Hi, I am Julia Lavarnway, and I’m a rising junior here at Clarkson University. I am a global supply chain major with a project management minor and I am from Watertown NY. At Clarkson, there are several business majors to choose from, but everyone starts out as business studies. So I was able to choose my major in global supply chain management later on, which gave me time to understand and decide exactly what undergraduate program I wanted to pursue. Clarkson’s global supply chain management program has been ranked in the top 20 nationwide for several years.

Being a Business Student

My favorite thing about being a business student is that there are a lot of different paths you can take with the major. Here at Clarkson, you are not restricted to one thing, I like that you have the freedom to choose where you can go with it. 

During your first two years, you start by fulfilling the core business requirements. That means that most of your courses are broad and you get a good feel of the different aspects that you will need in any and all majors taught here. 

My favorite class would probably be SB113, which is a Small Business entrepreneurship class because in that class it’s the first semester of freshman year and you get thrown in and told to come up with a company and you pitch that company to a panel of investors. It’s a required class for all first-year business students and a favorite of many! I think it is really cool because within your first semester you are learning a bunch of different business tools and techniques that you are going to need for the rest of your learning experience and in your career. 

Now that I’m going to be a junior, I’ll be taking many more classes related to my major, which I’m excited about! 

My Internship

This summer I have an internship at New York Air Brake.  My internship is focused on Supply Chain. Career services helped me obtain my internship through Resumania. Resumania is held in the weeks leading up to our career fair in which students can obtain help drafting and editing their resumes, seek interview tips, and get themselves prepared for the career fair. The support that was given through Resumania was so helpful in finding an internship. I was able to speak one-on-one with someone about my resume and together, we critiqued it and built a resume that made me feel confident in my internship applications, and showcased all that I had to offer the position. Which paid off in helping me obtain my internship.

Clarkson’s Support Structure

I feel academically supported at Clarkson especially in the School of Business because our advisors are very hands-on and always checking to make sure that we are doing well in our classes, and always there if we need extra support. Not specific to the school of business is also, the Career Center here at Clarkson. Our Career Center does a great job of making sure students get the most out of our time here at Clarkson by helping us seek out opportunities. Our Career center is actually award-winning and has been consistently ranked as one of the Top-20 Career Services in the nation! We also have a very strong alumni network that is so supportive in providing professional opportunities. It is critical that we all find professional experience, prior to graduation as it is a campus-wide requirement. It’s so nice that we get to choose our own opportunities and seek out what is of most interest to us and we have the support to make that happen! 

My On-Campus Involvement

Here at Clarkson, I am on the Women’s lacrosse team, I think that being a part of the team has helped with the transition from high school to college. I was able to come to Clarkson knowing that I would be a part of a strong team, and hoping to build those relationships and friendships. I love how supportive our team is to each other on and off the field. We have a great coach who is involved in helping us find balance when it comes to academics and athletics. 

I am also a part of the Reh School of Business Advisory Committee. My role in this is to represent the Reh School of Business and provide feedback throughout my academic career. Within that I have a lot of opportunities, I get to meet candidates for professor positions, I get to speak on student panels in open houses. 

Through this experience, I have learned public speaking skills while speaking on behalf of the Reh School of Business at open houses and luncheons. I have also learned professionalism in interviewing and working with others. 

Homey Atmosphere

I chose Clarkson because of the hometown atmosphere. Clarkson being a small school you are not just another face, you are a name, a person, and a student to a lot of your professors. The connections you make are phenomenal for creating opportunities and networking. The one-on-one time you get with professors and your fellow classmates creates a lot of student interactions. It’s amazing how you can learn so much from all these different people.

While I am only a rising junior I am already considering staying at Clarkson to complete my MBA. I have been looking into it for a couple of semesters now since I get to see how amazing the program is every day. I feel that this program will help me achieve my goals in the future and love that I can stay here to do that! It’s an awesome opportunity to be able to stay here and get a master’s degree in just 5 years total time.