Grace Bromage ‘23

Chief Features Editor

Many students choose to take part in Holy Cross’s J-Terms as a way to earn credits and advance in their college careers. Nick Bettenhauser ’24 was one of many such students who participated in this year’s J-Term, participating in several of the Business Certificate Program workshops offered by the Ciocca Center for Business, Ethics. and Society. The Ciocca Center aims to combine the technical skills and alumni network needed to succeed in business with Holy Cross’s liberal arts curriculum. According to Cassie Gevry, the associate director of the Ciocca Center for Business, Ethics & Society, the center rescheduled all of the workshops because of the revised academic calendar and  “ran 10 programs with over 200 students and 100+ alumni” over the J-Term. 

I had a chance to speak with Bettenhauser about his experience participating in the many business programs offered by the Ciocca Center. Bettenhauser, who is considering a major in international studies and pursuing the business fundamentals certificate, was drawn to the Business Certificate Program after finding success when working for Vector Marketing over the summer. He commented that “I decided that at the very least, I would become more knowledgeable in the field. I decided to jump into my first-semester headfirst and engage with the business program. I signed up for the certificate and also re-initiated the Sales Club, becoming the chair and recruiting two other Freshmen to be co-chairs as well.” As for why he opted to participate in the J-Term, Bettenhauser claimed that “I am the type of person that likes to stay connected and involved so after talking with Professor Chu, I decided to sign up for all the workshops offered during J Term alongside my friend Sasha Paradise, another freshman.”

Bettenhauser participated in four workshops held over three weeks, the Fullbridge, Global Supply Chain, Marcom (Marketing, Communication, and Sales), and Interview Prep workshops. He commented that “my favorite one was Fullbridge. It started out learning the ins and outs of business including learning some calculations and definitions. My favorite part was when we were assigned a company and a group. We were to research the company, find a problem, and propose a solution. My group was assigned to Diadora, an Italian sportswear company. Being a small company our group had a hard time obtaining the financial information needed to assess Diadora but our hard work turned into some great results as we had a very successful presentation to the judges. It felt like a virtual Shark Tank.”

Bettenhauser’s closing thoughts were “my experience with the J-Term and Business program has been awesome. I could not recommend it enough! Even if you don’t believe you will pursue a career in the business field, you need to recognize that it is everywhere. Knowing a little more about the field will allow you to diversify your knowledge and sell yourself better in the future.”