Point Park Students Network with Industry Professionals at Baseball Winter Meetings Monday, January 19, 2015
Point Park students Nick Turgeon, Josh Croup and Nate Sphon at the Baseball Winter Meetings in San Diego, Calif.
Three Point Park students had the unique opportunity to network with industry professionals at the 2014 Baseball Winter Meetings, Dec. 7-11, in San Diego, Calif.
Sponsored by the Pittsburgh Center for Sports Media and Marketing, students interested in going to the meetings submitted an application and an essay describing their career goals and how they would benefit from this experience. After one-on-one interviews with the center's co-directors, Mike Fetchko and Tom McMillan, three students were selected to attend the trip, paid for by the center.
During the meetings, students attended a job fair with employers seeking interns, part-time and full-time employees for more than 400 positions with major and minor league organizations.
"This was an experience of a lifetime because I had the opportunity to learn from the best in the baseball industry. I also had the chance to interview with different baseball clubs and improve my networking skills," said Nate Sphon, a double major in sports, arts and entertainment management and accounting.
To prepare for the trip, Sphon and classmates Josh Croup, a broadcast reporting major, and Nick Turgeon, an SAEM major, participated in weekly meetings during the fall 2014 semester that included phone calls with alumni Tom Kayser (COM 1974), president of the Texas League, and Ryan Ellis (A&S '00), manager of the St. Lucie Mets.
The students also met with counselors in Point Park's Career Development Center to help them polish their resumes, create business cards and practice their interviewing skills.
"I had to put in hours of preparation leading up to this trip. I spent a lot of time working on a demo reel and website that would show off my talents and abilities, and I researched every team and league that I could," said Croup. "After several interviews, I'm excited to report that I even landed a summer internship!"
Turgeon mentioned the value of networking with top professionals in the league at the opening night ceremony.
"One of my favorite experiences at the meetings was attending the opening night banquet. We heard from Bud Selig and had so many opportunities to network with some of the biggest names in the game of baseball," Turgeon said.
In addition to this trip, the Pittsburgh Center for Sports Media and Marketing hosted the following industry professionals on campus during the fall semester:
- Chris Ciaccio, VP of Marketing for IMG;
- Sean Hanrahan, senior VP of Global Marketing Solutions for ESPN;
- Carrie Brzezinksi, VP of Marketing Solutions for ESPN; and
- Dejan Kovacevic, sports columnist and entrepreneur.
Follow the Pittsburgh Center for Sports Media and Marketing on Facebook and Twitter to learn more about upcoming events.