Move Forward in Your Career: Professional Organizations at UIC Business

Participating in professional organizations is a way to find support, useful knowledge, and achieve career success. In addition to gaining industry-relevant skills, these organizations provide students with a chance to collaborate with one another over various workshops and events, interact with business leaders and gain insight into their area of expertise. Often, learning in groups such as these allow students to discover their passion and build their career towards it.

UIC Business has several student organizations that help students find out about career advancement opportunities. Some benefits of membership include:

Student organization members have access to professional development tools that help them advance their skills and keep up with the trends. This will benefit you in the long term by putting you a step ahead of your competition.

The student organization FCG Consulting provides its members with the necessary resources to be prepared for the business and consulting world. They partner with various consulting firms to provide weekly professional development events such as networking nights, case interview workshops, speaker panels, etc. FCG Consulting also works on pro bono consulting projects with non-profit organizations and small businesses in Chicago to give their members real-life consulting experience and to give back to the local community.

Being a part of an organization opens the door to  many opportunities, resources, and useful professional connections. The great thing is that these connections are based on common interests and goals.

 The American Marketing Association Collegiate Chapter is an organization of students from a broad range of majors and diverse backgrounds who seek the knowledge to make themselves more effective marketers. AMA provides a real-world experience through business workshops and opportunities for participation in an in-house agency. Also, the American Marketing Association hosts competitions where members can create presentations, giving the students a chance to practice public speaking, writing, marketing, and be given feedback on their work.

When you become a member of a professional organization, you can establish new contacts and strengthen your current industry partnerships. The majority of the relationships are serving as a constant source of inspiration, ideas, and cooperation.

The Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS) Student Chapter at UIC is a community of young and enthusiastic analysts, consultants, coders, and zealous members of the UIC Business Liautaud Graduate School community aspiring to contribute as professionals in the growing workforce. They organize events for students to encourage them to build a like-minded community, and a network of alumni and recruiters, and to provide the opportunity to learn.

You’ll be exposed to fresh perspectives by being around other industry professionals with different points of view.

The purpose of the Business Analytics Organization (BAO) is to promote the intellectual and professional development of students with an interest in business analytics. This creates a common platform for analytics enthusiasts and helps them share their views and grow as a community.  BAO aims to bridge the gap between college education and real-world experience required for the industry.

Interacting with university alumni and business leaders gives you  an inside perspective of various industries. This will motivate you to achieve your career goals and help you understand the skills required, career paths, and opportunities available.

The Finance & Investment Group (FIG) is a student-run organization that offers workshops and networking events for its members to deepen their knowledge on an interactive, personal level.

FIG hosts speaker events where they invite business professionals from different finance fields, such as personal, public, private, and corporate finance to speak about their experiences.

Participation in professional organizations gives you the opportunity to thrive in  a strong professional environment, find support and useful knowledge, and achieve success in your career. These organizations can help you move forward in your career through networking, alumni relations, and skill building. Check out more business-specific organizations and get started today:

• Accounting Club
• Alpha Kappa Psi
• American Marketing Association
• Association of Latino Professionals For America
• Beta Gamma Sigma
• Black Students in Business
• Business Analytics Organization
• Collegiate Association of Business Scholars
• FCG Consulting
• Finance and Investment Group
• Five94′ Marketing Solutions
• Improv Club
• Informs
• Management Leadership Association
• Operations Management Group
• Portfolio Management Team
• United Women’s Network