As captain of the football team at Bethany College, Cam Cooper already understood the value of teamwork and cohesiveness. So when he saw those qualities among students at Vanderbilt’s MAcc program, it made an impression.

“When I visited, I was amazed at how close the class ahead of me was, and that really stuck with me,” says Cam, who grew up as part of a large family in small-town West Virginia. “I have always cherished building relationships such as these.”

The visit cemented Cam’s choice. “I knew there was no other program that could provide me the opportunity to grow both personally and professionally in such a short period of time,” he says. “There is just no program out there that can offer you everything we get in one year — coursework, leadership development, professional experience, networking, executive coaching, CPA prep.

“I am surrounded by peers and professors who motivate me to be my best in everything I do.” Among those peers Cam counts MBA and MSF students, who have become part of his broadened professional network. “There is not a cutthroat competition between students,” says Cam, who, as a Campus Visit Coordinator, now helps introduce others to the school. “Instead, there’s a culture here where students support and push one another to be their best.”

Cam has found that the team spirit manifests itself outside the program, too. With a group of his classmates, he has participated in a full range of intramural sports. Their program-inflected name: The MAcc Daddies.