A (very busy) in the
ACCELERATOR® ACCELERATOR®
Day Life:
Maria Jorgensen, Accelerator® 2012
6:00 AM
1:00 PM
Wake up and get ready for another fast-paced day.
We have a Deloitte info session where Vandy alums teach about the different entry-level positions offered at Deloitte. By the end of the session, there are 25-30 students crowded around the speakers trying to exchange business cards with them.
7:00 AM
Breakfast at Owen with my teammates as they straggle in. We chat and laugh about what we learned the previous day and what we hope to learn today.
2:15 PM
8:00 AM
Session with Miss Adams, our “wardrobe consultant.” The class erupts into laughter quite often as we poke fun at one another.
First class of the day in Averbuch Auditorium. Everyone struggles to find their nametag, hoping a friend yells out your name and points you in the right direction.
3:00 PM
9:15 AM
Dress rehearsal for Oreck. Each team presents in front of our judges/professors, hoping they like what they see. We anxiously wait outside Averbuch Auditorium until we’re called in.
We get a 15-minute break. I usually go get some coffee and am back in my chair for the next lecture.
9:30 AM
Cherrie Clark teaches marketing strategy. As soon as the clock strikes, the class goes silent, eager to hear what she’ll teach us today.
5:00 PM
Over dinner, we exchange notes from our presentation and discuss the advice given to us by Professors Owens, Clark, Hinkle, Furse and Pace.
10:30 AM
Team time. We plan how to implement our ideas for a project for Oreck into a final slide deck.
6:00 PM
Noon
We gather again in team time, assigning each other notes to perfect the client presentation for tomorrow.
Most days, we either have a working lunch with our team or meet with members of other teams to share ideas. It’s imperative to use this time to work rather than just chat with friends.
8:00 PM
Leave Owen and head back to Stambaugh dorms to gather again in our groups and finish up the project.
Maria Jorgensen Graduated 2011 from the University of Arizona with a major in Spanish Literature and minor in Communications. Before Accelerator, she earned internships ranging from resort properties management in Telluride to human resources in Kulpsville, PA. Two weeks into the program: “Accelerator has changed my life. I’ve learned a lot about business, about myself, and about the world around me.”
Accelerator
2012
Class
11:00 PM
I’m finally in bed, ready to start a new day and hoping to get first place in the competition with our peers. 14
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owen.vanderbilt.edu