Business Management Students in Brooklyn Park Learn by Pitching Ideas to Experienced Professionals

Lacking work experience on your resume is something that many people worry about when entering into the job market after college.

And while it’s a good idea for college students pursue part-time, volunteer or internship opportunities while they are in school, sometimes it just doesn’t work out.

If only you could bring that hands-on learning into the classroom to help prepare you for real world business situations. Talk about a two-birds-with-one-stone type of situation!

A classroom of business management students in Brooklyn Park, Minn., was able to do just that.

Pitching business plans to learn and gain experience

Real world experience is incredibly valuable when preparing for a career. That is why instructor Soma Jurgensen provides her business management students at the Rasmussen College Brooklyn Park campus with an opportunity to see how their classroom coursework can be applied to their future careers.

“Students get a glimpse of what it’s like to work at a higher level than they find themselves in their careers,” according to Jurgensen.

Students in Jurgensen’s Principles of Marketing class are asked to develop a business marketing plan. As an added benefit, students that finish the assignment on time are given the opportunity to pitch their ideas to experienced business professionals – a way for them to learn the importance of meeting deadlines in the real-world.

The presentations seem stressful but they’re also designed to give students a small taste of what it will be like in their career, without the pressure of making a mistake that may affect their futures.

By adding this additional element to an assignment where students are learning how to create a business marketing plan, Jurgensen says they also come to understand how critical deadlines really are, that quality matters and how to truly stand behind their work.

After the students present a 60-90 second “pitch” of their business plan – similar to the initial introduction you see on the television show Shark Tank – the students receive constructive feedback on their business plans from experienced professionals and their instructor.

One student Francisco Garcia (pictured above) was even chosen by the experts for having the best marketing plan for his residential and commercial cleaning company idea called “Golden Rewards.” In Garcia’s case he developed a quality value proposition and SWOT analysis for his business plan in addition to creating an employee benefits package to help alleviate employee turnover – a common problem for cleaning businesses.

In closing

Earning your degree is a great way to prepare for your future career. But while you are learning it is equally important to be aware of new ways that you can gain experience that does something to prepare you for the future.

Try imagining your life five years from now. You’ve started your career and have been trusted with a big project at work that you must present to your management team. There’s a good chance you would be better prepared if you’d already been through the process like the students in Jurgensen’s class.

If you’re interested in earning a business degree at the Brooklyn Park campus be sure to check out our degree page to learn more about the programs offered.