As discussed the other day, I am taking a class toward my MBA this semester. The Hoos was able to work out being home by 6:15 every Monday so that I can get to my 7pm class at UCONN- Stamford. After I complete this course I will have finally passed the halfway mark (this is the 10th of the 19 courses required by the program). Since I am only slowly pecking away at the degree, I continue to try to knock out all of the required courses first.
This fall I am taking Financial Management. Reading the description I figured it would be something about reading financial statements and maybe doing some basic calculations. The course did have some accounting and statistics pre-reqs that I completed sometime in the past few years, but I wasn't really worried about the content. Then I was emailed our first quiz. We didn't actually have a class before receiving the quiz, this little test was meant to gear us up for what was coming, I think. If that is the case, suffice it to say I am either 1. screwed or 2. really lucky that the tests are all take-home.
Here is an example:
8. Solve for n:
(a) 275 (1.04)n = 440.28
(b) [1-(1.06)-n]/0.06=8.384
Of course, upon seeing this, I did what every other self-respecting marketing /communications professional would do - I looked for help. I emailed my brother, a computer engineer, to ask for some advice. He sent me back some answers (this is a direct lift from his email):
8a) 275(1.04^n)=440.28
1.04^n=1.60102
n ln (1.04) = ln (1.60102)
n ( 0.039221) = 0.47064
n = 12
8b) same way as 8a
Umm...okay. Hopefully most of you are just as confused as I was upon seeing this. So I call him up at his office out in California and say, "Thanks, I really appreciate it, but what the heck is 'ln'?" He goes on to explain that this is natural log a function used with exponents and that I should remember it from my calculus courses. I remind him that the last time I took a math class was my freshman year of college - THIRTEEN YEARS AGO.
Anyway, all I have to say now is thank goodness for big brothers. I know I will be leaning on mine quite a bit over the coming months.
4 comments:
Better you than me!!! That math equation made my head spin. I admire you for going back to school and sticking to it. Good luck. - Dianna
oh my goodness... is that a foreign language? I think the last time I took a math class was my junior year of HIGH SCHOOL. So almost 20 years ago?!? Ack!
I personally think it would be easier for me to learn Latin than math, at this point. Or learn how to walk on my hands, or breakdance, or grow blond hair. Anything but math.
This is why I'm pursuing an M.S. instead of MBA. Dean sold me when she said- no quantitative math - just qualitative analyses!
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