School of Business Administration, Portland State University

An Ode to the Part-Time MBA Class of 2003*

O to all of you sitting comfortably there in black,
We seem to have reached the finish line, there’s no use in holding back.
Cause we’ve done our time and picked up some business knack
From studying everything from strategy to the Paris Cac.

I’ve done my last in class SWOT and feel it is safe to say
That when my next job asks me too I will say that tool is so passé

Instead let me do a TOWS, a NPV or dare I say A Porter 5 Forces
Let me reach into my MBA tool bag so full of new resources

Kotler, Bass, Brealey Meyers, or the O so godly Harvard Business Review
Alas, I am stuck again to my seat in BA 170 because of some old gum chew.

ROI, EPS. Doing a pro forma? Then make your best guess!
Yield curves, demand curves, and the standard deviation
Is it Break time yet? I feel a pang for Hot Lips pizza and libation.

Accounting was tough and so was finance if it were not for my fellow classmates I would surely still be in that trance

Work, family, school. I am this MBA’s pawn
This balancing act seems so impossible God,
Hey neighbor while you’re at it could you please help me mow my lawn?

Quick its 5:30 soon I will be late to class
The car in front is slow; at 80 I will make my pass
zipping through traffic PSU is in my sight,
If only I could find a parking spot some time tonight.

I run to my class book and note pad in toe
I wonder, “Am I up to date on the reading?” O the professor will never know
The door swings open and I step in with work and family on the mind
And all your silent eyes that greet me are always just so kind

They say, “We know this part-time MBA path encumbers,
So take a seat, and realize that there is strength in our numbers
We are all in this together so lean on us if you must
Our goal is the mighty MBA or bust

We are all so grateful for the love and support from parents, family, friends, and spouses,
Knowing full well that the MBA stress sometimes turned us into louses

So fondly, do I look back upon these past 3 years,
Feeling so lucky to have gone through this with you as my peers.

*Shown here with permission from the author.