The four of us joined the MBA in September 2024 and were presented with a flurry of exciting opportunities. In addition to the roles in the Cambridge Business School Club (CBSC) and Special Interest Groups (SIGs) that the cohort leapt at, all of us stepped up in another capacity and were elected as Student Representatives. Each of the four MBA streams, which take core courses together, have one of us to act as the bridge between students and faculty. Whether by providence or design, the four of us came onto the MBA from diverse backgrounds, enabling us to not only represent our streams but also the perspectives of our diverse MBA cohort. Although we still have more than half of our MBA ahead of us, we have already experienced the many opportunities to make connections, develop personally, and give back.
Connecting
We do our best to uphold the spirit of collaboration that Cambridge is all about, and to help our MBA cohort make this year their own. We do this by bringing all stakeholders together, and in so doing we form unique bonds with the MBA programme team, faculty and our cohort. By lending an ear and championing the needs of our cohort, we’ve built close friendships and strong credibility, making us some of the most well-connected individuals on the Cambridge MBA. Our peers act as our champions as well, and it’s opened doors to amazing connections and career opportunities.
Building Ourselves
Becoming a student rep has led to an abundance of opportunities to be more intrinsically involved at the Cambridge Judge Business School (CJBS). In our role, we not only have bi-weekly meetings with the MBA programme directors, including Conrad Chua, Shamiso Barnett, Juliana Kozak Rogo and Sadia Cuthbert, but we also sit in on the wider Cambridge Judge Business School (CJBS) Operations User group meetings. We have been invited to participate in faculty board assemblies and receive requests to bring our perspectives to a variety of other conversations around the school to enhance the overall student experience. Being connected to the larger community of leaders and directors around the business school has undoubtedly enhanced our MBA experience, by giving us a wider lens and framework to contextualise our studies.
Giving Back
As a team of student reps, we aim to enhance the MBA experience for current and future cohorts. While our primary focus is on the present cohort, we recognise that not all changes can be implemented immediately. Being an academic rep means considering the long-term impact of improvements and striving to create a smoother experience for future MBA students too, beyond 2025. Engaging with faculty and professors throughout the term to shape key courses and relay student feedback has been a privilege. Keeping our finger on the pulse of Cambridge Judge has enabled us to drive meaningful enhancements to improve the overall student experience.
Our experiences as student reps have brought opportunities to grow personally and develop the MBA experience for those around us. We are grateful to be able to stand in such a valuable gap in the MBA programme and are excited for what’s to come on the remainder of our MBA programme and the rest of the year ahead.
For more on the Cambridge MBA student experience and Cambridge Judge Business School clubs and Special Interest Groups, visit our student experience pages here>