Dreaming of working in college athletics drove Amanda Van Duyn, ’19, to the University of Nebraska–Lincoln for graduate school. Everything she planned for her career quickly changed when she discovered Hudl.
Van Duyn, a Kenosha, Wisconsin native, graduated from the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater with an undergraduate degree in communications and Spanish hoping to continue her studies to pursue college athletics. Coming from a student-athlete background with bowling in Wisconsin, Van Duyn worked closely with faculty like Dr.Kristina Navarro, now senior associate athletic director for leadership development and strategic partnerships at Rutgers University, who encouraged her to apply for the Master of Arts in Business with a Specialization in Intercollegiate Athletics Administration (MAIAA) program with the College of Business at Nebraska
“Amanda is a dynamic and self-motivated leader. Her work ethic led her to great success as an All-American and president of the Warhawk Leadership Academy at UW-Whitewater. Her commitment and passion for athletics drives her success,” said Navarro.
Once accepted into the MAIAA program, Van Duyn hit the ground running. Besides participating in case competitions and volunteer events through MAIAA, she started her first-year graduate assistantship with the Department of Supply Chain Management and Analytics where she taught Excel courses to students.
Van Duyn consults with Dr. Kasey Linde, assistant director of the teaching and learning center.
“When I got the position for my Excel teaching, I had zero interest in it, but it turned out to be the best part of my experience with the MAIAA program. I knew I wanted to work in athletics, but the experience I got teaching and working with Excel made me realize what I enjoy about data,” said Van Duyn.
In her second year with the MAIAA program, Van Duyn worked as a graduate assistant with Nebraska Departments of Athletics in development. Already juggling one full-time job and classes, she was presented with another amazing opportunity to add to her plate. The opportunity to intern for Hudl, a company providing video review and performance analysis tools for sports teams, became available in the company’s human resources department.
The internship didn’t follow the path Van Duyn had planned for herself or align exactly with the things she worked on with Nebraska Athletics. Dr. Tammy Beck, associate dean of graduate programs and executive education at the College of Business, encouraged Van Duyn to consider the option and to look at the bigger picture.
“Tammy Beck helped open my eyes to the wide range of opportunities in athletics outside of directly working within a college athletic department,” said Van Duyn.
Being a graduate student, Hudl tasked Van Duyn with projects helping with project compensation and new hire processes. Not long after, Van Duyn accepted a full-time position with Hudl as global human resources specialist. She draws from her experiences teaching Excel to students in that first year of the MAIAA program to excel in her career.
Graduating last spring from the MAIAA program, Van Duyn still enjoys her position at Hudl. With great things to say about the MAIAA program and Hudl, Van Duyn believes her time in the program gave her the experience she needed to embrace the changes thrown at her.
“I am so thankful for my experience with the MAIAA program, Hudl and living in Lincoln. The graduate program gave me some great friendships as well as the skills and experiences I need to be successful at my current job. Hudl’s people makes it a great company to work for, and I couldn’t think of a more perfect fit with my values,” said Van Duyn.
To learn more about the MAIAA program, visit
https://business.unl.edu/maiaa.
Published: August 22, 2019