By Jennifer Wright

Kevin Kettl (MBA ’14) found a way to take his love of basketball off the courts and into the boardroom through his Professional, part-time MBA program at Bentley University.

He started out in the undergraduate program at Bentley, pursuing a bachelor of science in Marketing. During his undergraduate years, he was an active member of the Falcons men’s basketball team. He spent all of his free time either practicing his sport or studying and relaxing with his teammates, whom he still considers some of his closest friends.

“I value my time spent in the Dana Center as much, if not more than any time spent in a classroom,” says Kettl. “I was able to learn a tremendous amount from my basketball coach, Jay Lawson, on qualities, both tangible and intangible, that helped prepare me for a successful future.”

After completing his bachelor’s degree, Kettl decided he wanted to further his education through a Professional MBA. This part-time program allowed him to continue working while studying, completing his degree in two years.

Kettl took advantage of this flexible program. While in graduate school, he worked as a retail merchandise and e-commerce specialist at Dunkin’ Brands. He also received a grant from Shooting Touch, which allowed him to represent the Boston-based nonprofit in Rwanda for 11 months “using the game of basketball as a platform for positive social change.”

The Professional MBA offers eight potential concentrations: Accounting, Business Analytics, Economics of Financial Markets, Finance, Information Systems and Technology, Law and Taxation, Leadership, and Marketing. Kettl chose a dual focus in Marketing and Management.

Using Basketball Skills in Business

Seeking a way to connect his love of the game with his business education, Kettl found a job at the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 2015.

There, he utilizes skills learned both in the classroom and while shooting hoops. In particular, he cites the numerous team projects and small class sizes at Bentley as integral to his success in the real world. These settings allowed him to learn early on how to interact with and learn from both his peers and professors, skills he honed on the court with his teammates and coaches.

Today, Kettl works as the coordinator of International Business Development in New York, supporting business development teams in China, Africa, and India. As a lifelong follower of the league, he enjoys seeing how the NBA continues to grow in all corners of the world.

Looking back on his undergraduate days at Bentley, Kettl says, “I wish I would have known how competitive the job field truly was. I didn’t fully utilize a resource like Career Services until graduate school.” But today, happy to be working in a field he’s so passionate about, he gives this advice to students: “There will be many road blocks and obstacles along the way, but if you keep knocking on enough doors, eventually things will fall into place.”