Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/62203
B-School Camp Summer camps that focus on financial skills are designed to introduce high school students to the potential thrills of a business career. by Sharon Shinn S 44 ummer camp at the University of Colorado at Boulder isn't about soccer and swimming. High school students who attend the Business Leadership Program research a local company, solve a business problem for the firm, design a mock print ad, and make a video of a sample commercial as they compete in an advertising campaign competition. If their project is judged the best, they don't win a trophy; they win a scholarship to the Leeds School of Business. Like Leeds, a number of business schools are devising summer camps designed to get teenagers excited about the possibilities of a career in business. Camps can range from a one-week on-campus experience for students who come from hundreds of miles away to a summerlong commuter program for local teens. All administrators have the same goals: to show rising juniors and seniors how important it is to pursue post-secondary educa- tion, whether or not they choose careers in business. "At our school, the idea is to get students interested in entrepreneurship as a career path," says Steve Mueller, assistant professor in the management department at the M.J. Neeley School of Business, Texas Christian University in Fort Worth. "It's a choice. 'I want to be a doctor. I want to be a lawyer. Or I want to be an entrepreneur!' The earlier you get them thinking about this choice, the better chance they'll have to be successful." According to Aswad Allen, director of diversity affairs at the Leeds school, his No. 1 priority for summer camp is to teach high school students that "college is not an option, it's a necessity." In addition, he says, "I want students to consider how acquiring busi- ness skills can improve their knowledge, which improves their power to make informed decisions and create better opportunities for themselves." BizEd JULY/AUGUST 2003