Smith MBAs Attend National Black MBA Association Conference and Career Fair

The 29th Annual National Black MBA Associations Conference and Career Fair was held this year in Orlando, Fl., Sept. 11-15, 2007, and was attended by over 12,000 students, professionals and educators. The theme of this years conference was "Relevance: Staying Current, Creative, and Credible." The programming gave students the opportunity to hear from senior executives at some of Americas top companies, talk about what staying relevant means in corporate America and how it is achievable.

The career fair portion of the event offered students the opportunity to meet with over 350 companies from all over the United States, representing 16 different industries. It also offered students the opportunity to get feedback on their resumes and help brushing up their interviewing skills.

A number of Smith students flew down to Orlando to take advantage of this amazing opportunity. Second-year Tekisha Harvey was glad that she attended the event for the second year in a row. It was a great opportunity to develop contacts with companies of interest and also with other MBA students. Given my specific area of interest, consumer product marketing, I was able to really focus in on my select target companies all in one place.

With such a wide selection of companies the event truly offered something for everyone. Some of the companies that attended this year's event included Apple, Booz Allen Hamilton, GE, and Kellogg Company. Fellow second-year John Bullock also attended the event, It is one of the very few times that a MBA student has to effectively reach out and touch any number of Fortune 500 companies. The fact that they are all in one room is mind boggling.

▓ Lettie Goodridge, MBA Candidate 2008, Smith Media Group