MAA103

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.

Case competitions are the business degree cheat code. One state final = three interview stories, two referees, and a line on the resume that every consulting screener stops at. MAA103 group work is the training ground, so treat it seriously.

Presentation hack from my public speaking elective: record yourself once on your phone before any assessed talk. Painful to watch, instantly fixes the filler words. My MAA103 pitch went from a credit to a distinction.