The Applicability of MCFE in the workplace
From Foundations of Management and Entrepreneurship (FME) to Management Consulting Field Experience (MCFE), Babson has exposed its students to experiential learning from a very early stage. The purpose of these courses was to introduce students to key concepts early on, such as collaboration, problem-solving, presentation skills, creative and analytical thinking, etc. I have found that my experience in MCFE has helped me tremendously in my business strategy internship. This past fall I served as a student consultant for Clarkston Consulting where my team and I worked on an assignment in the Life Sciences Industry. This task proved to be as challenging as anticipated. Through deadlines, pivots, and ambiguity, we learned how to be creative and strategic in the face of challenges. Was it a roller coaster ride? Absolutely, one that I would love to experience over and over again.
Fast forward to my internship during the Summer of 2017. Every day at work reminds of my MCFE experience, a much more polished and efficient MCFE experience that is. I have found that in the work environment at my internship the same traits that Babson emphasizes are necessary to success. For example, in every assignment I need to be able to collaborate effectively and efficiently. The team meetings in my office are incredibly similar to my MCFE team’s late night meetings where there is a presentation of findings, discussion, and plan for next steps. One major difference coming from MCFE to my summer experience is that I no longer have a leadership role as our different projects are led by managers. This was an adjustment for me, but I have found that taking this role has helped me become more adaptable to different group dynamics.
I would not say that I have learned new collaboration techniques this summer. Rather, I would say that I have refined my current skills which I have learned while at Babson. Moreover, my experiences this Summer have only proven how important they are in the workforce. I have always been a supporter of taking as many of Babson’s experiential courses as possible. After this Summer, it has become clear how useful the client-facing work done in MCFE was to developing transferable skills from the classroom to the workplace.