Even though spring hasn’t quite sprung in Nebraska yet and we are still wearing our winter coats and hats, many wonderful things are happening inside the College of Business at Howard L. Hawks Hall.
 
More than 60 faculty, staff, students, alumni and business partners are currently working on finalizing the new strategic plan for Nebraska Business. The preliminary plan was shared with faculty and staff in March and feedback was taken back to the six committees. The full planning committee then met for a day to implement the feedback. Once finished, the plan will be shared with our wonderful Nebraska Business community.
 
We also partnered with the College of Law to offer any and all undergraduate students at the university a new law and business minor to enhance their degrees and employment options with legal knowledge. The collaborative program includes four courses (12 credit hours) taught by renowned professors from Nebraska Law, including former Chancellor Harvey Perlman. Students who have junior standing, a minimum 3.25 GPA and declare the minor with their academic advisor, can enroll now for the upcoming fall semester. The courses build students’ familiarity with legal concepts for jobs that don’t require a juris doctorate but require some knowledge of the law. Designed to complement any major, the law and business minor can make graduates stand out among job applicants and provide students with the skills for additional employment possibilities. Many of these jobs are in growing fields such as regulatory compliance, human resources, accounting, financial services and securities regulation and real estate development.

We recently received news that our part-time MBA program ranked No. 20 in the nation in the 2019 U.S. News & World Report evaluations of graduate school programs. This new rating is a significant leap from last year’s 66th place. It also places the Nebraska MBA program seventh among Big Ten institutions and 13th among public universities.
 
Eleven students traveled to Minneapolis on a career expedition hosted by the Business Career Center over spring. They networked with many business professionals and alumni, and visited eight employers in four days. Hong Nguyen from Nha Trang, Vietnam went on the trip to seek potential opportunities with employers. He said, “I looked to expand my network, something I believe to be one of the most important factors as a business student. Having a network filled with diverse people opens my future up to a lot of different possibilities.”
 
If you haven’t had the chance to visit our new Hawks Hall yet, there are many events scheduled in May. Some highlights include:

• Four Power Lunches in May. These feature our faculty presenting on important topics such as resonant leadership, applying entrepreneurial skills to established companies, evidence-based talent acquisition and retention, and competing with free products or services. Our Executive Education program is fulfilling our business partners’ need for professional development. To register or learn more about our other programs, go to http://business.unl.edu/execeducation.
• Employer Partners Day on Friday, May 18 from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Hosted by the Business Career Center, this event will be held in the Henrickson Family Atrium in Hawks Hall. The BCC staff look forward to sharing new initiatives happening at the college and help you enhance our employer partners’ presence on campus. To RSVP, go to: http://business.unl.edu/employerpartners. 

If I haven’t had the chance to meet you at a college event, in the community or during my travels, I hope to get the chance soon. The support from our Nebraska Business community has been wonderful and also inspiring.
 
Thank you for helping us Start Something.   Published: April 10, 2018