yacht week mba

Top-tier MBA students are shelling out thousands to network and party at 'Yacht Week' in the Mediterranean

• MBA students are flocking to Yacht Week each summer to party and hobnob with potential future employers and colleagues. 
• The annual event has grown significantly since it started in 2007, and now hosts hundreds of attendees. 
• The trip doesn't come cheap, at upwards of $1,000 for the yacht experience itself, not including airfare, food, or drinks. 

Among the lavish cocktail parties and industry soirees, another luxurious networking experience for elite MBA students is quickly emerging as the go-to event of the year: Yacht Week. 

Students hailing from the country's top business schools are flocking to Croatia each summer to party and hobnob with potential future employers and colleagues while sailing across the Adriatic Sea, the Wall Street Journal reported .

Yacht Week was created in 2006 by the Swedish company Day 8 AB, and has continued to grow every year since, according to its website. Today it hosts more than 500 MBA students — typically hailing from top-tier US programs at schools like Harvard, Duke, Dartmouth, and Northwestern — every summer for week-long trips.

While its traditional route begins in Trogir and culminates in Split, students also can select more expensive routes that sail around the coasts of Greece, Turkey, or French Polynesia, among others. The original Croatian route costs between $566 and nearly $1,000 per person, depending on the week, and airfare, food, and drinks are not included. 

According to the Wall Street Journal, hosting these business students has expanded into big business — from 2007 to 2022, the number of yachts has grown from 95 total to just under 1,000 in 2022. 

"The girlfriends I went with on the trip, maybe we'll become co-founders one day," Hannah Bae, a student at Dartmouth's Tuck School of Business told WSJ. "I know we'll be successful no matter what."

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Yacht Week typically involves heavy partying, with the boats often docking in a circle to create an area where attendees can sip cocktails and lounge on floaties while cavorting with students on other boats. The average age of a Yacht Week-goer is between 21 and 40 years old, WSJ reported.

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A 2015 review of Yacht Week in GQ described the event and its parties as "raucous," and its attendees as largely affluent. 

"Nearly everyone is beautiful, single, uninhibited, and bottle-service wealthy," GQ's Stuart McGurk wrote. "Several have been on reality-TV shows. It is the only holiday you can go on, I discover, that includes two staff photographers taking pictures of everything you, the hard-partying customer, get up to at all times.

Whether the week-long party actually translates to jobs for these students remains uncertain, but regardless, it's clear the attendees are having a good time and at the very least believe in the possibility of making meaningful connections. 

"Someone from Yacht Week is going to be a really important part of my life one day," Jaron Wright, a Harvard MBA student told WSJ. "I have a feeling that's going to happen."

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Beyond Traditional Networking: MBA Students at Yacht Week

In the world of elite business school programs, finding the right people to connect with can open doors to amazing career paths. But what if you could do this while having the time of your life sailing along the Dalmatian Coast? That's what Yacht Week is all about. In this blog post, we discuss the importance of networking and introduces Yacht Week as a unique way to meet your future business circle.

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What is Yacht Week?

Discovering yacht week's exclusive charm.

Yacht Week, an innovative event that began in 2006, transcends the ordinary by offering a week-long maritime adventure across the Mediterranean and beyond. Founded by visionary Swedish skippers, this event quickly transformed from a casual gathering among friends into a global phenomenon, attracting hundreds of MBA students and young professionals eager to mingle in an exhilarating setting.

Participants experience a mix of luxurious relaxation and spirited parties aboard sleek yachts, with itineraries covering coveted destinations like Croatia, Greece, and the British Virgin Islands. The cost of participation varies, reflecting the yacht's amenities and the exclusivity of the experience, not including airfare, meals, and additional expenses.

The Networking Potential of Yacht Week

Yacht Week stands out not just for its scenic routes and exclusive parties but as a fertile ground for networking. It draws a diverse crowd of ambitious MBA candidates from top-tier business schools, creating a unique milieu for professional and personal connections that could shape future career paths.

The Importance of Networking in Graduate School

Networking as a career catalyst for mba students.

The value of networking for MBA students cannot be overstated. With a significant portion of job opportunities and business partnerships originating from professional networks , graduate school offers a pivotal stage to cultivate these connections. This network becomes an indispensable asset, providing guidance, mentorship, and access to unadvertised career opportunities.

Leveraging Yacht Week for Professional Growth

Yacht Week provides an exceptional backdrop for MBA students to expand their networks in a more relaxed and personal setting. This environment fosters genuine connections, allowing students to discover potential business partners, mentors, and friends who share similar ambitions and interests.

Maximizing Networking Opportunities at Yacht Week

Strategic networking on the high seas.

To fully leverage Yacht Week for networking, attendees should keep the following in mind:

Be Intentional

‍ Clearly define your networking goals. Whether seeking future co-founders or simply aiming to broaden your professional circle, knowing your objectives can guide your interactions.

Engage in Events

‍ Yacht Week's schedule is packed with social gatherings, from intimate boat parties to grand beach clubs. Participating actively in these events enhances your visibility and networking scope.

Foster Approachability

‍ Effective networking is rooted in mutual interest and openness. Be genuine in your interactions, showing real interest in others' experiences and aspirations.

Initiate Follow-Ups

‍ Cement the connections made during Yacht Week by reaching out afterwards. A thoughtful message or a LinkedIn connection request can turn a brief encounter into a lasting relationship.

Yacht Week emerges not only as an adventure of a lifetime but as a strategic avenue for MBA students to enrich their networking portfolio. By embracing this unique experience with intention and openness, you can forge meaningful connections that transcend the week-long event, propelling your professional journey forward.

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By Yacht Week

Posted on 9th September 2022

Every year we host a group of MBA students on The Yacht Week for a week of networking, partying and living their absolute best lives.

"Hundreds of students from Harvard and other elite business schools like to connect at Yacht Week, a floating festival in the Adriatic Sea. ‘The girlfriends I went with on the trip, maybe we’ll become co-founders one day.’"

Read the full article here .

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Five bodies found in sunken superyacht, officials say

Divers have found five bodies in the sunken wreckage of a superyacht that sank off Sicily this week, Italian officials told news agencies and local media Wednesday, leaving one person still missing.

Three bodies were brought ashore and two others were also found inside the shipwreck, Salvatore Cocina, head of the Sicily civil protection agency, told the Associated Press, after divers were photographed by the agency unloading body bags. Cocina did not identify the deceased.

The British-flagged, 183-foot-long Bayesian was carrying 12 passengers and 10 crew members roughly half a mile from the Sicilian fishing village of Porticello when it encountered what authorities called a “violent storm” about 4 a.m. Monday.

Of the 15 people rescued, eight – including a 1-year-old girl – were taken to hospitals in conditions that were not life-threatening. The body of the yacht’s chef, identified as Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian Antiguan, was found during initial recovery efforts.

Among the passengers was Mike Lynch, 59, the British founder of the tech venture capital firm Invoke Capital and co-founder of the tech firms Autonomy and Darktrace. This summer, he was acquitted of all charges after a decadelong U.S. fraud trial related to the 2011 sale of Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard.

The voyage on the Bayesian, owned by a company controlled by Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, was intended to be a celebration of his legal victory, Britain’s Telegraph reported.

Among those missing were Lynch; his 18-year-old daughter, Hannah; Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife, Judy; and attorney Chris Morvillo, a partner at Clifford Chance in New York who represented Lynch in the recently concluded legal battle, and his wife, Neda. Bacares, Lynch’s wife, was among the survivors.

It’s not clear exactly what type of storm struck the Bayesian, but weather data suggests it was probably a tornadic waterspout or severe thunderstorm.

Charlotte Golunski, a guest of Lynch who was rescued, described to Italian media holding onto her 1-year-old daughter, Sophie, amid the storm. “For two seconds I lost my baby in the sea,” she told Giornale di Sicilia. “Then I immediately hugged her again amid the fury of the waves.”

Lynch sold Autonomy, which was once England’s biggest software company, to Hewlett-Packard in 2011 for more than $11 billion. He was subsequently accused of overvaluing the company and was charged in the United States with fraud. He was acquitted in June.

The Bayesian was built in 2008 by Italian shipmaker Perini Navi, according to the SuperYacht Times.

The Sir Robert, a Dutch-flagged sailing vessel anchored nearby, responded immediately to help survivors before the Italian coast guard arrived.

The yacht sank to a depth of more than 160 feet. The first attempt by fire-brigade cave divers to search inside the yacht was unsuccessful, rescue authorities said.

Bryan Pietsch contributed to this report.

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Diplomatic tightrope for Modi as he visits Kyiv after Moscow

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Ukraine on Friday, just weeks after he met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.

The visit is significant because Kyiv and some Western capitals had reacted sharply to Mr Modi’s visit to the Russian capital in July.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky was particularly critical, saying he was “disappointed to see the leader of the world's largest democracy hug the world's most bloody criminal in Moscow”.

So, is Mr Modi visiting Kyiv to placate Mr Zelensky and other Western leaders?

Not entirely.

It’s not surprising to see India balance its relations between two competing nations or blocs. The country’s famed non-alignment approach to geopolitics has served it well for decades.

This week's visit - the first by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine - is more about signalling that while India will continue to have strong relations with Russia, it will still work closely with the West.

Michael Kugelman, director of the South Asia Institute at the Wilson Centre think-tank in Washington, says the trip will further reassert India’s strategic autonomy.

“India isn’t in the business of placating Western powers, or anyone for that matter. It’s a trip meant to advance Indian interests, by reasserting friendship with Kyiv and conveying its concerns about the continuing war,” he says.

However, the timing of the visit does reflect that Indian diplomats have taken onboard the sharp reactions from the US to Mr Modi's Moscow visit.

India has refrained from directly criticising Russia over the war, much to the annoyance of Western powers.

• Modi's balancing act as he meets Putin in Moscow

Delhi, however, has often spoken about the importance of respecting territorial integrity and sovereignty of nations. It has continuously pushed for diplomacy and dialogue to end the war.

Mr Modi’s Moscow visit in July came hours after Russian bombing killed at least 41 people in Ukraine, including at a children's hospital in Kyiv, sparking a global outcry.

The Indian PM said the death of children was painful and terrifying but stopped short of blaming Russia.

Mr Modi is not likely to deviate from this stance during his visit to Kyiv. The US and other Western nations have grown to accept Delhi’s stand, given India’s time-tested relationship with Moscow and its reliance on Russian military equipment.

India, the world’s largest importer of arms, has diversified its defence import portfolio and also grown domestic manufacturing in recent years but it still buys more than 50% of its defence equipment from Russia.

India has also increased its oil imports from Russia, taking advantage of cheaper prices offered by Moscow - Russia was the top oil supplier to India last year.

The US and its allies have often implored India to take a clearer stand on the war but they have also refrained from applying harsh sanctions or pressure.

The West also sees India as a counterbalance to China and doesn’t want to upset that dynamic. India, now the fifth largest economy in the world, is also a growing market for business.

Mr Kugelman says the West will welcome the visit and see it as Delhi’s willingness to engage with all sides.

“Mr Modi has a strong incentive to signal that it’s not leaning so close to Moscow that there’s nothing to salvage with Kyiv,” he says.

This is important because India wants to keep growing its relations with the West, particularly with the US, and wouldn't want to upset the momentum. Eric Garcetti, the US ambassador to India, recently said the relationship should not be "taken for granted".

India also needs the West as China, its Asian rival, and Russia have forged close ties in recent years.

While Delhi has long viewed Moscow as a power that can put pressure on an assertive China when needed, it can't be taken for granted.

Meanwhile, many media commentators have spoken about the possibility of Mr Modi positioning himself as a peacemaker, given India’s close relations with both Moscow and the West.

But it’s unlikely that he will turn up with a peace plan.

“Is India really up to it, and are the conditions right? India doesn’t like other countries trying to mediate in its own issues, chief among them Kashmir. And I don’t think Mr Modi would formally offer mediation unless both Russia and Ukraine want it. And at this point, I don’t think they do,” Mr Kugelman adds.

Ukraine, however, will still welcome Mr Modi’s visit and see it as an opportunity to engage with a close ally of Moscow, something it hasn’t done much since the war began.

Mr Zelensky, though, is unlikely to hold back his criticism of Mr Putin in front of the Indian PM. Mr Modi can live with that as he has faced such situations many times in other Western capitals.

Moscow is not likely to react to the visit as it has also been making concessions for Delhi’s multilateral approach to geopolitics.

But beyond reasserting its non-alignment policy, Delhi also has bigger goals from this visit.

India has been ramping up engagement with Europe in the past decade, particularly with the underserved regions in Central and Eastern Europe.

Delhi wants to keep consolidating its relations with the big four - the UK, Italy, Germany and France - but also wants to boost engagement with other countries in Europe.

Mr Modi is also visiting Poland on this trip - the first Indian PM to visit the country in 45 years. He also became the first Indian prime minister to visit Austria in 41 years in July.

Analysts say that this signals India’s growing understanding that Central European nations will play a bigger role in geopolitics in the future and strong relations with them will serve Delhi well.

The Indian government has also revived trade deal negotiations with Europe. It has signed a trade and investment deal with the European Free Trade Association, which is the intergovernmental organisation of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.

So, while there will be a lot of focus on the war during his visit, Indian diplomats are likely to stay focused on the bigger goal.

“Central and Eastern Europe now have greater agency in writing their own destiny and reshaping regional geopolitics. Mr Modi’s visit to Warsaw and Kyiv is about recognising that momentous change at the heart of Europe and deepening bilateral political, economic and security ties with the Central European states,” foreign policy analyst C Raja Mohan wrote in the Indian Express newspaper, summing up Mr Modi’s wider goal.

News Wrap: Golan Heights damaged by Hezbollah rocket attack on Israel

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In our news wrap Wednesday, Hezbollah fired more than 50 rockets toward Israel, Congo health authorities reported more than 1,000 mpox cases in the last week, divers recovered five more bodies from the luxury yacht that sank off Sicily’s coast, Russia says Ukraine launched a large drone attack on Moscow, and revised data showed the U.S. economy added fewer jobs than previously reported.

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Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors.

William Brangham:

Hezbollah fired more than 50 rockets towards Israel today, some causing damage in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights. Israel's ambulance service reported the projectiles hit several private homes and injured one person, causing alarm among community members.

Einav Perez, Golan Heights Resident (through interpreter):

Some of the residents want to leave. Others are patriots who want to stay. But it cannot continue this way. Every sound of a door shutting makes us think it's a boom. This time, it wasn't a door, but a serious boom that cost us a lot.

Hezbollah says the barrage was in response to Israeli airstrikes deep inside Lebanon.

Residents of one Lebanese village held a funeral today for a man they say was killed in an Israeli attack. It comes a day after Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with mediators in the region to push a proposal aimed at bridging the gaps in the Gaza cease-fire talks. Egyptian officials reportedly expressed skepticism today that Hamas would in fact accept that proposal. Talks are expected to resume in Cairo tomorrow.

Health authorities in Congo say they have recorded more than 1,000 mpox cases in the last week amid an urgent need for vaccines. Congo accounts for more than 90 percent of the cases reported in Africa so far this year. Last week, the WHO classified the outbreak as a global health emergency.

African officials say Western nations in Japan have pledged several hundred thousand vaccine doses, but Congo's health minister says the country alone needs some three million doses to control the outbreak.

In Italy, divers found five more bodies while searching the luxury yacht that sank off the coast of Sicily on Monday. Recovery crews unloaded body bags from a rescue vessel in Porticello. They're still searching for one final missing person. Fifteen other passengers and crew escaped in a lifeboat and were rescued.

Authorities say they believe the British-flagged Bayesian, seen here in file video, was struck by a tornado on the water, which is known as a water spout. But questions remain as to why the yacht sank so quickly.

Russian officials say that Ukraine launched one of its largest drone attacks on Moscow last night since Russia's invasion in 2022. Russia claims to have struck down 45 drones, including 11 over Moscow itself. There has been no independent verification of those figures.

That comes as Ukraine digs in to defend the city of Pokrovsk in Eastern Ukraine from Russian advances. Its capture would be an important victory for Russia, as Ukraine pushes forward with its own incursion further north in Russia's Kursk region.

In Moscow today, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Ukraine's military advances there undermine any chances for peace talks.

Maria Zakharova, Spokeswoman, Russian Foreign Ministry (through interpreter):

Who will negotiate with them after this, after the atrocities, the terror that they are committing against peaceful residents, the civilian population, infrastructure and peaceful facilities?

Ukraine's military claims to have taken nearly 500 square miles in Kursk since it first entered Russian territory earlier this month.

Back here in the U.S., the economy added far fewer jobs last year and into 2024 than previously reported. In its revised data out today, the Labor Department said that there were 818,000 fewer jobs created between April of last year and this March. That's an average of 174,000 jobs per month, far fewer than the 242,000 that was initially reported. This downgrade follows a disappointing report last month and comes as the U.S. Federal Reserve considers whether to cut interest rates next month.

On Wall Street today, stocks ended slightly higher after the Fed raised hopes of an interest rate cut next month. The Dow Jones industrial average added 55 points, inching closer to the 41000-point level. The Nasdaq tacked on more than 100 points for a ninth win in 10 sessions. The S&P 500 also ended higher on the day.

And we have two passings of note.

New Jersey Congressman Bill Pascrell Jr. Died earlier this morning. The 14-term Democrat was a fixture of his hometown of Paterson, where he had served as mayor, before running for Congress in 1996. Pascrell was a long time advocate for emergency responders and sat on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee. No cause of death has been announced, but he had been in and out of the hospital for months.

Congressman Bill Pascrell was 87 years old.

Also today, NBA Hall of Famer Al Attles has died. As one of the first Black head coaches in the league, Attles led the Golden State warriors to a championship in 1975. Attles, seen here defending a pass in 1963, was known as the Destroyer for his particularly physical style of play.

He spent six decades with the Warriors as a player, a general manager, and team ambassador. It is the longest stint by a player with the same franchise in NBA history. Al Attles was 87 years old.

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Massive drone attacks exchanged between Moscow, Kyiv: Officials

LONDON -- In one of the largest exchanges of drone attacks since the Russia-Ukraine war began, dozens were shot down in Russia and Ukraine in overnight assaults, officials in both countries said.

The Russian Ministry of Defense said Wednesday they shot down more than 50 Ukrainian long-range drones over various regions, including nearly a dozen around Moscow.

The drones over Moscow were shot down Tuesday night into Wednesday morning, local time, according to Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin.

Unverified videos published online showed explosions in the sky over Russia. Sobyanin said some of the drones were destroyed in the region surrounding Moscow, brought down by the city's layered air defense.

Ukrainian authorities have not yet commented on the attack in Russia.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces shot down 50 Shahed drones and subdued 16 others in a prolonged attack -- the longest drone assault since the start of the full-scale -- officials in Ukraine said.

Ten drones were shot down around Kyiv, according to Maj. Gen. Anatoliy Barhylevych, the commander of Ukraine's armed forces. The drone assault lasted for 16 hours, from 10 p.m. Tuesday till 2 p.m. Wednesday local time, he said.

Russian authorities have not yet commented on the attack in Ukraine.

The U.S. Embassy in Kyiv warned in an alert Wednesday to American citizens in Ukraine that "during the next several days and through the weekend there is an increased risk of both nighttime and daytime Russian drone and missile attacks."

The alert said the threat was tied to Ukraine's upcoming Independence Day and did not suggest it was connected to any Ukrainian military activities inside Russian territory .

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