When I transitioned from military to MBA, I thought I’d left the world of acronyms and confusing organizational lingo behind me. Little did I know, Chicago Booth was ready for me with a whole new set of idiosyncratic slang.
Here’s a few of my favorites:
Boothie (noun) – a current or former student at Chicago Booth. The term itself is almost universally hated because of its “cutesie” nature, and yet we all continue to use it.
Note: You might think that Boothie or Boothy could also be used as an adjective, but the correct way to describe the level at which someone displays Booth-like qualities is actually Boothie-ness. I’m not making this up.
Booth boasts dozens of diverse student-led orgs that range from professional to social and have one tying mission: to serve the Booth student body and ecosystem. As Spring Quarter begins, first-year Boothies take the reins and step into the rewarding leadership roles of co-chairing these different clubs and groups. After 2 dynamic quarters at Booth, first year-students already have developed their personal vision for clubs and are presented with a leadership opportunity to influence—a notion that is very much built-in to the Booth culture.
Spring is also the time when second-year Boothies step down from their co-chair roles after a full year of “service,” as they pass the baton to the next generation. In this unique timing, we asked second-years to reflect on the unique leadership role of co-chairing, what it meant to them, and what initiatives they’re most proud of.
I wanted to talk a little about my Booth experience as an international exchange student. I’m originally from El Salvador, coming to Chicago Booth from IESE Business School in Barcelona, Spain. I’ve worked in several Latin American countries and I spent my summer internship in Barcelona, so I’m writing about both academic and cultural perspectives. As opposed to Booth, IESE is a case method school (much like Harvard) and each method has its pros and cons, but this blog is not about comparing. It’s about my experience at Booth as an outsider.
Last week in downtown Chicago, the 13th annual Booth Credit Conference hosted a mix of keynote speakers, case discussions, and panels focused on hot topics facing the industry today. The gathering of Booth alumni participants and students asked some very tough questions. Not to mention we even had a few attendants from the Northside of Chicago from (dare I say) Kellogg?
The Booth student group known as CReDIT (Credit, Restructuring, Debt Investing, and Turnaround Club) had been planning the event for months and luckily the programming went off without a hitch! Let’s revisit the highlights of the day…
