Introduction to Undergraduate Business Councils
Undergraduate business councils enhance the academic environment by fostering student engagement in administrative functions of their universities. In business higher education, undergraduate business council members can affect program and professional development through their elected roles on the councils; specifically, program development includes recommendations of faculty, courses, and curriculum sequences, as well as evaluation of athletics, services, and facilities. Through participation, council members are rewarded with opportunities in leadership, personal, and professional development. Members can serve as implementers, mentors, and purchasers of curricular, co-curricular, support, and decision-making services. Business council advisors serve and reside in a support capacity, while the management is with the students.
Today’s highly ranked undergraduate business programs provide students with opportunities to manage their own organizations. Student-run clubs and organizations enhance the university experiences of their members, educate the university community at large, and provide feedback to the professional world. Qualified faculty members and full-time staff advisors run these student organizations with the support of administration. One such club is the Undergraduate Business Council, geared to connecting the community with the students of a business program. The UBC primarily serves to investigate what a university’s highest paying community does for its own betterment, and what its undergraduate students are interested in receiving. In providing such a service, however, the UBC provides university administrators with business club and pre-major student feedback.
Definition and Purpose
Undergraduate Business Councils (UBCs) are student organizations that represent the interests of undergraduate business students and act as a liaison between their respective business colleges and student communities. The purposes of councils generally revolve around the personal and professional development of members, networking, and academic and extracurricular success. Whereas other student organizations might host one-time events or speakers, UBCs are unique in that they usually feature several committees and initiatives to meet the goals of representation and student development. Initiatives can range from social events to professional development activities, health or mental health forums, and more. Many focus on community building and connecting students to the business world prematurely.
When asked about the topic, a graduate of the School of Accountancy at Utah State University said, “Working with the Undergraduate Business Council was one of the high points of my educational experience. I developed and honed the vast majority of my leadership skills through that organization. It was a real treat to partner with our college to make the school and all of the students there a more enriching and successful place.
” The definition of an undergraduate business council is quite simple: undergraduate business councils are student organizations dedicated to representing the concerns of their respective undergraduate business students. Often, their goals are more determined than those of the general student council. For those attending schools where education is highly focused on one college or another, the councils are the bridge between students and the faculty at their college. If education is built on a similarly segregated architecture, councils are the ones who work with the university to ensure that we have a strong voice within our college.
Historical Background
The origins of undergraduate business councils extend back to the early 20th century, when American universities saw a marked increase in the rate of student participation. In the 1920s and 1930s, undergraduate business organizations began to appear on college campuses. As business education absorbed a growing fraction of students on many campuses, it was incumbent upon many institutions to quench this upsurge in student enthusiasm.
An important part of the service seemed to be the hanging of rays of hope and aspiration about the campus by the faculty of the school. In 1924, colleges had been advised to set up procedures in order that the natural leaders may carry out the will of the school: undergraduate councils were a popular means of carrying out this suggestion. As this body of undergraduate leading critics pointed out, faculty and administrators were motivated by genuine interest in establishing bodies of students as a way of curbing potential student radicalism and in channeling the emerging commercial class.
Between the academic and professional eras, academic policy trends and the economic environment had significantly shaped the organizational beliefs of the undergraduate business council. Councils adapted rapidly to lagged economic trends in business and to policy trends in the undergraduate business program.
Although the membership of undergraduate councils has been strongly linked to the undergraduate business population, it has also been influenced by the push and pull of facilitators and grassroots movements as well as the cooperation of university officials. The participation of key stakeholders has been an essential factor in ensuring the ongoing viability of undergraduate councils in colleges of business and management. As the study of management and business has become the core of higher education, undergraduate business councils have evolved to embody several roles, assets, and infrastructural precepts.
Structure and Organization
Undergraduate business councils differ at each school, but they generally contain a similar arrangement of officers, members, and committees that help in the activities of the council. Among officers, there will generally be one or two presidents, a number of vice presidents, and some secretaries and treasurers. Below these officers, there are the members, each of whom is assigned to an officer. The organization of councils is based on the principle of a pyramid, with one organizational head working with different advisers.
Council members regularly hold weekly meetings to plan activities and share information. Most of these members also make up an executive board, which plans strategy about where the council should be headed. The four to ten members who head up the members’ efforts also organize themselves into an executive, where their areas of responsibility are sorted out and planned.
At some schools, the members’ representative on the executive board joins the president and vice president in planning and overseeing all activities of the council. Some of the things that may come up at meetings of council members include sharing news between different committees, planning new events, giving evaluations of old projects, ratifying the executive board’s proposals, and other matters. The actual splintering of these members’ representatives to the leadership stems from the variety of work done.
An executive board is a manageable size, in a group or a company, where decisions can be effectively made by 8 to 12 people. The members’ representative is invaluable and good for the executive’s actions. An example of the members’ work would be the recent start of a case competition, where they were responsible for the whole project, including advertising, registration, financial planning, and coordinating. This program will be brought up at the first meeting to alert members of arising issues.
Executive Board
A council’s leadership consists of an executive board, typically composed of officer or director positions of president, vice president, and other officer/director positions like secretary, treasurer, projects/program director, alumni/external relations director, marketing/advertising/communications director, etc. Each member of the executive board is expected to attend, facilitate, or organize meetings to ensure the members are on the same page. The president usually meets with an advisor or administrator to make sure the council is aligned with the college’s or school’s mission.
All members of the executive board are involved in strategic planning to shape the direction of the council through long-term and short-term goals and an annual work plan. The president, who represents the council in meetings with administrators, corporate sponsors, and students, frequently does external relations work with these groups. The executive board is responsible for encouraging student ownership, networking opportunities, leadership development, and resources for success. The effectiveness of the executive board governs the effectiveness of the council. Opportunities to serve members in this way are not limited to just the president.
The executive board is in charge of guiding the council, making sure the importance of individual contributions and commitment levels is understood, providing the resources and facilitating an environment for the council’s mission to be accomplished, and holding each member accountable for performance at a strategic level. The executive board structures the organization in such a way that the individual members of the council can carry out the council’s mission. A lot of councils use their executive board to recruit general members for volunteer shifts, for project teams or events, and new leadership. A structured interview process is given for this opportunity.
Committees
In order to execute the necessary functions of the council, members typically form into committees. Each committee focuses on a single or small number of subjects to more effectively handle specific tasks. Some examples of common committees within business councils are listed below: Career/Outreach, Event Planning, Fundraising, Community Service, Public Relations, and Membership. Committees reflect the association’s unique needs, and different types of committees might be grouped or divided based on the committee’s size and function to achieve greater effectiveness or operational success.
It is the committee’s responsibility to work through proposed ideas from the association, develop them into a proposed course of action, and present it to the organization’s accountable leaders for approval. Because committees can help to create a better-organized meeting, executive team members might provide a regularly updated list of approved committee reports for the agenda, a plan for what should be done after the committee meeting, and the tools and resources needed to develop a better course of action.
Having an executive team member as a part of the committee not only helps in this organization, but also provides the executive team with both a clearer understanding of how the plan was developed and a formalized sounding board regarding formal business decisions. Moreover, shared decision-making ultimately makes the organization’s associates feel more involved with the decision-making and provides a wider array of experiences and opportunities to provide this involvement. Offering the organization’s members a choice in their involvement also provides them with a chance to grow into a new role, thus increasing employee satisfaction, effectiveness, and the odds that they will act as change agents for the organization’s advancement.
Activities and Initiatives
Undergraduate business councils are responsible for planning and executing activities and initiatives for students to strengthen their knowledge, skills, and abilities for attending college, securing internships, and full-time employment. Events and activities focus on collaboration, career readiness, leadership and personal development, networking and engagement, professional development, and personalized learning. Activities facilitated by councils, such as workshops, leadership training sessions, and career fairs, focus on helping students become more prepared for their future careers in a global business environment. Providing students the opportunity to engage in unique leadership roles through initiatives encourages the development of collaboration and entrepreneurial skills and opens doors for those who participate.
Through initiatives, councils take on new responsibilities with the aim of directly addressing the needs of students and enhancing their overall educational experience. Career fairs, etiquette dinners, and guest speaker sessions provide companies the opportunity to recruit new hires, meet students, and receive direct feedback from students, share news about new company initiatives, and updates about industry issues. Career-related activities are typically facilitated by councils throughout the academic year.
Additionally, engaging directly with alumni and industry professionals on campus is a key priority for the councils. Activities are typically in the form of workshops conducted to encourage student interaction in an environment that is beneficial to group learning. Mentoring programs are designed annually with the intention of engaging students with both alumni and professionals in a social and professional environment in an effort to increase the sense of community that develops spirit and pride, fostering a connection between current students and alumni. All three activities underscore the councils’ focus on enriching the business education landscape.
Professional Development Workshops
One event type that many UBCs organize is professional development workshops that provide undergraduate students with the tools needed to succeed in the professional world and in the workplace. Leaders within student organizations, career services professionals, or esteemed faculty members can facilitate workshops.
Workshops can be centered on resume building, interview techniques, technical skills that apply to a particular field or industry, professional attire, or other soft skills that can contribute to the overall preparation for the professional world. Workshops that provide basic skills such as resume building, attire, and online profile platforms or those that are centered around a particular soft skill or technical skill are generally well received by attendees, and thus, we suggest centers of higher education replicate them in some form.
Professional development can be a rewarding experience that allows participants to learn valuable career skills, interact meaningfully with peers, build their networks, and meet possible employers and clients. Workshops can be informative and add value to students’ resumes or professional development. These workshops are well attended and give students the opportunity to engage with different employers and make connections.
It’s a lot like those professional events to network but in a lecture environment, very cool. What I like about these workshops is that they expose me to things I didn’t even know I didn’t know. I find it informative with a room full of people who are interested in developing themselves. It’s like a seminar and training session. The students in the organization really have a passion for the work, and you can see all the time and effort they put into making their event a success. Each workshop participant from different industries and fields across their universities receives valuable advice and skills and then provides feedback for adjustment at future workshops.
Networking Events
Undergraduate business councils facilitate numerous networking events that allow students to interact with industry professionals, alumni, and their peers. This interaction provides students with the chance to hear other students’ perspectives on a situation or future career decision, as well as network with professionals representing an area they wish to work in. Providing a networking opportunity for students affords them the chance to learn from members of the industry in a non-threatening, less pressured environment. This interaction often leads to internship possibilities and may result in a full-time job offer.
Events are usually less formal and require no registration prior to the event. The aim of these events is to foster casual, low-key conversation in a friendly social setting. Usually, these events are held at or in the immediate proximity to a designated hall, in order to offer students who may be unfamiliar with the building the opportunity to explore in a low-pressure environment.
The Networking Functions Subcommittee often facilitates mixers and social functions through this event type. These events often feature a panel of speakers or a single speaker to talk on a specific topic. Students move around the room and change companies at intervals until they have had a chance to meet with all the companies they are interested in, as well as network with their peers. Internship and job opportunities abound at these well-attended events. These can be held in any location within the building that is convenient for the companies involved. Alumni, local business people, and representatives from the career center are just some examples of who a company would invite to such an event.
These events are a must for any student interested in making connections in the business world while in college. Coordinating these events can be time-consuming and require good organizational skills in order to be successful. While these events require a fair amount of work to put together, they often draw a large crowd and are well appreciated by both students and companies who attend. Social events are also a valuable source of alumni participation, as they lend themselves to a less structured volunteer experience. Social activities can include, but are not limited to, various outings and picnics.
Impact on Student Experience
Undergraduate business councils at many universities are directly involved in marketing internships, scholarships, and special business programs, and thus in high school recruiting. These activities are essential to their respective colleges’ financial and reputational well-being; in addition, they can be of considerable benefit to participating students. Undergraduate business councils at leading universities perform a variety of critical roles that enhance the business education and college experience of their members.
The opportunity to participate actively in these strategic actions, either by working with other student leaders or with undergraduate and MBA deans and faculty and leading alumni, is important in that it helps councils hone their marketing, leadership, and interpersonal skills and better prepare them to appear before potential future employers and faculty evaluators. With their intimate knowledge of their schools and programs, council members can serve potential students well.
As staff of the alma mater, student leaders take pride in carefully and persuasively representing the value of their respective programs to inquiring young people. Councils were not only founded to supplement traditional classroom and extracurricular activities but also continue to meet this goal. Participation enhances a student’s educational experience by providing leadership, teamwork, and ethical growth opportunities. In a position of wider significance, university councils offer professional connections to the business world. By participating in council events, a student has the unique opportunity to build relationships with top professionals, current students, and university faculty.
Often, contact with these individuals can be instrumental in determining where a student obtains an internship. Furthermore, the relationships made within council leadership diminish the challenge encountered in transferring to a leader in a different part of the United States. Finally, many council members indicate on job applications the experiences they have had on their council executive boards. Business school graduate directors have expressed a need for this criterion to be higher than a GPA in many cases.
Leadership Opportunities
Serving on an undergraduate business council is, for many students, their first significant leadership position in a focus area. By serving on undergraduate business councils, students develop a sense of responsibility for representing their peers, sharing the voice of the students, and receiving feedback on programming. Business council members are encouraged to lead initiatives, take on diverse roles, and lead committees that allow them to build organizational competency in a student organization. Members are also responsible for taking excellent notes, establishing relationships with faculty, staff, administrators, and industry professionals, and serving as an information portal to their peers.
Learning how to manage peer relationships is important for the business world, and business council members practice mentorship. On another level, serving as the lead of a council is a leadership development activity. After appointing or conducting a general application and interview of interested students, the undergraduate business council officers lead with ambiguity, encourage by example, and create a positive, inclusive team dynamic with their peers.
Officers also share leadership among collegial peers on the executive board, which includes larger friendships, the business council advisory committee, and department staff. The project debrief guide in the end-of-year reports provides students’ and alumni’s own words on the value of participating in the undergraduate council. In general, officers reported that past students have reflected on their service as the most meaningful experience of their education, in part because it provided them the opportunity to develop others and have a tangible impact on the business school.
Skill Development
Perhaps the most frequently cited benefit of participating in an undergraduate business council is the opportunity to develop valuable skills. Because councils are run by and for undergraduates, members gain experience in a number of professional activities. Student council members frequently need to interact with high-level administrative officials, such as deans or department chairs, and may frequently speak in front of student groups and alumni and corporate partners.
Members also need to be able to work well with others, whether that includes their executives, peers, faculty members, or corporate sponsors. This deeper, more systematic skill development was cited by many council members as an advantage. In addition to helping members become leaders in their field, skill development often serves as a key deciding factor when students are deciding whether or not to join a student-run organization.
Council members, notably those in leadership roles, gain practical experience in a number of areas. This includes things like public speaking, project management, teamwork, and event planning. Members often benefit from ad-hoc workshops or speaker events that are created specifically for them. Members may get training in budgeting, writing speeches, and more. Many council members valued experiential opportunities that were available to them.
In contrast, students who were members of clubs not affiliated with the council mentioned these experiences significantly less often. Many members suggest that the council was one of the few venues where they could systematically build their experiences in leadership, salesmanship, and organizational workings. Because they could participate in a safe environment, they could build communication strategies, test solutions, and get quick feedback. Importantly, they note that this cycle of reflection allows for continual growth. The diversity of groups represented on the council also means that members are forced…
Conclusion and Future Directions
Undergraduate business councils are vital parts of the universities that embrace them. These groups play a unique role in the academic communities by offering students the opportunity to develop as leaders, serving as the voice of students in academic and other programmatic areas, helping to facilitate enhanced student engagement with the university, and creating mechanisms to assist in the development of students who take their leadership and career pathways seriously.
Survey results and personal experiences reveal the impact these councils have on student learning and engagement. Most appreciably, the students grow with respect to their leadership development and the ability to effectively network with students, faculty, and administrators. These students are also better prepared to enter the workforce and have high levels of satisfaction with the academic programs of their institution. The analysis also shows that student engagement may influence satisfaction, commitment, and overall university image among non-business students.
The results of this study may be used as a first step in developing better practices in undergraduate business councils. Recommendations for research include: further analysis of how undergraduate business councils interact with their university’s corporate partners; the collation and analysis of further quantitative and/or qualitative data on the councils’ interview of university and program choices in attracting and retaining prospective students; and further study of the role and effects of undergraduate student councils at other universities in other colleges.
As programs and universities evolve to a student-focused learning paradigm, so must undergraduate business councils. The type of student that undergraduate councils aim to serve has vastly different motivations than those students served in previous decades. The potential impact of their efforts is enhanced exponentially through the creation of positive, engaged cultures in which students, universities, and corporate partners are committed to and take an active part in the development and support of academic programming. Personal reflections and some general recommendations for the future follow.
Given the results of this study, it appears that the key aspects of undergraduate business councils are important not only for the students they currently reach, but also for students at other universities and other levels of their academic careers to whom they represent. As both institutions and practical entities that give students the opportunity to gain valuable experience in program and service management, we would offer these suggestions. First, the successes identified here demonstrate that existing councils have the potential to have an even greater impact with a few modifications to their initiatives.
For example, by ramping up marketing strategies and by scouting and creating better relationships with corporate sponsors, successful programs like etiquette dinners, meet and greets, and networking nights could be enhanced even further. Second, the same might be said for the increased focus and selective use of industry partners as a means of developing business council leaders. Much here seems to be dependent upon variables such as the size and demographics of the respective student populations, the existing strength of both the student programs and the overall academic institutions, and the long-term objectives of an institution.
Third, especially because of the potential resulting benefits to the business programs, professional schools, and institutions that incorporate them, we encourage other universities to establish or consider re-establishing undergraduate business councils.
