2018 Best & Brightest: Cassiano dos Santos, Babson College

Cassiano dos Santos

Babson College

I am a dreamer with pragmatic tendencies and eyes on the future.”

Fun fact about yourself: I never get lost. I somehow have a photographic memory that continues to save me no matter how unfamiliar a place is to me.

Hometown: Lagarto, Sergipe, Brazil

High School: Federal Institute of Sergipe – Lagarto Campus, and Oak Park and River Forest High School (as an exchange student)

Major: Business Administration

Minor: Finance

Favorite Business Course: Babson College Fund (BCF), an accredited course in which specially selected students from both the undergraduate and graduate schools manage a $2 million dollar portion of the Babson College endowment.

Extracurricular Activities, Community Work and Leadership Roles During College: Global Scholar; Honors Student; Brother of Alpha Epsilon Pi; Co-President of Babson’s Chapter for the Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA); Lead Tutor for Financial Accounting at the Learning Center; Student Intern at the Office of Human Resources; Student Assistant at the Stephen D. Cutler Center for Investments and Finance; Co-President of the Co-Ed Volleyball Club (past)

Where have you interned during your college career? Falconi Consultants, Sao Paulo, Business Analyst; Bright Horizons, London, Growth Team Intern; Wellington Management, Boston, Investment Research Summer Intern

Where will you be working after graduation? Wellington Management, Investment Research Associate

Who is your favorite professor? I have several professors that I profoundly admire—and who are held close to my heart for the unparalleled guidance they so dearly offered to me throughout my college years. A few examples include Professors Robert Halsey, Patrick Gregory, Virginia Soybel, Virginia Rademacher, and Jasmina Hasanhodzic.

What did you enjoy most about your business school? The many hands-on experiences at Babson. Apart from that, it would be faculty members who taught me with much care and passion for their subjects.

What is the biggest lesson you gained from studying business? Technical skills are important, but soft skills set you apart.

What advice would you give to a student looking to major in a business-related field? Keep your mind open, listen actively, speak up but not the sake of speaking, and read the subtle clues in your surroundings and adapt quickly.

“If I didn’t major in business, I would be majoring in or studying… probably law.”

What has surprised you most about majoring in business? The large range of options within business such as marketing, accounting, finance, data analytics, strategic management, supply management, and many others.

Who most influenced your decision to pursue business in college? I have always been quite interdisciplinary—engineering, law, biology, humanities, etc. I went to an engineering high school and even did one semester of law school in Brazil before coming to Babson. However, I always loved financial math and bringing numbers and narratives together—as a child, I used to tell my parents I wanted to become an accountant when I barely knew what that exactly meant. Quite surprisingly, though, I ended up at Babson studying finance as a concentration and tutoring accounting as an on-campus job.

Which academic, extracurricular or personal achievement are you most proud of? At Babson, I am most proud of my leading role in ALPFA, given that many students were able to take advantage of our programming to find internships targeted at minorities—many of these students are today on track to become full-time employees after multiple internships with the same company. Besides that, I am very proud of my work as a tutor for accounting at our Learning Center—I love to teach and it is quite rewarding to be able to help first-year students with their first business course.

Which classmate do you most admire? I deeply admire those who challenge the status quo in one way or another.

Who would you most want to thank for your success? There are so many people who rallied behind me to make my dreams possible in the last decade—and I would have to list them all because I will never forget how meaningful they have been to my success. But perhaps I would thank the “little me” who was able to see past the obstacles when there was little light; and also my parents, who let me cultivate those wild dreams as I was growing up and believed in my potential.

What would your theme song be? “My Way” by Frank Sinatra

What are the top two items on your bucket list? On the serious tab, taking the GMAT and the CFA Level I. On the adventurous tab, taking salsa classes in Havana and Cartagena.

Favorite book: Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince) by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Favorite movie: Good Will Hunting, 1997

Favorite vacation spot: Places with historical ruins and a good hiking trail

What are your hobbies? Dancing; playing volleyball; reading.

What made Cassiano such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2018?

“Even more impressive to me than his incredible list of contributions and achievements is that Cassiano is one of the most authentically kind and generous students I’ve known. There is no ask or task too small for Cass if the end goal is supporting a fellow student or an initiative of the College, like the Global Scholars Program. Cassiano has been a stellar ambassador of his home culture and of Babson to external donors, trustees and advisory boards. I’ve been witness to many of these occasions and can attest that he always projects confidence, warmth and wisdom beyond his years. Cassiano is a born leader with enormous charisma who has made an imprint on my heart and on Babson College in a way that very few people have.”

Jamie Kendrioski
Director, International Services & Multicultural Education

DON’T MISS: THE BEST & BRIGHTEST BUSINESS MAJORS OF 2018 — THE COMPLETE LIST