Experiential Learning for Nonbusiness Students: Student Engagement Using a Marketing Trade show Stacy

Abstract

As educators, we have two missions. First, we must serve our students—they are both our customer and our product. Second, we aim to provide the market in general with graduates with relevant skills and knowledge for jobs that have not even been created yet. Given that most students graduating and moving into the workplace are not necessarily business majors, it is important that we consider the impact of business minors or any student who has gained experience in one of the business classes. As educators, we cannot afford to have our brand on students who are not a direct reflection of our academic institutions. Business schools have seen enrollment increases, and some schools have adopted admission standards that are used to pare down class size. This in turn has swelled the ranks of the minors. While some schools may ease the academic rigor for minors, it is still imperative that these students are afforded a comparable learning experience to that of the majors. Through the use of a marketing trade show to showcase product ideas and business professionals as judges, the minors are placed in a setting outside their normal comfort zone. The judges hold the business minors to the same level that they would hold any "new hire" for their companies. The students involved in preparing, presenting, and taking on the pointed questions the judges ask are better suited to handle the situations in the near future in their fields of endeavor.