Even though he completed his degree part time, Hydn Vales, MBA ’17, says it felt like a full-time commitment.

That’s because he worked full time and took two classes every semester, along with a couple of summer classes. His demanding position as director of financial reporting at Eaton Vance had him ensuring that the asset management company released its filings in accordance with SEC guidelines.

The key to making it all work? Communication.

“It can be a challenge trying to juggle both worlds,” Vales says. “The biggest thing is you have to be honest with your boss and your co-workers. You have to show them that you can manage the process and be honest about it.”

It’s a situation many Suffolk MBAs face. In fact, almost 70 percent of the business school’s MBA population has a full- or part-time job while completing the program. Which means there are a lot of students working hard to make it work. But Suffolk is used to those kinds of challenges—and ready to help.

“I was fortunate that I had the same communication with my professors as I did with my employer,” Vales says. “They know what it’s like to be in the workplace. So they understood.”