YSU Williamson College to Launch Student Consulting Service

YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO — Youngstown State University’s Williamson College of Business Administration is launching a business consulting service whereby students work with area companies on specific projects.

The WCBA Student Consulting Initiative begins this fall. It demonstrated the college’s continued commitment to innovation, impact and engagement, says its dean, Betty Jo Licata.

The goals are twofold, she says. First is to provide undergraduate and graduate students with hands-on experiences that enable them to apply their knowledge and skills to solving business problems and to develop teamwork and consulting skills. Second, the initiative will provide businesses and nonprofits with expertise to solve organizational problems.

WCBA Dean Betty Jo Licata said the Initiative builds on the college’s experience in working with businesses and its partnership with the YSU Small Business Development Center.

“The time is right to do this,” says Licata. “Due to Covid-19, many internship opportunities are being put on hold. The WCBA Student Consulting Initiative is one more way in which we can serve businesses and our students can gain hands-on experience.”

Students selected for the initiative will participate in several weeks of training on effective consulting skills and will then be deployed to work on one or more projects in the areas of marketing and advertising, accounting and finance, and management and human resources.

For the initial phase, projects will be completed free of charge. Organizations will be expected to cover the expenses of materials, information, data collection or activities that may be necessary to complete the project.

Joe Angelo, director of the WCBA Entrepreneurship Center, will coordinate the initiative. Interested organizations should email him at [email protected] with a description of the project to be completed.

SOURCE: YSU News Service

Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.