New ventures don’t unnerve Nida Bajwa. After all, she launched one — a startup called SpotlessCity, which streamlines the dry cleaning process through free online scheduling for pickup and delivery — even while she was working in the HR arena for global services giant Aramark.

When she decided to pursue an MBA, the Binghamton, New York, native, who describes herself as part of a large Pakistani family, looked south. “My entire life has been spent in the Northeast, and I just knew I needed to try and have a new experience, even though moving to a small school in the South was out of my comfort zone,” she says.“Vanderbilt felt just right in terms of the people and the strength of the HOP (Human & Organizational Performance) program. I wanted to spend two years in an environment that was more collaborative than competitive, and I found that when I visited Owen.”

Besides enjoying “the great weather, food, and hospitality that Nashville has to offer,” Nida says that in her time at Owen she has expanded both her base of knowledge and her network. In fact, Owen alumni helped coach her in preparing for interviews with Deloitte Consulting that led to a summer internship as well as a full-time position after graduation with the firm’s New York office.