The master of finance and management are two of the most prestigious and sought-after programs. Completing one of the two courses at a top business school will significantly improve your career prospects and impact positively your future salary. If you have already obtained a perfect GMAT score, nailed the interview, passed the admission process and are accepted to a master's program, you might wonder what to do next. I obtained a master's degree with the highest score from 3 of the best universities in the world and will share some tips based on my experience.1) Have clear goals from the beginningYou can do a master's degree for many different reasons such as fulfilling a job requirement, career transition, personal development, or making new friends. Master's degrees are relatively short and your time as a student will pass very fast. You don’t want to waste any precious time and should start working towards your goals as soon as possible. For example, go to the career center, familiarize yourself with all company events and network with Alumni from your university starting from the first weeks if you want to get a very competitive job2) Have a strategyThere are different paths to completing your master's degree with flying colors and none of them is right or wrong. The first path is to choose the easiest subjects, obtain high grades with the minimum effort possible and focus on other aspects of student life such as networking, job preparation/applications or entertainment, The second path is to choose the most difficult but rewarding courses. Some quantitative finance courses can be very challenging and require a lot of work but they can open doors to jobs with higher salaries and lower competition. The third path is to just choose the courses that you like no matter how easy, prestigious or popular they are. I recommend this path because if you enjoy the subject you will excel in it, no matter the level of difficulty.3) Attend the course lecturesI know that this sounds very simple but I had dozens of classmates who didn’t go to lectures that did not have attendance lists and preferred studying on their own for exams. You could do that but it is very unlikely that you will get one of the highest grades in the class. There are several reasons for that. Firstly, professors remember the most active students and tend to increase their grades on oral exams and even on written exams if they can somehow make an association between the exam answer sheets and the students. Secondly, teachers like to include in the exams questions that were covered extensively in the lectures and not so much in the study materials. Thirdly, often there are additional points that are awarded based on group projects, class participation, presentations and other activities.4) Use the notes of the best studentEveryone has a slightly different way of processing information, some people are extremely systematic, careful and detail-oriented. If you are not such a person, find out who is the best note-taker in your class and use his/her notes for studying.5) Don’t postpone the difficult subjectsSometimes you will encounter subjects that are new to you and you do not understand them well (for example Options and Derivatives). The natural reaction of many people in such situations is to focus on the other subjects and procrastinate (postpone the difficult ones for later). However, things only get harder as more time passes and in the end, those students find themselves in a situation where it is extremely difficult to catch up. To avoid this, one should deal with the problematic courses and seek help as soon as possible.6) Try to build good relationships with professorsSome elective courses at the graduate level are very specific and quite small. In some cases, a class can have less than 15 students and there can be a very intense interaction between the professor and the students that foster more meaningful personal relationships. Many professors are not pure academicians and have senior positions or work part-time for highly reputable firms. They can recommend you and help your advance career if you go to their office hours, send them emails with questions and make a good impression. Building a strong relationship is even more important if you plan to stay in academia and pursue a Ph.D.University is the best time of life for many people and you should enjoy it while it lasts. Don’t overthink it and don’t forget to have fun!