This entry is all about avoiding the three looming papers and valuation project that are due next week and instead filling you in on the summer options here at Said Business School.

Essentially, you have a choice of three summer scenarios, with some room for creativity and combinations:
1. Strategic Consulting Project (SCP): This is an eight-week consulting gig performed with a team of four students…I’ll explain more in a minute.
2. Summer Electives: Two week-long summer electives (you can two at the same time and get it over with in one busy week) also provide the necessary credits for degree completion. Taking electives frees up the rest of your summer to do an internship, write your next business plan, or sit on a beach somewhere far from the business school.
3. Thesis: Individual research thesis…unless you are really into research and/or have a project that would warrant this kind of work, the thesis option is not a very popular one.

Summer Consulting Project:
The SCP is a great opportunity to actually try out all the stuff you’ve learned over the year. While I obviously haven’t done mine yet, I’ve been told by various alumni that they really did use something from every class during the SCP. Sponsors (corporates, non-profits, individuals, etc) for the projects are solicited by the Projects Office at the School, and this year they presented a list of about 40 different projects ranging from a feasibility study with the Borough President in on how to support social entrepreneurship in the Bronx, NY to a study on the impact of 20/20 Cricket by the International Cricket Council, to a merger integration project for the Royal Bank of Scotland Group. The School coordinates a bidding system in which teams bid for projects in order of preference, and submit CVs and cover letters for each project of interest. Teams can bid for up to ten projects. The companies review the teams, typically interview several, then choose the team they like best. In general, it seemed like most teams got their first or second choice. Most projects include a travel/living expense stipend, though there is a cap on compensation. Each project has a scope of work and deliverables clearly defined ahead of time, and students have to turn in a final report to the exam schools at the end of the eight-week session.

Students can also source their own projects by approaching companies that they’re interested in earlier in the year and setting up a project directly. Companies work with the project office to make things “official” and students are guaranteed the project if it is self-sourced.

I am SUPER excited about the project that we ended up with. Four of us will be heading to Tanzania for the summer to work on new business development plans for an organization called APOPO. APOPO has developed a system for training giant African pouched rats to sniff out landmines—does it get any better than that? I didn’t think so, either. Here’s a video of what they’re doing:

SummerElectives:

Week-long summer electives are offered from the end of Trinity term through the first week in September. Several of the really popular electives from Trinity are repeated, so if you don’t get into the class that you want in the third term there may be a chance to take it in the summer. While the courses are condensed and intensive, I’ve heard that some of the best courses of the year are taught over the summer. This is also a great option if you’re looking to set up an individual internship or other type of non-assessed arrangement during the summer months.

Thesis:
As I said, not many people choose this option, though it’s a great one to have if you need the entire summer for an internship, or if you have future plans that would benefit from a dedicated research project.

Finally, the school allows students to extend the MBA into a 15 month program, allowing you to take the entire summer for an internship, and then participating in an SCP from September—November. This is great, again, because it allows for additional flexibility. The only catch is that you need to find three other students who are on the same time schedule. You could write a thesis in the fall term, as well.