Boston Intercollegiate Government (BIG)

What Boston Intercollegiate Government (BIG) does

Boston Intercollegiate Government (BIG) is a non-profit coalition of student governments representing 155,000+ undergraduates across 13+ Greater Boston Area colleges and universities, including Harvard, MIT, Boston College, Boston University, Northeastern, Wellesley, UMass Boston, UMass Lowell, Emerson, Bentley, Gordon, Emmanuel, New England Conservatory, and Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. Founded in the early 2000s and reorganized in Spring 2020 under a newly ratified charter and bylaws, BIG functions as a unified advocacy body on student issues including MBTA public transportation access, financial aid transparency, food security, academic resources, and unpaid internship protections.

BIG does not build or sell technology products. Its operational infrastructure consists of a Wix-hosted website (bigstugovt.org), Instagram (@bigstugovt), LinkedIn, a shared Gmail address, and Google Workspace for document collaboration. The organization's work is executed through five standing committees—Internal Affairs, Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, Equity Diversity and Inclusion (EDI), and Policy—each overseen by a student Director who serves alongside a Chair, Vice Chair, and Treasurer. Programs include the MBTA University Pass reform effort (in collaboration with MBTA's fare programs leadership), a cross-institutional Resources Booklet, a coordinated BIG Career Fair, the FGLI Welcome Program with Harvard SGA, the Greater Boston Food Drive with Northeastern, and state-level legislative testimony supporting bills S.1035, S.835, and H.4199.

BIG operates a non-commercial model: it does not charge for membership, generate revenue from its constituents, or accept external investment. Each member institution supplies two voting representatives to the General Assembly (BIG's rule-making body) and unlimited non-voting committee staff. The organization is governed entirely by elected student representatives, with continuity supported by an Alumni Advisory Council established in 2021. BIG's value to members is therefore not transactional but political—amplifying individual student governments' regional advocacy leverage through coalition scale.

Name

Boston Intercollegiate Government (BIG)

Legal name

Boston Intercollegiate Government

Website

https://bigstugovt.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Boston Intercollegiate Government (BIG) is a non-profit coalition of 13+ Greater Boston Area student governments representing 155,000+ undergraduates, coordinating intercollegiate advocacy on transportation, financial aid, academic resources, and state policy through five standing committees.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Student Government Coalition / Higher Education Advocacy

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Student Government & Leadership Programs (EDALAHAA)

Keywords

• Student government coalition
• Higher education advocacy
• Intercollegiate governance
• Student advocacy programs
• Civic engagement coalition

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Others, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Membership Contributions: As a coalition of student governments, BIG operates through institutional membership. Member institutions participate through their student government representatives who volunteer their time.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Boston Intercollegiate Government (BIG) is a coalition of student governments from 13 Greater Boston Area colleges and universities, representing 155,000+ undergraduates. It coordinates intercollegiate advocacy and programming across five standing committees (Internal Affairs, Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, Equity Diversity and Inclusion, and Policy) on issues including public transportation access, academic resources, food security, financial aid, and state-level policy.

Product overview

Boston Intercollegiate Government (BIG) is a coalition of Greater Boston Area undergraduate student governments, not a technology product company. BIG operates through five standing committees—Internal Affairs, Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, Equity Diversity and Inclusion (EDI), and Policy—that execute intercollegiate programming and advocacy initiatives. The organization represents 155,000+ undergraduates from member institutions and advocates on issues including public transportation (MBTA University Pass), academic resources (Resources Booklet, Career Fair), diversity and inclusion (FGLI Welcome Program, Cultural Virtual Showcase), financial aid support, and state-level policy. BIG does not offer a software product but rather serves as a coordinating body for student government advocacy and programming.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MBTA University Pass Advocacy

Named customers14 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Harvard Student Government Association (SGA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHarvard SGA provided a DEI grant to support BIG's FGLI (First-Generation, Low-Income) Welcome Program. The two organizations are collaborating to potentially secure additional grant funding for diversity initiatives on Boston-area campuses.
• Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBIG's Student Affairs committee is working with MBTA's Director of Fare Programs and Strategy and Deputy Director of Institutional Fares to revise the MBTA University Pass program, which provides GBA students with access to subway and bus systems.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Massachusetts Student Government Association (MSGA): A statewide student government body representing student leaders from Massachusetts colleges and universities. Closely overlaps BIG's geography and stakeholder base, though at a state level rather than the Boston metro level.
• California State Student Association (CSSA): Association of California State University student body presidents that advocates at the state level on tuition, financial aid, and student services. Analogous to BIG as a multi-campus student government coalition, but serving California rather than Massachusetts.

Direct peers

• Ivy Council: Intercollegiate coalition of the eight Ivy League undergraduate student governments. The closest functional peer to BIG: an intercollegiate student government body using a General Assembly-style structure to coordinate advocacy across elite institutions.

Broad incumbents

• Student PIRGs (U.S. Public Interest Research Groups): Network of state-level student-funded advocacy organizations focused on public interest issues (consumer protection, hunger, financial literacy). Comparable in advocacy function and student-driven model, though structured differently than BIG's coalition model.
• United States Student Association (USSA): National student advocacy organization that mobilizes students on federal higher education and social policy issues. Larger and broader in scope than BIG, but operates in the same student-voice / policy-advocacy category.
• New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) Student Advisory Council: Regional higher education coordinating body serving New England with a student advisory component. Comparable in regional higher-ed policy engagement and New England geography overlap with BIG's member institutions.
• National Campus Leadership Council (NCLC): National organization supporting and convening student body presidents from major US universities. Comparable in its role aggregating and amplifying student government voices, with broader national reach than BIG.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/boston-intercollegiate-government
• Instagraminstagram.com/bigstugovt

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Boston Intercollegiate Government (BIG)