West Village

The West Village apartments are in prime location in respect to Durham’s nightlife. It’s just a couple steps away from Shooters II Saloon and right next to Brightleaf Square. Convenient? Yes. You’ll be able to get your dance on or enjoy a delicious dinner from the array of restaurants nearby. The buildings used to be tobacco warehouses a long time ago. The apartments have high ceilings and wooden columns, which gives them a rustic and hipster feel. West Village offers apartment options ranging from studios to 4-bedroom apartments. They’re on the slightly pricier side, but it might be worth it to be so close to all the dining and nightlife options. It’s a little further away from Fuqua and West Campus, but only about a 5-10 min drive away. There is also a pool to enjoy on those extra warm sunny days.

The Belmont

The Belmont is definitely where A LOT of Dukies live; both undergrad and grad students. These are more traditional style apartments compared to West Village. It is located within walking distance from Duke, but there are also buses that stop nearby and go to campus. If you want to hit up the grocery store or grab some food on the way back home, Kroger and several dining options are close by. The Belmont has both one-bedroom and two-bedroom options available.

Partner’s Place Condominiums

Partner’s Place is known as a party apartment complex as on most weekends you will find loud music and multiple parties throughout. It is more of an undergrad area, as many juniors and seniors tend to live at Partners. It is about half a mile away from Duke’s medical/research campus. There are 3 bedroom options available. The one downside I have about this housing option is that the parking spaces are incredibly tight.

Lofts at Lakeview Apartments

Plenty of MMS-ers lived at the Lofts this year, which has made it a convenient location to host parties and gatherings. We’ve had pool parties, Victoria’s Secret fashion show viewings, and Chinese New Year celebrations at the Loft. This apartment complex offers both one- and two-bedroom options. It is conveniently located next to Chipotle, TGIF, and many other restaurants so you will never run out of food options if you live here.

Trinity Commons

Trinity Commons is pretty much in the same vicinity as the Lofts, so if you choose to live here, you have the same access to all the dining options. They offer both one-bedroom and two-bedroom options. Trinity Commons prides itself on its commitment to being eco-friendly.

Erwin Terrace

It’s conveniently located right next to LoYo, so if you’re a frozen yogurt fan, you may want to consider living here. Erwin Terrace offers two-bedroom options. It is located within walking distance from campus, but there are also busing options available.

Station 9

Many of Fuqua’s MBA students live at Station 9, but I only know of a couple MMS-ers who lived here this year. It is conveniently located right across from Ninth Street and is a quick drive to campus. Station 9 offers both one- and two-bedroom options.

Erwin Mill

The Erwin Mill apartments have a warehouse feel, similar to that of West Village. These apartments are pretty much in the same area as Station 9, so all of the Ninth Street offerings are just a quick walk away. More undergrads tend to live here, and it has been know to be a party area.

The Parc at University Tower

The Parc has been my own home for this past year. It is conveniently located right across from a Target. It may be a bit more removed than the other apartment options I’ve listed, but it only takes a five minute drive to get to Fuqua. Rent and utilities are affordable compared to some of the other options. With it being a gated community, I feel safe living at the Parc. There are one-, two-, and three-bedroom options available. There is also a nice pool area, so when it gets nice out, I love spending some time by the poolside.

Guest blogger Annika Buettner

Throughout the summer and fall terms, several case competitions were hosted at Fuqua (e.g. with Accenture — read a previous blog post about it). Yet, I was wondering whether a competition existed that was more specifically tailored toward solving marketing issues. As the MMS Marketing Club President, I was continuously on the lookout for ideas for new events and eventually came across the Babson Marketing Case Competition in Boston. It didn’t take long to form a competitive team to participate in the event. With a wide variety of skills and backgrounds, my team members were: Gayathri Parthasarathy, Carmen Flores, and Marc Andreoli.

On the day of our departure, we left Durham with curiosity, respect for the other teams and a willingness to compromise sleep in order to give it our best. We would be competing with 21 MBA teams from all over the USA (including teams from Berkeley, MIT and Tuck). Knowing that all of them most likely have more work experience than us (MBA: around 5 years, MMS: 0-2 years), we entered the competition determined to prove that we can offset our limited work experience through dedication, team spirit, and having more fun with the topic.

With my teammates Marc Andreoli, Gayathri Parthasarathy, and Carmen Flores at the case competition.

At Babson in Boston

Upon arrival in Boston on a recent Friday afternoon, we immediately started working through the case. After a welcome reception with all teams as well as the executives of the sponsoring company, we continued to brainstorm until late at night. With only 3 hours of sleep, we arrived at Babson College on Saturday morning to receive further information on the final task.

Our challenge was to identify and evaluate growth options that align with the case company’s social mission along with developing the accompanying marketing program and measures to determine its success. Within only 5 hours, our strategy as well as our PowerPoint presentation needed to be finalized before presenting our ideas in front of the judges. Our first presentation went well, but we weren’t sure how to feel about it since we did not hear the presentations of the other teams. In one hour, we would find out which 5 out of the 21 teams would move on to the final round of the competition. Should we continue to work on our strategy and the presentation in the meantime? No, let’s not be too optimistic …

With our winnings!

The next thing we knew, the organizers announced “Team Fuqua” as one of the finalists. We couldn’t believe it! A big hug for each team member and then we rushed to perfect our slides for the final presentation 15 minutes later, in a room of 90 participants, with 10 judges. What a nerve-racking experience.

Later, at the Cocktail Reception and Awards Ceremony it was announced that we won second place, and we received an award check! In addition, our teammate Gayathri was named “Speaker of the Day.” All the recognition was a great honor. Many participants as well as judges praised our presentation skills, team spirit and enthusiasm, which we knew had been strongly influenced by our MMS Business Communication classes. What we’ve learned in the MMS program prepared us well for the competition, and put us on a more level playing field with top MBAs. Despite the hard work, it’s a truly enriching memory to have before graduating from the MMS program! Go Team Fuqua!

Lily and Tracy getting ready for the competition.

The air outside the Fox Center was unusually scented with spices and herbs from around the world, creating a cacophony of sensations as I perused each table. Atop each surface were even more sensational ingredients, lumpy brown roots and soft white proteins, most of which I’ve never seen gracing the shelves of my local market. You could tell each team had their own strategy for beating the competition as they whispered quietly with one another and tied each other into aprons. Perhaps some of the teams thought these mystery ingredients would give them an extra edge. But of course this is all speculation because no one wanted to divulge their secret plans to me!

Tejesvi and Jean, part of the MMS Iron Chef team.

A woman with a megaphone shouted that the teams had 30 minutes to prepare one of the courses, and the courtyard erupted in a bedlam of noise, metal spatulas scraping skillets and frenzied chatter between teammates.

The lovely MMS team was well represented, the bench stacked with heavy hitters from the Connoisseurs Club. Headed by Jiali and Jean, the club decided to prepare their dishes in a simple Asian style, so they devised a 3 course menu reflecting this theme, which had some pretty complicated ingredients — like edible flowers — for something that was supposed to be rustic Asian fare.

My view might be slightly skewed, because while I am able to sit in the kitchen while my father does his thing with a wok, I am stilled banned from doing any cooking in our house. This ban was unjustly implemented after my parents visited me on a snowy weekend at law school in Pennsylvania. While boiling water for tea, I literally set the stove on fire. It wasn’t pretty …

The teams were given $75 bucks to do their best to find ingredients at the grocery store. Our team pulled out all the stops and bought from Whole Foods, but some ingredients, teammate Tracy Jim said, were from the Chinese market. For instance, Chinese ginger root, which I’m told is used in Chinese medicine, can’t be found on even the trendiest, most obscure shelves of the Whole Foods market.

Although the MMS team didn’t win the top prize, I am seriously impressed with their skills with a skillet. You guys are welcome in my kitchen any time!

Iron Chef entree.

2013 MMS Iron Chef Menu

Appetizer: Phoenix Wings and Ginger Crumble Salad Wings glazed with coke and soy sauce, with a hint of red ginger. Paired with a salad topped with ginger crumbles.

Entrée: Super MMS Style Stewed Chicken. Chicken infused with fresh ginger, green onion, garlic, and herbs, stewed and simmered to perfection for a delightful aroma.

Dessert: Milk of Ginger Pudding. An innovative Chinese treat blending fresh milk and ginger juice in a “magical” combination. Topped with mint, fruit and chocolate powder.

As graduation gets closer, many international students have already filed their Optional Practical Training (OPT) status with Duke Visa Services. Here is what I have found out about OPT and what it can do for me:

Let’s say I got a full-time job offer and my employer requires that I start working prior to October 1, which is the start date of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) fiscal year, which is also the start date of any newly granted H-1B visas. So there is a gap in my visa coverage between graduation in May and October 1. OPT is here to fill the gap, with a slight twist, however. Since H-1B visas are in high demand, once they are open for application in early April, they are gone usually before the end of summer (this year the cap was reached in just 5 days after USCIS started to accept new H1-B fillings). In this case, I will need to be on OPT for one year. During OPT, my H-1B application should be prepared for the next year’s filing. So, for example, if I get an offer in 2013, stay on OPT for 2013 – 2014, then apply for the H-1B in April 2014, and change my visa status from F-1 with OPT to H-1B on October 1, 2014. Even though there is another gap between 2014 summer (end of my OPT) and October 1, 2014, my OPT should still be valid since USCIS has recognized this issue and fixed it with “Cap Gap,” which provides student work authorization until the H-1B takes affect.

If I don’t have an offer by the time of OPT application, I can use OPT as a buffer to continue job search after graduation. Since the grace period after graduation for every F-1 student is 2 months, with or without OPT, a student can theoretically stay in the U.S. for up to 5 months after finishing his/her program. This is because OPT grants students 3 months to continue job search. If I find a job within 3 months of receiving the Employment Authorization Document (EAD), I may continue working until exactly 12 months after getting the EAD. However, if I can’t find a job or internship within those 3 months, my U.S. visa status will expire.

Duke Visa Services is an extremely helpful and trusted resource. The staff members there have assisted Duke international students, workers, and scholars for many years, and thus have seen all types of passports, visas, and “weird” visa situations. Check out the visa office’s website. Going over FAQs is what I found the most useful.

Remember: Each international student may have his/her own unique situation, and it may not fall into the aforementioned scenarios (for example, you have used part of your OPT time). For the latest and most accurate information, please refer to the Duke visa office website and the USCIS website.

Learn more about this year’s talented student-athletes:

• Dan DiMaria
• Peter Terreza
• Austin Carpenter
• James Kostelnik
• Cydney Ross
• Leslie Morrison
• Megan Deakins

I had some time to catch up with a couple of my fellow track athletes about their schedules and how their seasons went. It seems that everyone got off to a great start …

James Kostelnik:

Last year, James felt that he had unfinished business on the track, so he took advantage of his remaining fifth year of athletic eligibility. “As a student athlete in the MMS program, my schedule has been pretty busy to say the least. During the fall, I was running 90 miles per week, traveling biweekly to races, interviewing for jobs, working as a TA for an undergraduate finance course, and working diligently on my MMS coursework.”

Oh, WOW, sounds impressive! Let’s take a look at a typical day for James:

7:00 am – 8:40 am: Wake up, go for morning run, stretch, shower, eat, drive to Fuqua

9:00 am – 11:15 am: Marketing class

11:15 am – 12:15 pm: Lunch

12:15 pm – 2:30 pm: Economics class

3:00 pm – 6:00 pm: Practice

6:00 pm – 6:30 pm: Shower, eat dinner, prepare material for class

6:45 pm – 8:15 pm: TA undergraduate finance course

8:30 pm – 10:00 pm: Team meeting at Fuqua

10:00 pm – 11:00 pm: Work on homework

Although it appears that James has been unbelievably busy, he says that “it was manageable and I viewed it as great preparation for the real world.” His cross-country season went well as his team returned to the NCAA Championships after a one-year hiatus. His indoor track was also successful as he ran several personal bests in the 3,000 meters and anchored Duke’s Distance Medley Relay to a third place finish at the ACC Championships.

Cydney Ross:

Cydney’s sentiments about being an athlete in the MMS program are similar to James’. She also had a busy schedule, balancing athletics and school while being an Admissions Ambassador for the program (you may have seen some of her posts on the MMS Facebook page). But she wouldn’t trade the opportunity to compete for one more year for anything else. Cydney had her best indoor track season thus far, contributing to the third place finish at the ACC Indoor Championships and winning her first ever ACC individual title in the 800 meter race.

She claims that, “Duke track has been kicking butt and taking names. With a third place finish, we had the highest finish in school history at the ACC indoor track and field championships and have rewritten the record books across several events.” More recently, Cydney placed sixth in the 800 meters at NCAA indoor nationals garnering her third All-American title. She has also played an integral part of the distance medley relay (DMR) that represented Duke at nationals as well.

Clearly, these student-athletes are looking to finish out their careers with a bang!

Start Smart is a business development platform which supports small- and medium-sized enterprises in Africa, by encouraging financial literacy. Taylor and Ryan have supported me on a number of tasks. These have included redesigning our logo and overall rebranding, developing an approach to social media marketing and the publication of our first self-titled book, Start Smart. My work with Taylor and Ryan started out as a 3-week “Winternship” back in December, but I’ve been so impressed with their work that we’ve decided to keep things going for the remainder of their time at Fuqua. Though the majority of the work has been done virtually, we have had a chance to meet in person and regularly speak over the phone.

Up until recently I had been managing Start Smart on my own, which made it difficult to get everything done, so it’s been great to have some extra hands on board. Working with MMSers has been an amazingly rewarding experience. It’s given me the chance to benefit from their ideas and creativity, and reflect on the fact that not too long ago, I was in their shoes. Additionally, they’ve had a chance to build skills and experience in marketing that I believe will be helpful in their respective careers, once they graduate from Fuqua. Go MMS!

Having fun on the mini golf course.

Work hard, play hard. It’s a mantra you’ll hear over and over at Fuqua. Luckily for us, it’s not just a mantra, but a true philosophy by which Fuqua students live. So it’s no surprise that recently, a group of us went to Frankie’s Fun Park for a day of fun and merriment. And this day was at no cost to us, it was sponsored by the MMS Association (students elect a student government, the MMSA, to represent the class throughout the year, and any MMSer is eligible to run for a position).

My fast and furious driving!

As soon as I arrived, I met up with Mike — our MMSA Activities and Social Chair. Mike has also arranged other awesome activities for us such as a ski trip to Wintergreen and the MMS Campout for Duke basketball tickets. Mike gave everyone a Frankie’s fun card that got us into any 3 attractions that we wanted to try.

Fun & Games

First stop? Laser tag. We divided our group evenly between Red and Green team members. Then, after a little bit of menacing trash talk, we got outfitted to play. We were equipped with light-up vests and guns, brandishing our team’s colors. The goal? To shoot the opposing team’s target to gain points, while defending your own target. This sounds relatively simple — until you realize that you have to defend yourself from being “shot” too. Oh, did I mention this is all in the dark?

The thrilling Sidewinder ride.

To my dismay, my team — the Red Team — lost. And surprisingly, I placed fourth out of my team with a score of about 30,000 points. I was pretty proud of myself … until I saw that the MVP of the Green Team scored over 100,000 points.

Afterwards, we made our way outside to the go-kart tracks. There were three tracks to choose from: beginner, road, and slick tracks. We all had a great time racing around the track, sometimes bumping into the outskirts of the track, or even each other. While there was no clear winner, it was clear that some of us are much better “drivers” than others.

Finally, we all decided that we wanted to try the ominous “Sidewinder” attraction. This is more comparable to a ride you would see at an amusement park or a state fair — intimidating in nature but completely safe and fun. Once we were all strapped into the circular base of the Sidewinder, it started swinging back and forth. The base also started twisting around. So off we went, back and forth, side to side, up and down. Some of my classmates were screaming, some were laughing, and some were just silent. But all agreed: the sidewinder was an awesome finish to a wonderful day.

As the day progressed, some students stayed around to try the other attractions at Frankie’s like arcade games and putt-putt mini golf. But I was exhausted, so I proceeded to go home and take a very well-deserved nap. I was so happy that the MMSA organized and sponsored such a fun event — it was a great break from studying, projects, and meetings!

Holi -- Fuqua Style!

During the MMS program, I’ve been exposed to different cultures, since many of my classmates are international. Recently, some of my friends from India included me in one of their traditional celebrations. Being teammates with Siddharth Singh, and living right next to fellow blogger Anu Kumar and Pallavi Somani, I could not believe that I had not yet been to one of their interesting and exotic Hindu events. It was long overdue. So my first Hindu experience was Holi — the Festival of Colors, but Fuqua Style! As far as I know, Holi is one of the major Hindu holidays, celebrated on the Full Moon Day in the month of Phalgun, which is March. It might be celebrated in different fashions across the country, but the spirit is similar — to celebrate spring, harvests, and happiness.

Our Holi event was organized by Fuqua MBA students and promoted on Facebook. Sid warned me that by the end of Holi I would be a giant, colorful mess, so I was mentally prepared. But still, I was a little concerned when I saw Maryam Mazhar and Nur Karatoprak covering themselves with oil, and Tim Smith and Ty Multhaup filling up water balloons.

After the celebration of happiness.

After a little tasting of Indian food, the Holi event started with festive music at Levine Science Research Center (LSRC) on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. In a surprisingly short time everyone was covered in colorful powder — violets, greens, magentas, blues, and more. Everyone was having fun dyeing each other from head to toe, shooting water guns and throwing water balloons. If anyone, even people you don’t know, threw colored powder at you, you were just supposed to say “thank you” — it’s a celebration! Embrace it!

Can’t Touch This

MMS team T-shirt.

Our team has finally come up with a name. We have been struggling to settle on one for weeks now. I suggested we call ourselves the Asymptotes and that our slogan be Can’t Touch This. Get it? An asymptote is a line that you can approach but can never touch. Nerd humor, anyone? I can’t take all the credit for the name — it was the name of an opposing team during a mathlete bowling tournament in high school in which my team was called the Riemann Noodles.

My suggested name was met with blank stares and solemn head shakes. There was no way anyone wanted to be called the Asymptotes. However, the name Can’t Touch This managed to stick. I can’t divulge too much of our opening skit strategy, but I have a feeling some MC Hammer may be incorporated into our dance, wink wink.

Supportive Community

I am so proud of all of my classmates who have participated in our MBA Games fundraising so far. Although only a small portion of us are actually members of the team, I am touched by the support I have gotten from my class, and consider everyone to be a part of the team.

The ‘80s party was a huge success. Although one of the purposes was to raise money for our team, the main objective of the event was to bring both sections of the class together. As the year is winding down and we are finishing our last term of the program, most of us are becoming increasingly more aware that we’ll soon be graduating. We have to fit in as much as possible in these last few weeks. I was so impressed with the creative costumes everyone came up with. We managed to raise money and raise the roof at the same time. Go MMS!

This past week included trivia night at Fullsteam Brewery, in which the MMS team received 25% of sales of all beer pints and pitchers. It was made possible thanks to the networking of my classmate MJ with the brewery owner, Sean Wilson, who just happens to be a Fuqua MBA alumnus. I guess Team Fuqua really does extend after you graduate. Trivia night is always a blast, but the beer tasted even better knowing that it was for charity.

Lastly, this past Saturday was our LOYO day. Our team received 10% of all the goodies our supporters bought. It was a gorgeous day, so my classmate Kourtney Kellin and I didn’t mind taking shifts lounging outside of the yogurt shop and recruiting people to buy sweets for the cause. It didn’t take much arm twisting to entice them!

So that’s it! All of our fundraising events are over, and although we had a great turnout at the events, we still have not reached our fundraising goal. If you still haven’t visited our team website, there’s no time like the present!

Bean Traders

I’m actually writing this blog post from one of my favorite coffee shops on Ninth Street: Bean Traders. I consider myself a coffee enthusiast, and I would say hands down that Bean Traders has the best coffee in Durham. Not only do I come here for coffee, but I’ll often come here to stud. It’s a good option if you ever get tired of going to the Ford Library to stud. If you end up stopping by here, I recommend the mocha — it’s delicious.

Francesca’s Dessert Cafe

Bean Traders is not your only option for coffee on Ninth Street. There’s also Francesca’s, which also has good coffee and offers gelato and fancy desserts. I definitely recommend coming here if you have a sweet tooth craving. They also offer booth seating which lets you get pretty comfortable.

Gelato and other desserts at Francesca's.

The Duck Shop

Duck Shop? Do you mean the Duke Shop? Nope, it’s called the Duck Shop I’m not sure exactly why, but this store is your go-to place, other than the on-campus Duke University Store, if you want to get any type of Duke paraphernalia. They have a wide range of shirts, hats, decorations … you name it, so you can treat yourself, friends or family.

The Regulator Bookshop

If you’re interested in supporting your local bookstore, The Regulator is the spot for you. They have a whole section of books by local authors as well as a variety of books about Duke, Durham, and the surrounding area. It’s a pretty quaint store, but conveniently located on Ninth Street.

The Regulator Bookshop is ideal for bookworms.

Dain’s Place

Dain’s is a local pub, which seems to attract the bikers in the town. But don’t let that intimidate you at all. The people are very friendly and the food is good, too. If you’re down to grab a burger and a microbrew, this is a convenient spot to come to with a couple of friends. It’s even been ranked number 10 on a list of 50 Best College Bars in America.

Vaguely Reminiscent

Vaguely Reminiscent is a very interesting, out-of-the-ordinary, store that sells a variety of things ranging from little trinkets to gag gifts and clothing. You’ll never know what you can find here, but that’s what makes it such a great place to visit. I’ve come here to grab a unique gift for a friend. You’ll have to come here for yourself to experience what I mean when I say out-of-the-ordinary.

Vaguely Reminiscent carries an eclectic assortment of gifts, trinkets, and clothing.

Wavelengths Salon

Wavelengths is a popular local hair salon that offers haircuts and styling. They also carry a variety of products from Aveda, Bumble and Bumble, etc. So, if you had to move away from your trusted hair stylist, and you need a new one in the Durham area, give them a try. Their location is conveniently close to campus.

Metro 8 Steakhouse

Metro 8 is a restaurant that’s also a nice event venue. They serve classic American cuisine and you can come here for a nice steak entrée. At the same time, the establishment allows groups to hold events such as fundraisers, formals, and more. We even held our MMS winter formal at Metro 8.

Ox and Rabbit Soda and Sundries

When first walking into this place, you might take it as an ordinary stationary store, but don’t be fooled. The Ox and Rabbit is not only a stationary store, but an ice cream soda shop as well. You can get all kinds of homemade milkshakes and cream sodas here. Not too many people know about this place, so spread the word!

Blue Corn Cafe

In the mood for some Latin food? Then Blue Corn Cafe is your place. Serving fajitas to enchiladas and anything in between, they have some delicious dishes. Their fusion style is unique. I’ve also heard that the margaritas are pretty good, so you’ll just have to see for yourself.