Case Study: Babson College delivers virtual entrepreneurship learning with Arist

How Babson College made their Summer Study program virtual - one text at a time.

Babson College, the global leader in entrepreneurship education, needed to quickly turn its monthlong Summer Study program into a virtual experience when COVID-19 made its usual in-person, faculty-heavy format impossible. With students joining from around the world, faculty coordinator Jonathan Sims faced major timezone and scheduling challenges, especially since the program normally relied on 20 different instructors teaching across the day.

To solve this, Babson College used Arist to build an asynchronous SMS-based course that reinforced daily Zoom lectures with text messages tailored to each student’s schedule and preference. Arist helped Babson teach 148 students across 21 countries and 14 time zones, reducing faculty strain while creating a more consistent and engaging learning experience. The success of the program also opened the door for broader use of Arist in higher education.

Babson College

Jonathan Sims

Faculty Coordinator