How I Diversified Myself with the LSM

A lot of you may have heard about Bentley’s awesome Liberal Studies Major (LSM) that lets you tie your business background with the liberal arts, but let me tell you how it helped me diversify myself in the corporate world!

My LSM is Quantitative Perspectives (focus in mathematics), and I tied that to my major in Corporate Finance & Accounting. As a junior, I completed all my math courses for the Quantitative Perspectives and they ranged from “Linear Models for Business Decision Making” to “Calculus 3.”

So how did this help me land the summer internship that led to a full time offer at PwC?

In the spring of my junior year, I applied for an internship with PwC in their Risk Assurance department. A couple weeks later, I received a call about first round interviews on campus! In the first round interview, I had questions pertaining to my coursework, leadership experience, and much more. Then, a few weeks after I received another call about second round interviews at their Boston Office. The second round interviews consisted of a presentation and lunch provided by PwC and three separate interviews with a manager, director, and partner in Risk Assurance. In all my interviews, I had been asked to further explain the LSM which they had noticed was written on my resume. What was most surprising was my interview with the partner! During the allotted time, we discussed the LSM and how the courses have helped me link the business component to math. Fascinated specifically with my course “Linear Models for Business Decision Making”, at the end of the interview, she said I should consider a specific field within the Risk Assurance service line that dealt with situations I had practiced in my LSM class. Surprisingly enough, a couple hours after leaving the second round interview I received a phone call that I had been offered an internship with PwC!

This is only one example where a company saw how the LSM diversified my knowledge in business and made my experience unique at Bentley. So, one piece of advice – consider adding a Liberal Studies Major to help you diversify yourself!

For more information on LSMs click here! 

Bentley Lingo – Your Verbal Survival Guide (Part 2)

Decided to work backwards? Be sure to check out Part 1 of the Bentley Verbal Survival Guide too!

Smith stairs – Consider this the double black diamond of stairs. You will be out of breath and sweaty when you summit, regardless of temperature (so budget time before class to stop sweating and wipe your face). Good news is that if you take these more than once a day you can skip leg day at the gym.

Seasons – As our main dining hall on campus, students get very accustomed to walking to the student center to come here to eat. Other than the ice cream, the omelets come out on top as my favorite food at Seasons, but the staff is still the best part of the experience.

Club Mein Bowl – You’d think that late night Chinese food couldn’t get better, but when you have weekend warriors dancing their heads off at 1 AM as you eat it, it does. Mein Bowl, which serves up some mean crab rangoons and sesame chicken, transforms into a dance party with loud music and good food on weekend nights, and is always worth a stop, if only to people watch.

The JAR – Short for John A. Ryan, it’s the name of our Division 1 Mens Ice Hockey team’s home rink. While some like to poke fun at the JAR for its rather homely appearance, no one can knock the environment of a packed home game, with our home team cheering section up in the “Falcon’s Nest” making sure our opponents know they’ve got competition.

Bentley’s Div. I Men’s Ice Hockey team takes on Sacred Heart at the JAR, with the Falcon’s nest full of supporters

Flex/Blizzard – Flex is Bentley’s beloved falcon mascot, and Blizzard is his lesser known yet somehow related sidekick (my research suggests younger brother). While Flex can be seen at most athletic events and other campus wide celebrations, it seems like Blizzard is more of a diva and only shows up when he wants to.

Spring Day – Nelly, T-Pain, Kellie Pickler, and Gloriana are all artists who have come to campus in April to play a concert for our annual Spring Day. But the concert is certainly not the only highlight. There is food EVERYWHERE, plenty of different carnival games and activities, and a bunch of other shenanigans going on around campus. It’s typically the last day before students start putting their nose to the grindstone for finals, so it’s always a blast.

Flex and Blizzard with some friends on Spring Day

The Campus Loop – A campus shuttle that runs regularly (in a loop around campus) and in accordance with class times, so as to give students the option of riding to class rather than walking. Especially handy on days with inclement weather or when sleep deprivation is setting in, the shuttle is as reliable as it gets.

Harvard Shuttle – Our Harvard shuttle is a coach bus that transports students from campus to Harvard Square in Cambridge, where they can connect with a line of the subway system that leads into Boston. It’s a free and easy way to get yourself into the city, and students regularly take advantage of that opportunity.

“I can’t even.” *gasping for air* – 95% of Bentley students at the halfway point of the Smith stairs
“I know who’s coming for Spring Day!” – 100% of Bentley students who in fact do not know who is coming for Spring Day

Bentley Lingo – Your Verbal Survival Guide (Part 1)

Freshman year is an exciting time in your life. You’re making new friends from all over the country and world, you’re exploring classes that are interesting to you, and you’re making the most of all this new-found free time you have. But, it can be a little overwhelming too. You’re most likely living away from home for the first time. You’re beginning to understand the value of time management. You do your own laundry and get your own mail. And on top of it all, you’re struggling to understand the linguistic idiosyncrasies (how do you like them big college words?) of the upperclassmen around you. How can the hockey team have enough room to play in a jar? And how can a place be referred to by a direction…North seems like a pretty general way of describing a location!

I can empathize with those feelings, and as I found out when I made this list, there are still some Bentley terms that I either didn’t know or didn’t understand…..and I’m graduating in May. So I’m here to help you get the jump on Bentley lingo, through this two part mini survival guide.

Discresh – At the beginning of the semester, it feels like an endless supply of funds (linked with your meal swipes) you can spend at any of the places to eat on campus other than Seasons (see Part 2). But without proper planning you end up spending all of it in a month and lean heavily on your friend who somehow ends up with $200 left in discretionary funds at the end of the semester. Get on their good side early because the funds don’t roll over and we wouldn’t want to be wasteful right?

Lower, Upper – Referring to the two different “halves” of campus, “lower” features our athletic complex, as well as dormitory buildings, while “upper” holds more residence halls, our academic buildings, and our student center. Students are fiercely divided on which locale is a better spot to live, but both have their upside.

The library and academic buildings on upper campus

GB – Short for General Business, it’s the core business curriculum that all undergraduate business majors will take. It starts with GB 110 (Ethics and Law), 112, and 212 (Finance and Accounting), moves on to GB 213 (Business Statistics), 214 (Marketing and Operations), and 215 (Management), passes through the seven levels of the Candy Cane forest, continues to GB 310 (Business Processes and Systems) on to GB 320 (Integrated Business Project) and finally culminates in GB 410 (Strategic Management). But since you can’t escape the GBs just embrace the GBs.

Night bomb – This just seems like its immediately ingrained in your vocabulary once you’re at Bentley, but a night bomb is a class that meets once a week at night for a longer period of time. It’s a great way to condense your schedule, but freshman cannot take them until their second semester. I think normal people call them night classes? I don’t know. But remember your snacks and coffee.

North – A relative unknown for those who have not lived there, North Campus is an unconnected section of residential buildings that is appropriately located due north of the main campus. I can confirm rumors that some of the dorm rooms on North have bathtubs, so that’s something to keep in mind.

CoNo, CoSo – While some residence buildings are known by nicknames, none are used more frequently than the Copleys. In fact, some students may be confused if you refer to CoNo or CoSo as Copley North or Copley South. They are mirroring buildings on the lower section of campus home to mainly sophomores and juniors, and after four years I still haven’t exactly figured out which one is which.

G-space – Campus features two greenspaces: the upper g-space and the lower g-space (also known as the lower G) . Both are aptly named for the halves I described above, and feature different scenes depending on the weather. In the fall and spring, you’ll find sunbathers, football tossers, and Kan-Jam players, while the winter welcomes skiiers, snowboarders, and plenty of snowmen.

Lower campus in the fall, with the lower g-space off to the right and CoNo and CoSo to the left

“What even is North Campus?” – Anyone who hasn’t lived on North Campus

Thoughts While Abroad…

Studying abroad is an experience everyone should try to do throughout your four years in college. I knew that even before coming to Greece. But now that I am actually 3 weeks into my study abroad program, everyday is a constant confirmation that I have made the right choice of leaving my wonderful Bentley home for a semester.

Bentley taught me a lot of things before going abroad but I have also learned so much just the little time I have been here. I wish what I have learned so far was more tangible to put into words but all I can say is:

Every abroad experience enlightens you as a person to the different things the world has to offer. I have met so many amazing people with such different cultures, backgrounds, values and experiences. You really do get so comfortable in your everyday life that you sometimes forget that there is a whole world out there with breathtaking lessons just waiting to be learned.

Knowing what I know now and what Bentley has to offer to prepare you, here are three tips:

1. It’s never too early to start researching where you want to go BUT also be flexible. Ever since Freshman year I had a vision that I was going to go to Santiago, Chile for my study abroad experience. But after researching a lot and seeing that their academic year was a lot different, the dates didn’t really match up well for me. It’s always important to have an open mind about the programs. We are lucky to go to a school where there are SO many programs offered everywhere around the world – so don’t limit yourself to just one!

2. Research the Study abroad program very well (including the school):

Even though you are probably excited about traveling and seeing a lot of different places you have to remember that there’s a “study” in “study abroad”.

Look into: The courses they offer, how big the campus is, what are the dining options, extracurricular activities, the academic set up of classes, and so on. Every last detail counts!

3. Talk to other people who have gone abroad and hear about their experiences! Obviously you probably won’t have the exact same experience as them, but most of the time people who have experienced it can give you a better look at certain details about a program. I had a lot of friends that had gone to Greece prior to me arriving and they gave me some amazing tips on where to go and how to handle certain differences. Plus people LOVE talking about their abroad experience!  Take advantage of that.

I hope some of these tips helped a little!  I also wanted to share a few pictures of Greece to get you excited about your abroad experience, whether it’s in 4 years or next year!