California Lutheran University’s sports management program held its fourth annual Fields of Opportunity Sports Management Career Fair on Wednesday, April 15 in the Soiland Multipurpose Arena, featuring over 30 tables offering students sports industry internships and post-graduate schooling opportunities.
“It’s very important to have events like this on campus to give students an insight to the olive branches of the sports industry, that it’s not just about the professional sector,” said Mark Orlando, assistant professor and director of Cal Lutheran’s sports management program. “At the same time, it also helps students help them kind of find their ‘why.’”
Employers presented various opportunities, from internships with Cal Lutheran’s Athletics Department to game day ambassadorships with the Los Angeles Rams.
Junior sports management and Spanish major Uriel Velazquez-Leon, vice president of operations for Business of Sports Club, said he was able to get a job with the Rams by attending the fair previously.
“My freshman year, I attended and I was able to connect with Timothy Thompson. He worked with 50/50 sales in the Rams and I was able to get that job, and I’ve been doing that job for, now, two years,” Velazquez-Leon said.
Sports management graduate student Faith Culpepper said attending the fair makes it easier to stand out in applying to internships and jobs.
“It’s a great opportunity to put a face to the name. In today’s job market with so many people applying on LinkedIn and things like that, it’s easy to become, like, just a name in a pile,” Culpepper said.
Orlando said he did an exercise with one of his classes to help them reflect on their personal branding and help prepare for this event, in the hopes that they would be more equipped for attending.
“We did this exercise in my class called the ‘value proposition report,’ where students are supposed to really dive deep. What did they hold sacred to their brand? Meaning is, are they more creative? Do they like something a little bit more analytical?” Orlando said. “Then they come into this event and they’re able to kind of explore and leverage that report in meeting these different individuals.”
Velazquez-Leon said members of BOSC want to be in higher positions in sports.
“[We see] a lot of marketing for sure. Obviously, we want to go through the big ones like being an agent, being maybe a [general manager] or stuff like that, but you always have to start small,” Velazquez-Leon said. “I always say you have to start off somewhere, even if it’s that small, like, selling 50/50 raffle tickets like me, or being an ambassador for the Rams.”
Schools were also in attendance promoting graduate programs and certifications, including Cal Lutheran’s own sports management program, the University of California, Santa Barbara, and the University of San Francisco.
Orlando said he tries to expand who comes to the career fair each year to cater to different interests of students.
“We have different representation of different organizations and industry, some [students] might be a little bit more coaching-centric, a little bit more personal-training-centric,” Orlando said. “I think that there’s enough organizations here to appeal to all types of students.”
Culpepper said she’s “always excited to meet people” and she believes that Cal Lutheran having these connections with major organizations and other graduate schools is beneficial for students.
Velazquez-Leon said it is important to network at events like this because of the opportunities that could present themselves from doing so.
“There’s going to be various organizations that you guys probably haven’t heard from, but go in with an open mind, put your best foot forward, be excited, show your best self,” Velazquez-Leon said.
