Multicultural experiences are a gateway to richer learning

Hrachya (Ray) Martini Davtyan ’25 and Margaret Mester ’25 are students in the Two-Year MBA Program who recently started their MBA journeys. Both also come from different parts of the world, Armenia and New York respectively. We recently sat down with them as they wrapped up their first quarter to learn how they’ve acclimated to life in Evanston and at Kellogg.  

Read on to learn how two of their pre-program experiences — KWEST and Culture Camp — has provided them with opportunities to develop friendships with people from across the globe and create a warmer welcome to better navigate business school.  

Kellogg: What has impressed you most about your time here thus far? 

Hrachya (Ray) Martini Davtyan: If I were to point out two things that I think are vastly different from other business schools, it would be the scenery (an absolutely gorgeous campus around the lake) and the people who make up the Kellogg community. Another aspect of the Kellogg experience is our charming, small town of Evanston. We create strong connections and friendships because of the proximity and accessibility to campus and student housing. 

Margaret Mester: What has most stood out to me is the culture of student initiative at Kellogg, especially around career prep and coaching. The school’s student-led consulting club and interview-prep groups (IPGs) have guided me through the recruiting process more than I could have anticipated. I’m extremely grateful to the two second-year leaders who took several hours each week this quarter to coach me and my IPG group through the process. Across the board, I’ve been very impressed by the willingness of classmates to commit their time and energy to helping each other through recruiting.  

Kellogg: You both have already leveraged the school’s robust social and experiential offerings including Culture Camp, an immersive three-day global initiative aimed at fostering connection among first-year students. What kind of impact did this experience have on you? Do you still stay in touch with peers who participated in Culture Camp? 

Mester: I had a lot of fun at Culture Camp, and I highly recommend it for both domestic and international students. The group began the weekend by taking a bus to a beautiful resort in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. There, we were each divided into groups of six students with varying backgrounds. Through the weekend, facilitators led us in discussions, games, and activities that promoted cross-cultural connection with our cabins and the wider group. I especially enjoyed being led in traditional dances by a handful of students from their countries of origin. Overall, the experience provided me with an opportunity to understand where my classmates came from before starting the quarter. Because of it, I feel closely connected with a wide group of students from around the globe. 

Davtyan: At this point, I think I am friends with a vast majority of the people from Culture Camp. I have built very close friendships with around 20-30% of them and interact with them daily. 

Kellogg: Did you have any feelings going into the experience and how did those feelings evolve over the weekend? 

Davtyan: While I didn’t know what to expect with these programs, I quickly found myself making friendships with everyone. The atmosphere was overall more than welcoming. Our differences were not judged but instead were leveraged in activities and games to have more fun. In addition to Culture Camp, I also had a chance to participate in the American Culture and English Program (ACE), a three-week experience for international students to help them get accustomed to U.S. culture and succeed in the classroom.  

Mester: Truthfully, I wasn’t sure what to expect going into the weekend. I figured Culture Camp could be a good way to meet classmates before KWEST and help provide a welcoming experience for international students new to the States. Ironically, the experience proved to be more of a welcoming experience for me by the international students, many of whom had already met each other through ACE like Ray mentioned. It was a helpful shift in perspective that I had not anticipated. Throughout the weekend, I came to a much better understanding of what Kellogg’s global community means. 

Kellogg: KWEST, a social, sightseeing and service-based trip, is one of the most popular non-academic experiences at Kellogg. What three words or phrases would you use to describe your KWEST experiences and why? 

Davtyan: 1) Supportive, 2) safe space to be myself 3) and packed with activities. During my trip to the Philippines, we were on the go for most of the time as we had a full itinerary with challenges and experiences. We did island hopping, canoeing, canyoneering, snorkeling, visiting mountains and much more, and every evening we had social gatherings. Everyone felt comfortable sharing their stories, even the very deep ones. We had the privilege of being ourselves, and everyone contributed to that environment. 

Mester: “Spirit of Malta” became my Malta KWEST group’s slogan over the course of our trip there. On our first day, we saw a catamaran with that name sail by us, and somehow it became the catchphrase, taking on a meaning of its own to represent the group’s unique, shared experience. KWEST was a week of immersive bonding, silliness and constant activity, over the course of which my group grew very close. We still reference the “Spirit of Malta” back in Evanston when something reminds us of the trip.  

Kellogg: Both KWEST and Culture Camp are rooted in community and provide participants with an outlet for making meaningful connections. How did each experience help you find and create your personal network at Kellogg? 

Davtyan: Culture Camp included 70 participants, plus some second years and representatives of the international students office. KWEST includes 25 people, five of whom are second-year students. So, even before the classes start in September, you are realistically looking at having more than 50 connections from these two programs, and another 50 from ACE if you participate in that program.  

It definitely helps to have so many people to rely on. When the classes and recruiting get tough, you can also seek guidance from second-year students that you know and love already, and they usually have all the information you need. And, it only gets better as you proceed through the MBA program. 

Mester: Culture Camp and KWEST provided me with structured outlets to begin forging connections with classmates. I found that Culture Camp, which was shorter and focused on breaking down cultural barriers, positioned me to begin Kellogg with an open mind and a desire to go out of my comfort zone to meet new people. KWEST, on the other hand, gave me a group of friends and shared experiences. Both were extremely influential in providing a starting point to create a personal network. 

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