When Davis Podany applied for an IT help center technician job his freshmen year of college he had no idea where it would take him. Over two years later, the junior business administration major from Clarkson, Nebraska, discovered more at the College of Business Administration than just helping people with computers.
“When I came to UNL I wanted to be a physician,” Podany said. “I did all the job shadowing and career evaluation in high school looking at the health care profession to see where I’d fit.”
Podany enrolled as a biology major at UNL and began working in IT Services at CBA.
“Before I got to UNL, I knew I wanted to have a job in college to help pay off some debt that I’d accumulate,” he said. “I also knew I’d enjoy the job because along with wanting to work in health care I’ve always enjoyed technology.”
Yet something happened for Podany while working in IT at CBA that he did not expect.
“I met a lot of faculty and staff at CBA and made connections here. It let me get comfortable with the college, and I felt a lot more community happening at CBA which made me think maybe this is where I belong.”
He took a 300 level management class to check out what a business education was all about.
“That’s when I saw the business world is for me. It showed me people in entrepreneurship, and I could picture myself doing that and enjoying myself. I also took an economics class with Dr. Laurie Miller and she got her students fired up about economics. One concept she taught about opportunity costs stayed with me to the extent I think about it in everything I do now.”
Podany assisting fellow worker Brittany Bell at the IT Help Center
After briefly toying with the idea of a business minor, Podany decided to go ahead and switch his major to business and retain biology as a minor.
“I’m still passionate about biology but changing to business administration and plugging in biology and psychology minors allows me to pursue a health care career in a whole new light.”
Podany says he was not exposed to the range of careers available in business until he started to learn about them at CBA.
“Now I’m open to possibly getting a master’s degree in health care administration,” Podany said. “Working with new technologies and working in the health care system are both important to me. I enjoy helping others. When I came here I was exposed to all those different fields, and it really sparked an interest.”
He encourages students to consider the benefits of working on campus.
“I think having a job on campus is one of the best things a student can do because the people that hire you understand your student obligations. It never crossed my mind I’d be a CBA major when I applied for the job but it ended up introducing me to a whole new world where I really fit in.”
Published: February 17, 2015