93 NDSU students and 22 businesses participate in Professional Preview Days

NDSU’s Career and Advising Center partnered with 22 regional businesses and organizations to provide job shadow opportunities to 93 students through Professional Preview Days last month.

Students were able to see the organizations and job shadowing opportunities available to them and select which they were most interested in. Staff in the center then matched students with organizations whose employees work in the student’s area of interest.

To participate, students were required to submit a resume, attend an orientation session and complete an evaluation after their visit.

Both students and businesses found the experience beneficial. Gate City Bank hosted 12 students, including Jesleen Mulbah, a junior cybersecurity student interested in learning about cybersecurity in different industries, especially in banking.

“It was a great experience connecting with professionals outside of NDSU,” Mulbah said. “The most important thing I learned is that technical skills are not enough. Networking, communication, self-confidence and problem-solving are just as important when starting a career in cybersecurity.”

Gate City Bank enjoys opportunities to partner with NDSU and was excited to participate in this new initiative.

“We’re always eager to support NDSU and its students,” said Sam Miranda, senior human resources generalist at Gate City Bank. “The university provides wonderful opportunities for students to launch successful careers, and if we can play a role in that journey, we’re excited to do so. Because we regularly hire NDSU graduates and employ students part-time while they’re still in college, the program offered a great opportunity to connect with students early and introduce them to potential career paths at Gate City Bank.”

While there were plenty of opportunities to explore technical and security-based career paths, students interested in areas such as creative and communication-driven fields benefited from participating as well. One student interested in marketing was able to apply classroom concepts to the fast-paced, public environment of West Acres.

Morgan Steiner, senior strategic communications major, was able to learn more about managing marketing, communications and social media for an organization.

“I made a reel for their stories on Instagram,” Steiner shared.

While she’s created reels before and used the video editing app CapCut, this was the first time she created a reel for work.

Steiner, who works in the Career and Advising Center as a student, was excited when the NDSU department was tagged in the post and she was able to repost her West Acres reel to NDSU’s Career and Advising Center’s feed.

“It was cool to know that so many people saw that and liked it,” Steiner said. “It was really fun to contribute.”

Steiner found it satisfying to participate in content creation and appreciated that she wasn’t just watching and asking questions. It also helped confirm her interest in similar jobs.

She recommends other students participate in future job shadowing opportunities. “It’s so low stakes, but you can get a lot out of it.”

NDSU’s Career and Advising Center intends to make this an annual event.