How My Least Favorite Class Became My Most Influential

The most influential class that I have taken at Marian is BUS-309 which stands for Comprehensive Analysis of Business. I took this class last semester and at the time I hated that class.

The course was technically 3 classes built into one which consisted of finance, law, and strategy. So, we learned different material in each of those sections. However, on top of learning material for three different sections, we were also given a semester-long project to work on. We were paired into groups and as a class, we were all assigned the same business client. Our task as a group was to research and agree on a company that we believed would be a good fit for our client to acquire. Then at the end of the semester, our entire class would present our acquisition ideas to our client and other faculty/staff. So with all the work assigned for this course, I had a pretty busy semester.

On the first day of class, the professor pointed out to us that only 10% of students would receive an A. So, that should give you a little bit of an idea of how difficult this class was designed to be. The professor also referred to finals week as "hell week" and that we should clear our schedules to be completely available for that week.

For just this one class, I had daily homework assignments, daily study sessions, and weekly group meetings. I ended up pulling so many all-nighters to get my work done. I tried complaining to the professor so many times about needing time for my other classes but he’d always say “treat my class like the real world and prioritize your time”.

A couple of weeks into the course we had our first quiz and let’s just say that I was not too happy with my grade. If I was going to be ready for “hell week” I had to have better preparation. So, after realizing that this course was going to be pretty challenging for me, I started taking advantage of my professor’s office hours. I visited his office with questions about the material pretty much every day. Even when I didn't have any questions regarding class material from that day I still dropped by just to say hi or ask about upcoming tests/assignments. Along with office visits, I also started to participate more in class by asking and answering questions. I also attended every single study session that there was before major quizzes or exams. I even started prioritizing this course over the other courses that I was enrolled in for that semester. However, even when I felt like I was putting all of my efforts into this course it still did not seem to be paying off.

So, after completing "hell week", and all of the graded homework assignments, exams, and presentations I thought that there was no way I’d get any final course grade higher than a C. Then unexpectedly came final semester grades and I actually screamed out loud when I saw my BUS-309 grade. Not only had I received a better grade than what I expected but I even passed with an A.

At the beginning of this semester, I stopped by my BUS-309 professor’s office and thanked him for my grade. He then let me know that I shouldn't have been surprised with my grade because I deserved it. He told me that I got an A because of all the extra effort that I put into his course. He never required students to ask him questions and attend study sessions but he paid attention to the ones that did.

This course was supposed to be tough so that students would learn what it's like in the real world. Once I graduate I will be responsible for myself and there won't be teachers around to tell me what to do. All of the quick deadlines served as a way to see how we could handle pressure and fast-paced situations. I also learned to step outside of my comfort zone because I had never taken classes like this before. I was so used to just doing assignments, turning them in, and getting an A but this class forced me to really engage. Most importantly, the business field is all about communication and personality. I learned that it is important to reach out when I need help and ask questions because if I don’t then I won’t receive that help. The professor acknowledged my work and saw that I wanted to improve.

Overall, after having some time to reflect, I’ve realized that what I thought was my worst class turned out to be my most influential.