In college, Beau Briggs was sufficiently accomplished at golf to contemplate a professional career. But he knew that the demands of the sport also may have hindered his pursuit of a career in business. Because of golf, he says, “I was a bit behind the curve in terms of internships and work experience.”

The MSF program at Vanderbilt, he discovered, fit nicely with Beau’s interest in consulting—and would enable him not only to “catch up” but to get ahead of the curve in just one year. “I love solving challenging problems and helping people to reach goals within organizations—it reminds me of my golf team in college,” he says. “The MSF program allowed me access to Vanderbilt’s consulting network and has done a terrific job preparing me for my career.”

The experience also prepared him in one important way that he didn’t necessarily expect beforehand. “I made a surprisingly large group of lifelong friends here in a short amount of time,” Beau says. “Something about the stress of classes and job recruitment early on really brought everyone together.”

The camaraderie is so strong, he says, that he offers this advice to prospective students: “If you don’t want to come, don’t visit; the sense of family and friendship will overwhelm you, and Nashville’s charm will hammer it home. This is a special program at a special school, and it has consistently helped students reach [their] dream jobs.”

Beau was one such student. The program was his stepping stone to a consulting position in Washington, D.C. after graduation.

Fun Fact: Beau enjoys cooking in his spare time. “Every once in a while, I’ll try something off the wall, like making pasta from scratch.”

This is a special program at a special school, and it has consistently helped students reach [their] dream jobs.