But Doesn't Babson Have All Sorts of Entrepreneurial Events?

by Crapmaster on 5/13/2007

Every so often we mention something about Babson's entrepreneurship program being less than perfect. It's certainly a good program, but I'd hesitate to call it great. I also suspect that other colleges' e-ship programs really suck if Babson's is constantly ranked #1.

Since this opinion is the opposite of how Babson is portrayed in the news, let me talk a little bit about Babson's entrepreneurial events...

From Founder's Day to Rocket Pitch to the many successful speakers that share their knowledge here, there's no doubt that this is an entrepreneurial campus. (Even I'll admit that there are great events.)

But the doubt comes into play when you look at how many students attend these events. To be specific, very few students show up for these things.

Why?

Well, that's a good question. I can't say for sure, but I have a good idea why students don't bother with these events. And the reason is that "they attend Babson." It might seem counter-intuitive, but attending Babson could be the problem behind this.

If you've been studying business for a while, you've probably heard of cannibalizing your own sales. That's when you introduce a new product and end up selling less of your other products as a result. What Babson is doing, is giving students too much busywork. Since most students are still concerned about their GPA, they'll put their time towards homework and group meetings instead of these entrepreneurial events. Students are choosing to "buy" the studying instead of the events.

There are plenty of things that can be done about this. The easiest changes would be for Babson to make. For example, they could integrate some of these events into class. Liberal arts classes require attendance at some of the more artistic events, so why don't the business classes require attendance at Founder's Day or any of the big-name speakers?

Babson could also tone down the grade deflation. Then kids wouldn't be so uptight about their GPAs. (The grade deflation doesn't help anyone, so I don't why the hell it's here in the first place.)

But, realistically speaking, this is Babson and they won't do something that smart. So it's up to you, the prospective student, to figure things out.

One option is to go to Bentley and make friends with a Babson student. Just have that student tell you when there's a sweet event coming up, and you can join in. There'll be plenty of room.

Another option is to actually attend Babson and not stress over grades. If you focus on important things like learning from people who have "been there, done that" and networking, you'll have plenty of time for these events.

Just remember this: the social life at Babson will suck, but if you watch for the opportunities, your entrepreneurial life might turn out alright.

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