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Collier Student Success Center

The new Collier Student Success Center at the USF Muma College of Business focuses on the value students can add to their degrees outside of the classroom as well as within it.

The separate elements of the Collier Student Success Center were already in existence – Undergraduate Advising, study abroad services, the Office of Employer Relations, the Business Communications Center, and the Corporate Mentor Program – but now are under the same "student success" umbrella to coordinate efforts.

"We have an office now that is focused on assuring that students graduate in a timely fashion with the academic and professional credentials they need to either continue on in grad school or begin their careers," said Jackie Nelson, senior director of undergraduate programs.

The Collier Student Success Center helps business students achieve their education and professional objectives while also contributing to Muma College of Business strategic priorities. In Undergraduate Advising, students can learn about their chosen majors and talk to advisors who make sure they are on track to graduate. In the Business Communications "BizComm" Center, students can learn how to best present themselves in a resume and in other professional writing situations. In the Corporate Mentor Program, students who are the first in their families to attend college are paired with mentors who help them learn skills essential to their professional development. In the Office of Employer Relations, full-time employees work to bring in corporate recruiters to talk to USF students and fill internships and jobs. In study abroad services, students can decide what experience might expand their worldview and help them learn about international business.

Immediate goals of the Collier Student Success Center include:

• Increasing the business school's freshman retention rate,
• Decreasing time it takes students to graduate with degrees,
• Improving job placement at graduation,
• Ensuring that students have at least one internship under their belts before graduation,
• Encouraging students to study abroad at least once during their time at USF,
• And increasing the number of first-generation students who participate in the Corporate Mentor Program.

For more information about the USF Muma College of Business, visit www.usf.edu/business.