowned into safety areas at both facilities and got to see the equipment first hand.  Unfortunately Novartis' facility is brand new and not yet completely certified so wasn't producing anything during our visit.  Regardless both were impressive facilities and eye opening by way of how much goes into the protection and service of patients who get these drugs.

Obviously a short blog won't give you the complete feel of the plant trek but it was an absolutely exhausting but rewarding experience.  Many cities we were only in for 16 hours or less, most cities we went out drinking and playing pool and exploring, and very few did we actually sleep.  On top of that I can honestly say there are VERY FEW people in the world who will ever get the experience to tour the so many facilities like we did.  Getting close to the processes, talking with the people, and learning a great deal about how these companies do business.  Two weeks exploring the country isn't a bad thing either

This is how you end plant trek

All I want for Christmas is sleep

The semester is FINALLY over!  Technically the semester ended yesterday but I was a bit lazy writing the post.  With the MBA core and two engineering classes this semester the course load was quite high but I had an absolute blast.

Paul kills it with a Santa Beard
And gives me everything I want for Christmas

The end of the semester was actually relatively relaxing, because of the way my courses worked out I only had two finals.  Leading up to that was a pretty rough two week stretch but once most of the papers and presentations were out of the way it was pretty manageable.  Especially with Meggsa Clause in the LGO office to brighten our day

In typical MBA fashion we finished off the semester with auctions for charity and drinks for stress.  Not sure how responsible it is for those two to go together but I'm happy to report that the Caribbean ocean raised $8225 dollars for the Children of Fallen Patriots and Heifer International organizations!  I don't know the numbers or organizations for the other oceans but I know they also did great work.

Now that the semester is over everyone has dispersed and enjoying some well deserved R&R.  However the LGO 14's have our Domestic plant trek coming up in January.  For those that don't know LGO's take a two week plant trek across the US during January of their first year.  This year we'll be going to Raleigh, Detroit, Indianapolis, Austin, San Diego, Portland, and Seattle.  We visit partner companies of the LGO, see their manufacturing facilities, get face time, etc.  We even get to go nuts shopping at the Nike factory store (which I will spend way too much money at).  That trip goes for two weeks in January so I'll write multiple posts then keep everyone up to date.

On a quick last note I won't be in classes next semester!  Kind of bitter sweet as I felt like I just got here but also it'll be great to have my weekends back.  I'll be doing an off cycle internship at National Grid trying to optimize how they plan for and react to damage to the power infrastructure systems.  I've gotten my thesis advisors and had a few meetings and am extremely excited to get started.

I hope everyone has a great Holiday season!

Thanksgiving, Movember, Internships, Semester closing, and DEADLINES!

As my blog title suggests...there is a LOT going on.  Too much...

First with the good.  Finally Thanksgiving is here.  My favorite holiday by far as I'm 110% justified in eating too much and watching football while slipping in and out of consciousness on the couch via food comas.  I (and many of peers do as well) unfortunately do have some work to do over break but for the most part well deserved relaxation is in order for the LGO's.  I personally am back in Buffalo with family and plan on being in sweat pants for about 97% of the time...it's gonna be fantastic.

Another great aspect of November....MOVEMBER.  Big LGO, MIT, man (and woman?....see photo) tradition and the LGO's did not disappoint (or very much did depending on how you look at it).  Unfortunately due to timing all of the participants can't be seen in the group shot but the spirit is there....hide your wives, husbands, and children everyone...

Yeah...it's not pretty...  Special shout out to Jeremy for giving his best effort.  On the original photo with enough pixels and zoom you can see his mustache...I can vouch for that.  Mine isn't much better... (in my defense however I did have an interview and had to do a mid month shave to prevent from looking totally ridiculous).  Some of us didn't get the costume memos but overall the men and ladies represented Movember well.  My personal favorite is Ben Polak pulling in a stache that is an uncanny Peter Griffin.

Speaking of that interview...I got my off cycle internship!  Very happy about it.  I'll be working at National Grid to model and simulate damage to their substations, power lines, etc. to optimize how they dispatch their repair crews BEFORE a storm hits.  Especially with Sandy recently causing havoc, having a priori knowledge of where the worst of the damage will be is invaluable to minimizing the long term effects of major storms.  I'll be starting that in February so I won't be taking classes next semester.  It kind of feels like I just got to MIT but my internship is local so I can still be involved while getting of the classroom (and actually having my weekends back).

But before I get to that point this semester has to be finished.  While it seems like the end is in site there's still a lot to do before I can put my feet up for a while.  The first week of December is going to be particularly rough as I essentially have 5 projects due that week.  It's going to be painful and right now I'm really questioning my decision to max out on credits this semester.  But I'm told from 13's that if you endure the pain now it's much lighter later...I REALLY want that to be true.

One last thing...THE DEADLINE IS APPROACHING FOR PERSPECTIVE students.  Get those applications in! I know for me the worst part of the application process was constantly checking and re-checking everything.  I have no idea how many times I edited my essays.  My advice is to not think too hard on that stuff.  If you've been putting in the time to write it and edit it and haven't put it off until the last minute.  You're going to be okay.  The best feeling is sending in that application and then it's off your chest.

Half. Way. There.

It's been a while since I've posted and it's largely because I just passed easily the toughest week I've had at MIT yet.  Three midterms, an engineering, speech presentations, group meetings, the list goes on...  It goes without saying that MIT is a tough school but I think I've got a really good idea of it now.  Don't get me wrong, still a great experience and we've gotten through half of the fall semester which is quite a feeling.

I think one of the biggest things that have hit LGOs especially during this past week was how important our time management is.  On a given day when you need to study for economics, plan a corporate meeting for your OP project, give a persuasive speech, complete a parallel computing problem set, participate in your clubs and committees, getting to the C function by 8 pm for some much needed R&R is a pretty hard thing to do.  But it's important that you learn to schedule that way.  Because obviously that problem set has to be turned in on time but missing the 90's pajama C function would also be pretty upsetting.  BBQ chicken and beer in footy pajamas is actually not a bad way to spend Thursday night.  For those who don't know, Sloan has C functions every other Thursday nights where Sloanies celebrate culture with dances, eating contests, trivia, but most important free food and drink.

Connor Doing Work

In good LGO fashion the class of 2014 is doing everything we need to do make sure we have a good time. The LGOs just had a pig roast up at Andrew's parent's house in NH.  Late nights, drinks, and great food were had by all.  IM Flag football has been a blast and we've got three games coming up next weekend (that might hurt...).  Next week IM ice hockey is starting up and the LGOs are excited to test out our skates on the ice.

LGOs have another big turning point to deal with right now.  As part of our two year program we do a six month internship.  Some LGOs will do on cycle, some will do off cycle.  If an LGO applies for off cycle and gets the job they won't be around for the spring semester and will start their internship then.  Where as on cycle students will miss the next fall.  Students will choose off cycle for the different opportunities of internships available and when they want to be on campus for specific coursework.  However it's also a weird feeling to be leaving campus already to go to an internship...feels like we just got here.  LGOs just submitted resumes for any off cycle internships they might be interested in so interviews will be taking place soon.  It's an exciting time but also an important one as this has serious impacts on our LGO careers.  I personally have applied for one and will let you know how it goes (fingers crossed...)

Lastly LGO Ambassador Day is coming up!  Ambassador Day is taking place on November 5, 2012.  If you haven't already please contact lgo@mit.edu to attend.  This is a great opportunity to visit the campus, meet faculty, staff, and students, attend a class, and really get an idea of what the program is like.  Students from years past (myself included) always agree that this is a key event in showing students how great the program is.  For more information see the following: http://lgo.mit.edu/news/articles/ambassador_day_2012/ambassador_day_2012.html.  Again I highly recommend it and hope to see you all there