GMAT Practice Test, Take 1

After about 3 weeks of studying, I finally got my self to take a practice GMAT yesterday. I did one of the online Kaplan tests that came with my book. It didn’t have the essays, but I wasn’t planning on doing those yesterday anyway.

The test wasn’t too bad. The whole computer adaptive thing makes me kind of nervous, like when I got a few really easy questions later in the quant section and I thought I was doing badly. I also finished each section about 20 minutes early. Now that I know I can definitely finish in time, I need to work on pacing myself better. Anyway, I won’t reveal my exact score, but lets just say I surprised myself in a good way. I was VERY happy. And I haven’t even finished my Kaplan book. I just need to study a few more months, get through all my books, and then I think I’ll be good to go around November/December.

An exciting start to my day

Despite what I said in my last post, not everything about the radio is bad…

This morning on the way to work I was listening to a show and they were talking about how important it is for girls to play sports because of the friendships and teamwork it builds. I’ve never called in to a radio station before but I had such a strong opinion on this topic that I decided to call. I talked to the guy who was screening the calls and told him my point about how theatre is just as beneficial for girls (or anyone) as playing sports, and he said, “That’s a great point that no one’s made, I’ll put you on hold.” They were on a commercial break at that point and and I wasn’t sure how many people would be ahead of me, but then they came back and suddenly they were saying my name and I was on the radio!

I made my point and we had a nice little conversation about how I did theatre and competed in that in high school instead of sports. It was so exhilarating! If you’re ever listening to the radio and you have something to say, CALL IN! It’s a great feeling having your opinion heard.

On overplayed songs

There aren’t many things in this world that I hate more than hearing the same few songs played OVER and OVER again on the radio.  I actually liked “California Girls” the first time I heard it a few months ago. And the second time. And even a few times after that. But by now I’ve probably heard it about 364593284 times and I want to kill myself whenever it comes on.

Once in a blue moon you finally hear a new song (which I just did in my car) and you get so excited that the first few times you’re THRILLED to hear something different. But before you know it THAT’S the new overplayed song. It’s a vicious cycle. I should stop listening to Top 40 radio.

Educated but Unqualified: The Liberal Arts Dilemma

I have a love-hate relationship with my liberal arts education.

On one hand, I think it’s a genius idea. Why should you have to know what you want to do with your life at age 18? General requirements provide a great opportunity, as annoying as it can be to figure out what to take and when to take them. We may be “adults,” but a lot of us need to be forced out of our comfort zone for the sake of expanding our minds and becoming well rounded, informed citizens. College teaches us to think for ourselves, live on our own, take on challenges, figure out what we want to do rather than just make a huge life decision while we’re still teenagers.

But at the same time, it kills me that in two years I will enter the real world with no legitimate skills. Tom Friedman wrote a great column a few weeks ago called A Gift for Grads: Start-Ups. He talked about how recent grads who are having a hard time finding jobs should just start their own companies. And I completely agree. Young, innovative minds are what we need to boost the economy and fix society’s endless problems. I would LOVE to start my own company when I graduate. I’d do it now if I could.

The problem is, I can’t. Sure, I come up with ideas all the time. Websites, services, products – I dream up all sorts of stuff when I’m bored at work. But I can’t program software, build a website, design a sustainable building, or physically create something I’ve invented in my mind. Yes, some liberal arts majors can do these things. Unfortunately I am not one of those people who thought to major in computer science or physics. Nope, I’m way over in social sciences, studying economics and psychology. Will I be able to apply some of the things I’ve learned in my future career? Probably. Have I gained the concrete skills necessary to create the kind of company Friedman is talking about? No siree. You’d think the econ would help in business, but the psych screwed me over by convincing me that all that supply-and-demand nonsense they teach us doesn’t apply in the real world, where people are irrational.

If I had to go back and do it again, or even if I could transfer now to major in business or engineering or whatever, I wouldn’t. In fact, I would probably drop one of my majors so I could take MORE useless classes in random departments. I think of these years in college as mainly a time to explore and mature. I just hope my “explorations” and internships amount to something in 2 years when I have to get a real job.