Graduate Blog / Graduate Life

What’s so different about Babson?

First-Semester Teammates
A picture of my first-semester team during one of our many late-night meetings!

At the end of my first year in the full time MBA program, I had a prospective student ask me this question.  She had received competitive offers from other well-known schools in the Boston area. And she wanted MY take on why Babson was the best choice.

I paused for a moment and thought about it.  Scenes from my first year raced through my mind: Welcome dinners, backyard barbeques, improv classes, team projects, late night study sessions, celebrations… Every thought centered on my classmates.  They are exceptional.

But what is so exceptional about them?  It’s easy to throw out superlatives, but do you have the evidence to back them up?

A very specific occasion comes to mind.  It was in the second semester of my first year, and I was struggling with our macroeconomics class.  We were overwhelmed with work, and my team was trying to explain the different concepts to me, so I could hold my own during our presentation and pass the exam.  A teammate stayed with me, in our little study room, well after 9pm.  That’s a long day! Classes start at 8:30am sharp and last through the afternoon.  He could have gone home, ate dinner, spent time with his loved ones.  But he didn’t.  He stayed to help me. I made it through macroeconomics because of it.

And that’s just one story.  I’ve been offered support in so many different ways.

I fell ill at the beginning of my first year, and was unable to drive myself to and from campus.  My husband was spending over 4 hours in the car every day just to get me to class and get himself to work.  My classmates stepped in.  They offered me access to their spare bedrooms and rides to different events off campus.  They offered me moral support and understanding when I had to miss meetings because of doctor appointments.  They encouraged me, held me up, pushed me through.  They didn’t have to do that, but they did.  At a time when every student is feeling up to their neck in workload, they found energy to give me what I needed.  I survived that first year of the program because of my classmates.  And now I’m back to my normal, independent self.

Second-Semester Team

My second-semester team after our celebratory lunch following a very gratifying presentation!

Could I have found that at another school?  Maybe.  But I could tell from my visits to campus and my discussion with alumni that the quality of students that attend Babson is of the highest caliber.  We look out for one another.  We lift each other up.  We pull each other through.

Babson is collaborative.  When you do better, I do better.  It’s not about taking your slice of the pie.  It’s about expanding the pie so there’s more for everyone.  I am lucky to be a part of this community and will work to keep these ties close even after we finish the program.