Lan Pham

Budget meal prep that got me through first year: a big pot of fried rice on Sunday, eggs, frozen veg and whatever protein is on special. About $3 a meal and better than the food court.

Homesick this week. Found a Vietnamese grocery near Box Hill that sells the same instant noodles my mum buys. Small thing but it helped. Where do you go when you miss home food?

Year 2 Business students keep asking me whether they have to choose between going on exchange and landing a consulting vacation program. You don't, but you need to plan backwards from the deadlines, not forwards from your wishes. Here is exactly what I did. February of year 2: applied for the PwC summer vacationer program while also shortlisting three exchange universities. Most people think these clash, but vacation programs run over the Australian summer and most northern hemisphere exchange semesters start in August or September, so you can do both in the same year. March: booked a meeting with the Deakin Abroad team and mapped my core units. MAA103 was the one that almost blocked me because the host uni had no direct equivalent, so I got it approved as an elective and took it at home first. That single meeting saved me a whole trimester. May to July: interviews. Every behavioural question I got had a better answer because I could talk about why I chose my exchange university and how I would use it. Consulting firms love anyone who has had to adapt quickly in a new country. Finally, budget. The OS-HELP loan covered my flights and first month of rent, and the vacation program pay covered the rest. Start the paperwork now, it is slower than any interview.

MMK101 group presentation next week and I would really appreciate feedback from any marketing seniors. Our brief is to relaunch a local cafe brand for university students. We ran a small survey in our tutorial and found that students care more about study-friendly space and power outlets than about price, which surprised us. So our idea is to position the cafe as a study spot, not a cheap coffee place. For the 4Ps: product is a study bundle with coffee and a pastry, price stays mid-range, place is the existing store with extra outlets and quiet hours, and promotion is Instagram and TikTok content filmed during exam weeks. I made the slides in Canva using a brand board like the one in the photo. My worries: is a survey of 30 classmates enough evidence of consumer behaviour, or will the marker say it is biased? And how do we present the promotion plan without it sounding like a list of social media apps? I also want to practise presenting slowly and clearly because English is my second language. Any advice on structure or on the HubSpot course modules worth doing before Friday would help a lot.

Starting MMK101 this trimester and honestly the readings are a lot. Is there a senior who explains things slowly? I understand better with real examples than slides.

Exchange application diary, entry 1: the hardest part so far is the unit mapping spreadsheet, not the essays. Start matching your units to the host uni's catalogue MONTHS early. Asking past exchange students for their approved mappings saved me weeks.

Has anyone in Business actually done an exchange? I'm torn between trimester 1 and trimester 2 of third year. I keep hearing trimester 2 has better scholarship odds, but it clashes with internship recruiting season. Would really appreciate advice from someone who has been through it.

MMK101 tip for anyone who finds the theory dry: every time a lecture introduces a framework, pick one brand you actually buy from and apply it on the spot. I did the 4Ps on my favourite bubble tea shop and suddenly segmentation, pricing and positioning were not abstract anymore. The exam questions are basically this exercise with a brand they choose.