A collaboration between the UTSA Career Center, Valero Energy Corporation and Texas A&M College Station will host a day-long event for freshmen.
On Jan. 26, UTSA and A&M first year pre-business students will participate in an externship at Valero’s headquarters. The event continues with a team project led by UTSA College of Business students from Delta Sigma Pi and will conclude with a networking workshop with local
SA based professionals from different industries.
“In business, networking is everything. We are so appreciative that students in our UTSA College of Business are encouraged by faculty and staff to network and build relationships with one another, as they may encounter each other in the future and could be able to help each other grow, advance or build their professional careers,”
said Mysti Frazier, a College of Business career counselor and a lead organizer of the event.
“We want to help business students grow in their professionalism, career exploration and collaborative abilities and improve their communication skills.”
UTSA’s Career Center feels the opportunity to involve students from other universities as well as a large local company like Valero is a way to improve retention rates at UTSA.
“Having an opportunity to expand that network to an entirely new group, such as the A&M students, provides UTSA students great opportunities for building relationships, especially this early on,” said Frazier. “Building personal and professional relationships early on is a cornerstone to retention, academic enhancement and career success.”
The Career Center is coordinating with professional business fraternity Delta Sigma Pi to focus on personal and professional relationships through the spirit of competition. Jonathan Gonzales, sophomore double major in cybersecurity and information systems and vice president of professional activities for Delta Sigma Pi, is working with the Career Center to coordinate an entrepreneurial workshop for the students in attendance. “This workshop will allow students to work as a team and utilize their entrepreneurial spirit by competing to solve multiple business based scenarios,” said Gonzales.
“They will be rewarded points based on effort, practicality and creativity.”
Gonzales did not discount the importance of student organizations being able to collaborate with the Career Center for the event. “It’s important that DSP is involved in this workshop, as we believe leadership and initiative are key aspects in career development and by facilitating this event into the early phases of a student’s collegiate career, we can maximize their professional potential for the future,” Gonzales said.
Freshman cybersecurity major Luis Fraire is one of many UTSA students who plan to attend the event. “My expectations for the event is for the information to be interesting and
insightful into the many opportunities there are for employment and internships in San Antonio,”said Fraire. “Overall, I hope this event will help me take the first step into finding a professional career.”
The Career Center hopes students will take this opportunity to network with an entirely new group and grow from the experience. Frazier notes how valuable it is for students to expand their experience beyond only local connections and plans for the event to provide that experience
for UTSA’s first-year freshmen.
