The 2018 class of Evening & Weekend Berkeley MBA students arrived on campus July 31 for a whirlwind weekend of work sessions, an introduction to the Haas Defining Principles, cohort skits, and team-building exercises.
A total of 254 students split into four cohorts during the class orientation, which was renamed WE LAUNCH this year.
All events were held on the Haas campus, serving as a first opportunity for students to get to know their cohort members and other first-years, professors, and second- and third-year students.
On average, students in the Class of 2018 have eight years work experience in 35 industries at companies including Google, Apple, Disney, Wells Fargo, Target, Oracle, Chevron, Salesforce, and Genentech. The average age is 31; 29 percent of the class is women.
The weekend kicked off Friday with a welcome from Dean Rich Lyons and concluded Sunday with Lecturer Mark Rittenberg’s preview of his spring Leadership Communications course.
“The transformation among the class between Friday arrival to Sunday was phenomenal,” said Courtney Chandler, assistant dean of the EWMBA program. “So many students arrived as strangers and left as friends, who are now an integral part of the Haas community and feeling confident about starting the three-year program.”
Each day focused on a different Haas Defining Principle: Question the Status Quo, Confidence without Attitude, Students Always and Beyond Yourself, with sessions relating the principles to the curriculum. Breakout sessions addressed everything from financial aid to career management to the key resources required to succeed at Haas.
The 2018 class is diverse and multilingual; students represent 23 countries and speak 42 languages. Half the class is married; 43 students have children.
About 63 of the students work in technology/electronics, followed by 30 students in financial services/banking, and 25 class members in biotech/health services/pharma. About 56 students are engineers, while 33 students work in marketing or sales, and 25 students are in consulting.
Check out the winning Axe Cohort skit from orientation.