Role model: Stephen Babalola embraced every opportunity

“At the end of an undergraduate journey that’s included working in health care, starting a business, modelling and mentorship, Stephen Babalola still remembers his first impression of McMaster: “It was almost like love at first sight.” He grew up in Nigeria, then moved to Edmonton and applied to universities in Ontario. After coming to visit McMaster, he knew it was “a community that I really wanted to be part of.” That community came in handy: Coming into first year was nerve-wracking, and lonely. But throughout the year, he made friends in his residence and started visiting the Black Student Success Centre. “That’s where I was really able to find the community that I have still today. From mentorship, [to] help with classes and just being around like-minded individuals… really shaped my journey.” In his first year, Babalola signed with a modelling agency and has worked as a full-time model. That journey included classes as a commerce student at the DeGroote School of Business, and experiences outside the classroom, as well. In his first year, Babalola signed with a modelling agency. In third year, he started a clothing business with three friends, called Kalliope . It was a balancing act to be a full-time student and full-time model while running a business. But his triple passions all fed into each other, sometimes in unexpected ways, Babalola said. “Having all three kind of helped me succeed in each one.” For example, he loved getting to apply the theoretical concepts he learned in class to his real-life business. “Not only was starting a business helping me reinforce my coursework, meaning I’m doing better in school, but also modelling [was] helping me build my confidence,” he said. “The skills I learned from modelling transferred to presentations at school, or panels I was involved in.” Black in Business Those panels included ones with the DeGroote Black in Business club, which he’s been involved with for four years, most recently serving as vice-president. The club’s mission is to empower, elevate and educate Black-identifying students at McMaster, and propel them into promising business careers. The club, and mentorship from its upper-year students, really helped him build his competitive advantage in getting internships, Babalola said. This year, he wanted to give back in the same way. “Being the vice-president this year gave me the opportunity to not only mentor the younger DeGroote generation, but also make an impact in reaching out to organizations for panels, where they were able to come in, talk to our students, show them what’s possible out there for people that look like them.” DeGroote helped him with career counselling, and guidance on getting a job. “They really helped me to just get the basics down for being a good applicant and being a competitive applicant.” Babalola did two internships as an undergraduate: one with Northland Power, a renewable energy company in Toronto, and one with the Ontario Ministry of Health, as a project management intern. His goal has always been to help others, and he’s especially interested in applying his skills to the intersection of health care and business. His internship at the Ministry of Health gave him a chance to have an impact in the health care field, but from a management and business perspective. “My role there was to create and share information about the programs that the Ontario ministry has to offer,” he said. That included hosting seminars all around Ontario, and contributing to policy and programs through research analysis and stakeholder engagement. That experience reaffirmed his desire to work in project management in health care, and to make sure that every voice is heard and represented in the healthcare space. ‘Grateful for everyone’ “DeGroote and McMaster as a whole, it’s really shaped the person I am,” he said. When he crosses the convocation stage on June 19, Babalola expects that it will feel exciting – but also bittersweet. If he could go back, and give advice to his first-year self at the start of his McMaster journey, he would talk about the importance of being resilient – which goes hand-in-hand with having a good support system and reaching out for help when you need it. “Talk to people about your struggles, because nine times out of 10, you’re not going through that thing alone,” he said. He still reminds himself to take it easy sometimes. “It’s easy to get carried away and look at other people’s accomplishments and think you’re behind. But just [know] that everyone has their own time, everyone has their own pace in life. Just do you and keep pushing.” Between school, internships, modelling and business, his experience has been hectic at times. “But just being to prioritize and time manage and having a good community behind me is something that’s really helped me be successful throughout these past four years,” Babalola said. “I feel grateful for everyone I met, grateful for everything I got to experience these past four years.” The post Role model: Stephen Babalola embraced every opportunity appeared first on McMaster News .

Summary generated from the RSS feed of McMaster Daily News. All article rights belong to the original publisher. Click through to read the full piece on news.mcmaster.ca.