A Message from the MBAA President: The Airport Test

Back when I was working in management consulting (wait, was that only a year ago?), when we were hiring someone one of our main criteria was called “The Airport Test.” Eventually if we hired this person someone was bound to be stuck with him or her for an extended period of time at an airport, and it was important to decide if the resulting conversation would be exciting or vapid. Basically we wanted to hire interesting people.

Well I’m delighted to report that after spending a year with my classmates, it is my conclusion that the admissions office has the same test. I am constantly amazed at how many different interests we have. We have runners, climbers, cyclists, hikers, ultimate players (Frisbee, not creepy), movie buffs, poker enthusiasts, volunteers, foodies, gamers, techies, fashionistas, and many more. That’s not even counting our wide variety of business interests, from marketing to finance, start-ups to Fortune 50, non-profit to investment banking.

What makes Foster such a great place to be is that not only do we have so many diverse interests, but we all want to share them with each other. There are so many different small groups that have formed, each with a specific interest, and each excited to share that interest with the rest of the class. Together with the formal MBAA (MBA Association) clubs, these informal social clubs form the real glue of our school by bringing people together.

As the president of the MBAA, my job is to empower and enable students to create both the formal and informal clubs, and to be sure that we are sharing our interests with the community at large. At the risk of sounding a tad conceited, I want the world to realize what I have: that Foster students are pretty darn awesome people, and the world-at-large would be lucky to have us in their companies, on their boards, or just at their parties.

So here is my challenge to next year’s class, which I issued at the admit weekends. Over the summer, think about how you want to be involved outside of the classroom, where you want to contribute. What gets you up in the morning? What is your passion? And most importantly, how will you share that passion with the rest of Foster? When you arrive in the fall, look me up and tell me what you decided. That’s what the MBAA is here to help you do.

~ Guest Blogger Jason Rankin, Full-Time Class of 2012 and MBAA President