Essay 1
Describe your short-term and long-term career goals, and how the MBA will help you achieve those goals. Include in your discussion: Why is now the appropriate time to pursue an MBA, and why are you interested in obtaining a Rice MBA? (Maximum 750 words)
Although I began my career in the Operations Vertical of the Drilling Industry, I have always been interested in finance, especially energy finance. Supervising the setting up of Onshore & Offshore Oil Rigs has never been enough for me and I have always wanted to be part of the financial action behind the oil price changes which have far reaching consequences for the entire industry. Whenever we have faced changes in the volumes of drilling orders or abrupt stoppage of the on-going projects, I have tried to map it to the corresponding oil price fluctuations. Over the years, such observations have not only led me to understand the past trends of volatile energy prices more closely, but it has also helped me grow a lot of interest in the field of Energy Finance. Over time, I have become better at my ability to make some crude sense out of the basic financial numbers.
Having worked in Operations vertical for four years, I now want to explore my deep interest in financial aspects of Oil and Gas Industry by pursuing a career in Energy Finance. But such a transition from operations to finance requires me to first equip myself with knowledge on Energy Finance and then join the finance industry. Since I would be starting from scratch, as a short term goal, I would like to start as an Equity Analyst in an Energy Investment Firm and after gaining further exposure, work my way up to become an Energy Fund Manager in the long run. For the career transition, my experiences from the Drilling Industry would be insightful, especially in trying to understand the business impact of the volatile energy prices on certain organizations and projects. Such an operational understanding of energy industry would help me quickly learn skills related to Finance & Investments. In addition, my learning from my job and my background in Petroleum Engineering could also come in handy during discussions on business case studies related to petroleum field.
The Rice MBA is an ideal program for me to facilitate my transition from operations to energy finance, since it is one of the very few reputed programs that offer Energy and Finance concentration with a strong finance focus. Such a program would not only equip me with the knowledge required for a career change but it would also provide me with the desired career opportunities in the field of Energy Finance. Electives such as Equity Practicum and Energy Derivatives would help me learn some of the many new concepts I need to develop a holistic understanding about the Energy Finance Sector. Projects such as the Action Learning Project Week on Wall Street, will allow me to work on live projects, thereby allowing me to analytically appraise the information and articulate it into useful insights.
I would also love to join the Jones’s Energy club, Finance club and Rice Energy Finance Summit (REFS) to network with like-minded classmates interested in Finance & Energy industry. The numerous events that group offers would allow me to listen to industry stalwarts as they come for speaker sessions or to go on workshops and interact with industry professionals. The entire immersive approach of the group would not only give me a peep into the industry but would also help me take an informed career decision as I take my first plunge into the Energy Finance.
Overall, I am confident that the Rice MBA, with its Energy Finance concentrations would prove to be the best career investment, allowing me to benefit from its strong industry connect and quality education.
Mission MBA 