Memo

To: Erika Paterson

From: Ilanna Barkusky I.B.

Date: March 10^th, 2016

Subject: Progress Report on Grad School Application Package

As you have requested, here is my progress report on my application package. I have chosen to apply for the Masters of Business Program at the Sauder School of Business.

I have chosen to apply for the full-time program, which will take place over 16 months. I will be electing to take the Innovation and Entrepreneurship track as I feel this most directly aligns with my career ambitions. I have taken courses within the Sauder School of Business during my undergraduate degree in both Innovation Leadership and Entrepreneurship and they have both been great experiences.

More information can be found at the link below:

http://www.sauder.ubc.ca/Programs/MBA/MBA_Full_Time/Program_Overview/Career_Tracks/Business_Innovation

My timeline will be as follows:

Upon approval from Dr. Paterson: Begin compiling application package

March 25^th: Complete Rough Draft

April 4^th: Complete Application Package

Please let me know if you have any questions on the progress of my application process.

This unit differed from the two previous within the course, and as such, my approach to these assignments was different. Additionally, my learning experience also changed as I was utilizing different sets of skills.

This unit focused heavily on the development of a draft for the formal report. This required increased attention to detail compared to other assignments, as the framework put together within the drafts would shape the finished product. The importance of the early stages of drafting made this assignment more important than the typical draft I would put together. After I had organized my data and put together my recommendations, it became clear that attention to detail within this draft was crucial. The main elements of the formal report were now established, and I am able to improve based on comments from the peer review. My research findings were not what I expected, which was an interesting curveball. It was refreshing to have to adapt to writing a report that went in a different direction than what I was expecting.

On the other hand, providing a peer review of another group member’s formal draft report was also a worthwhile experience. I believe that this peer review will also help me compose a well thought out final product on my own. It was useful to be able to read through a formal report, which was drastically different from mine in terms of subject matter. This helped serve as a good benchmark for the guidelines of writing a formal report regardless of the topic. I hope I provided useful comments, as I felt slightly under-qualified assessing the research that was conducted. It appeared as though the information gathered was very thought out and calculated. As a result, with some more briefing on the topic I would have felt more qualified in critiquing the research methods. In this circumstance, the audience would need to be pretty specific, all being aware of terminology and other factors. I also found that by giving advice and feedback on another group member’s report, that I was able to step back and view my own report more objectively. I was able to examine my own work for the flaws I was pointing out in the peer review process.

Overall, the course is trending in a different direction with more emphasis on major assignments. I look forward to putting together the final few pieces of the puzzle in unit four. It will be interesting to reflect at the conclusion of the course and compare my experiences and learning processes throughout each unit. I plan on examining if my approach and learning experiences changed between units. Looking forward to it!

This unit involved practicing many useful writing skills in different realms, including creating a LinkedIn profile and preparing a report proposal and outline. As such, this unit was a great way to expand my writing experience and develop writing techniques I haven’t used before.

Firstly, I had already created a LinkedIn profile so this assignment had a different meaning for me. It was interesting to receive a peer review from another student who examined the ability for my profile to communicate my qualifications and experience. It was refreshing to receive feedback from someone outside the industry I work in, and this perspective provided new ways to improve that would not be possible otherwise. Peer reviewing has definitely impacted my own personal view of my writing, as it is very helpful to be consistently getting feedback. If there are any patterns that multiple peers were to pick up on, then one would be able to make a note of that as an area to specifically improve. Otherwise, different peers pick up on different aspects of the writing experience and therefore switching partners constantly has provided different opinions to utilize from.

Furthermore, during this unit I put together a formal report outline and progress report. I am very intrigued to see the responses, as I feel as though I could definitely be surprised by the findings. I am excited to analyze the results from the surveys and compare them between students from different academic backgrounds.

Overall, developing my own report proposal and peer reviewing others has allowed me to learn how to directly write for a specific audience and tailoring your voice accordingly. I’m looking forward to getting the opportunity to work on this more in the weeks ahead.

Peer Review Formal Report Proposal for Jake Bauer from Ilanna Barkusky

Ilanna Barkusky Progress Report

Unit One was already an extremely valuable learning experience for me, and I am excited to continue to dive deeper into the course in the coming weeks. This week’s assignment revolved around defining a complex term, and I chose a photographic concept that is imperative to know, yet difficult to grasp. Some important aspects of the term I chose are counter-intuitive, which made the assignment a welcome challenge for me to try and explain effectively.

The feedback I received was extremely helpful, and very thorough. I have noticed that it is difficult to look at work you have produced objectively, since you have a sort of attachment to what you have produced. Therefore, I am now able to refer back to this instance of peer review for future assignments in order to improve as a writer! I think it is important to seek out outside feedback and constructive criticism whenever possible and hope that the comments I provided in return were helpful. However, I did notice that my feedback was quite opinionated, and therefore it would be interesting to note if others would disagree with my comments.

As far as my own definitions that I produced, I learned a few things along the way. Firstly, it was challenging to find adequate sources to strengthen my definitions that were also specifically geared towards the audience I was writing for. The process of gathering research was much more difficult than I had initially imagined. Additionally, this week was once again a learning experience for me in terms of time management. I enjoy the fact that this course is writing intensive with frequent deadlines close together, I believe that this will help build other important skills in the future!

I am looking forward to applying what I have learned this week to the rest of the course!

My assignments can be found here:

Definition Assignment

Peer Review ENG 301