Week 50: Electives - Block E (t-minus 1 week)

Week 50. Just one week to go! Summer has arrived, or at least it feels like it. Most days are sunny now and its fairly warm during the afternoons. However, the evenings still get quite chilly.

Project Management continued with the class covering PERT and critical path. Everyone in the course seems to be enjoying it and the team teaching style seems to be working well. Students cannot miss even a single class or they will not complete the required 35 hours of classroom instruction required by the PMI to earn the PMP designation.

Marketing of New Ventures had a few guest lecturers. Topics covered were public relations, advertising and market entry strategies. People also seem to be enjoying this course.

Sales Management is still ongoing. I don't have an update on the class material covered as I'm not in this elective and I haven't had a chance to talk with anyone taking it. This is typical of the situation the class finds itself at the moment. We are all in different classes, some people are not even taking classes, and as a result we are rarely all in the same place at the same time.

Corporate Financing and Capital Budgeting Decisions has been interesting. The professor, Alex Faseruk, is here from Memorial University in St. John's Newfoundland for the 2 weeks required to teach the course. Material covered has been Real Estate project selection, Economic Value Added, Biotech/technology company valuation along with a review of pretty much all the finance material we have covered (i.e. different kinds of debt and equity, WACC, NPV, etc.). The professor is quite entertaining and realizes that we are all pretty tired after what we have been through. Students have assembled themselves into groups to complete a case analysis and 2 abstracts on other cases. The case a group analyzes is also the case they present to the class. Overall this is a very useful course as it really brings all the different pieces of the finance puzzle together.

This week we had a final class session with the BCC. They will be offering some basic consultation until mid-May when the next class starts. After that they will try to assist us, but their priority will be focused on the new class.

Also, there is a series of items we have been given to complete to graduate:

• Update mailing address on Alumni site
• Update mailing address on QCARD
• Meet with BCC for 5 minutes one-on-one
• Return keys & swipe cards
• Complete MBA exit survey
• Pay outstanding debts to the University and return all books to Library

All of these need to be signed-off by various people to ensure we can graduate

This week was the final point four. It was held at the Toucan and a lot of people came out. I'm sure there will still be gathers occurring, but the official "point four" has been put to rest.

Tomorrow we have our graduation dinner. This is a formal dinner being held in Ban Righ Hall and the results of the various awards the class had to vote on will be revealed. Should be a good evening and a great way to cap off the year.

This weekend will be filled with packing and some homework. Perhaps I will find some time to hangout with my peers. Only one week to go.