Student Voices: Want To Build A Lasting Network? Travel With Your MBA Classmates

Connections. Community. Relationships. Professional networking is central to MBA programs. With smaller class sizes, Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management’s community is core to student experience.

As an MBA student, my professional network has grown in ways I couldn’t imagine when I was applying to schools. In my two years at Owen, I’ve had conversations with CEOs and other C-Suite executives, like Country Music Association CEO Sarah Trahern and Vuori CMO Karen Riley Grant; moderated a town-hall panel with Vanderbilt’s Chancellor and Owen GSM’s Dean on the university’s current growth strategies; and even held a virtual 25-minute small group meeting with the legendary Shark Mark Cuban. I’ve even met Owen alumni who lead organizations across the world at our “Closing Bell gatherings – not just in Nashville but in Charlotte and Tokyo too!

While my professional networking experiences in the program have been memorable, my strongest relationships and biggest lessons have come from sharing experiences with my classmates during travel.

I’ve played Monopoly Deal in an airport lounge due to a delayed flight from Jamaica; spent late nights at Tachinomis in Tokyo; jumped into a cenote in Merida; cycled in the city streets of Taipei, and even watched a Bundesliga championship soccer match with German locals in the streets of Cologne. These are experiences that forged deep connections with my classmates.

A full-time MBA program provides two years of educational space to acquire new knowledge and connect it to the “real world”. Interactions with peers in class discussions and group work helps refine classroom concepts. While these interactions build your “peer network”, traveling with classmates creates even stronger connections. This deeper understanding of business helps connect classroom concepts.

During my two years at Owen, I have been blessed by the opportunity to travel with my MBA peers on course-related trips and informal adventures. In 2025 alone, I logged over 50,000 miles with my classmates visiting 7 countries, and more than 20 cities.

Here are four areas where I was able to connect travel to my MBA studies:

1) Sharing a Meal: “Ena Souvlaki tilkto apolla sas parakalo.” That’s what I heard when my classmate Alexis Cadell ordered a traditional Souvlaki for us in Athens, Greece. Hearing my classmates order meals in their home language and home country has been special.

During a visit with Apple Chen at her home in Taipei, Austin Mills and I learned how central tofu is to Taiwanese culture. Through the variety of local dishes she ordered, we discovered its rich history and how it shows up in everything from main courses to special sweet desserts.

One of the easiest ways to connect with someone is by sharing a meal. When the meal takes place in the classmate’s country, you have the opportunity to learn about someone’s culture, story and heritage. You may even learn some useful local phrases, such as YAMAS or GAN-BEI (CHEERS!).

2) Learning Business Practices: My business professors say that business is an “It depends” proposition. Business practices across the world vary in subtle and not-so-subtle ways. By visiting businesses across the globe and learning about differences firsthand from classmates, you will become a better business professional and global citizen.

During the Winter 2025 Owen Japan Business Immersion trip, I learned from my classmates how the country approach time, leadership, and respect in business settings. Contrasting the vocal, fast-paced, direct nature of U.S. communication, Japan reminded the group of the importance of reading the room and being truly present. This lesson was brought to life by Rei Matsumoto, Kosuke Miyoshi, and Yohei Nakai, who took immense pride in showing 25 of their fellow classmates around Tokyo. Moving such a large group across a city that lives by ‘on-time departures’ was a huge role, yet they led us seamlessly, making sure we made our Shinkansen (bullet train) exactly on time. They were able to share their own culture and showcase how there are many different equally effective ways to lead.

3) Observing Entrepreneurship: Along with four of my MBA classmates (Dale Anderson, Taiwo Olawehinmi, Mengyang He, and Mansi Chouksey), I participated in the Owen Maymester Exchange at the WHU Otto Beisheim School of Management in Vallendar, Germany. During the program, we heard lectures on the forces driving the European economy, with a specific focus on EU entrepreneurship, foreign direct investment, and family-owned firms. I was surprised by the fact that family businesses account for over 90% of all German companies.

While our visit to a local Frankfurt brewery provided a look into family business governance and operations, visiting a classmate’s family business later that year offered a more personal perspective. In Merida, Mexico, I visited Selena Martin, Co-Founder of Pan & Koffee Roastery and a member of the family behind the Michelin-rated luxury hotel Treehouse Boutique and Pan & Koffee café located in the heart of the city. Observing their daily operations and employment practices offered a unique counterpoint to my background which has primarily been in the corporate space.

Recently, most of the news has been how AI and technology will impact large organizations, but visiting these businesses helped me appreciate how important family businesses and entrepreneurship are to local economies across the world. Seeing how beer and coffee were made was a bonus!

4) Coming Home: If you can’t travel abroad, step outside your university boundaries with classmates to create memories. Take trips to nearby cities or states, go on a hike together, or head to the mountains for a weekend of snowboarding. Something as simple as sharing a meal with classmates in your own city can help build important relationships. For example, a small group of my friends enjoy a weekly burger night, exploring various Nashville restaurants for the best burger. You don’t have to go far to share a meal, learn about your colleagues, and create connections.

My global travels have given me a deeper understanding and appreciation for my classmates, especially my international peers. I started noticing things about the US that I took for granted before. When you’re in a foreign country where you don’t speak the language, you feel that mix of being amazed by everything but also feeling a bit like an outsider. You’re forced to figure things out on the fly and learn fast. It made me realize that even though every culture has its own uniqueness, there is a lot that connects us.

Traveling with my classmates in this program has helped me learn cultures, cultivate a global leadership mindset, and gain closer relationships with those around me. Professor Mario Avila, who was our faculty advisor for the Japan exchange trip says this about the MBA peer network: “Investment in your friends is an investment in your network. The people in the room become future investors, first customers, teammates, and references.”

Invest in your friends and your network. Travel with them. You will not regret it.

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Aaron Varella is an MBA candidate (Class of 2026) at Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management, where he serves as the Student Body President of the Owen Student Government Association (OSGA). Aaron’s professional experience includes executing high-impact, company-wide strategic HR and organizational projects for multinational Fortune 500 companies. At Owen, he is bridging his human capital expertise with a concentration in Strategy and emphasis in International Studies. A passionate advocate for community building, Aaron frequently shares insights on the MBA experience and the evolving landscape of HR. Connect with Aaron on LinkedIn here.

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