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Beyond the MBA Classroom: Harvard Business School Section Olympics

When you select an MBA program, you are not just choosing your learning environment, but are also committing to becoming part of a community. Each Thursday, we offer a window into life “beyond the MBA classroom” at a top business school.

In the spring of the first year at Harvard Business School (HBS), student sections (each of which includes approximately 90 students of various ethnicities and nationalities and who have diverse professional backgrounds) compete against one another in the Section Olympics. This one-day event, which is not at all academic, includes activities such as Twinkie-eating contests, three-legged races, and dodge ball games. Prizes for the winners include bragging rights.

For in-depth descriptions of social and community activities at HBS and 14 other top MBA programs, check out the mbaMission Insider’s Guides.


Jeremy Shinewald

Jeremy Shinewald  

In addition to being Founder and President of mbaMission, Jeremy Shinewald is a Darden MBA, published author, and the recipient of Poets&Quants’ Lifetime Achievement Award in MBA Admissions Consulting. With more than 20 years of experience and a background as a professional speechwriter, he combines deep industry insight and exceptional storytelling skills to help applicants create powerful, distinctive MBA applications.

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