3 days of speakers get students ready for future careers

While most of campus was in the midst of Homecoming Week, business students were focused on the three-day business symposium to learn how to further their careers.

Business students were excused from class and required to go to the symposium for extra credit.

All students could attend the event to see important business speakers, most of whom were ULM alumni.

This allowed multiple classes to hear the same speaker. A cookout was also provided for faculty, students and business guests.

The purpose of the business symposium was to engage alumni in college activities and to also bring current business thoughts and practices to campus. This gives students a big chance to build their résumés and network with other businesses with hopes of internships and possibly full-time careers.

“The symposium is helpful for students because it gives us an outlook on successful jobs and businesses,” said Heather Blackman, a senior marketing major from Monroe. “It is very inspiring for people in our field to listen to these knowledgeable speakers.”

Wednesday night was the kick-of for the symposium. The event that night was called the “Brain Bowl.” A variety of business majors put together teams to compete in a Jeopardy- style game for fun. The idea behind the game was to get students excited for the next two serious days.

Thursday’s events included 11 different speakers coming to talk to business students about current business trends and practices.

Speakers shared their stories of success and challenged the students to reach for their goals in the business world.

All speakers earned a level of success and position in their respected fields.

The last day of the symposium was perhaps the most important of all for business students to attend. Speaker Shama Kabani, president and CEO of Zen Marketing Group, came to ULM as the keynote speaker with the theme: “Business and Society: Connecting for Success.” People from the community, as well as faculty and students, came to hear the highprofile speaker address issues in the modern-day business world.

“Kabani gave us a lot of great advice about what to do and what not to do in a business setting, for example Facebook and Twitter,” said Chistian Bibi Ndongo, a senior general business major.