I was driving to school for the first time in over four years. But this time felt different. My mom used to take my ever-embarrassing first-day-of-school picture. We still jokingly honored the tradition, but this time the photographer was my wife. As usual, there was a little nagging feeling of apprehension: Where do I park? Do I have all the right books? But there was a new feeling of intense purpose. If I was about to press pause on my career and invest two years to get an MBA, I was going to make the most out of it.

We honored the tradition of back-to-school pictures, but now the photographer is my wife.

When I applied to Olin eight months earlier, the application emphasized that the small class size allowed the faculty and the students to really get to know each person’s story. My story is that I grew up in St. Louis and went to the University of Missouri to earn degrees in Business and Journalism. I moved to Kansas City and advanced through a few roles at a healthcare IT company over three years. Then my wife and I decided to chase a crazy dream of creating a travel blog (SwitchbackKids.com) and visiting all 59 National Parks across the U.S. in one year. Throughout it all, I always intended to go back to school and get my MBA. Now was my chance to start that new journey.

Over the first month of my first year of the Olin full-time MBA program, any lingering doubts about my investment in further education or my choice of school quickly evaporated.

That first day of school on August 3rd was actually the first day of the eight-day GO! (Gateway: Olin) program. I thought of it as an extended orientation, but I quickly realized that wasn’t giving it enough credit. We started two classes about critical thinking and leadership in teams to lay the groundwork for our next two years. We heard guest speakers on topics like personal branding and the challenges of urban communities in St. Louis. We were also spoiled with provided breakfast and lunch every day (one of my favorite parts)!

We got familiar with the Weston Career Center and its advisors, the online job search resources, and the five MBA platforms: finance, consulting, operations and supply chain, marketing and entrepreneurship.

Most importantly, we had plenty of networking and social outings to get to know our classmates. There were 132 people, and by the end of GO! I already knew most people’s names. The breadth of backgrounds, career experiences, and future goals were truly impressive. And, just like me, each person had their own unique story.

The most anticipated day of GO! for me was when our core team assignments were unveiled—groups of five that did all class group assignments together throughout the semester. The groups were purposefully made as diverse as possible. My group definitely seemed to reflect that. With our different backgrounds, nationalities, and career paths, we all brought something different to the table. The diversity combined with common drive immediately proved helpful as we developed and presented solutions to the real-life business case offered by a recent graduate’s startup.

August 15th started our first week of regularly scheduled classes. Financial Accounting, Management and Strategy, and Managerial Economics were added to the list of two classes from GO!

Everyone takes the same core classes in our first semester before getting wide freedom to choose electives. As a business undergrad, I had studied several of the topics before, but I found the material was far from review.

Lessons were interwoven with real business world cases. Homework started fast and furious. And professors were both intensely challenging and always available.

Olin was quickly becoming my new home both emotionally and physically—between studying, attending alumni networking events or working on group projects, I often have 12-hour days in Bauer Hall.

A month ago I was returning from a year of camping and hiking where every decision and challenge was up to me. Now, I’m starting a program that I’m already finding pushes my limits and tests my thinking. My pace of life and learning has accelerated dramatically over the past month. Both my classes and classmates have lots to teach me. I’m energized by the thought of the endless opportunities. I know I’m in the right place. There’s no doubt.

This piece is one of a series that chronicles Cole’s first-year MBA experience at Olin Business School. Cole says he hopes these posts can offer a valuable, genuine student perspective of life at Olin. Be sure to check out Cole’s travel adventures on Switchback Kids.