Graduate Student News

GSAB Members Show Their Culinary Skills

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Geography Alumni in PhD Program

Amber Munson graduated with an MA in Geography from UNI in 2004. She is now ABD at Texas State University and is earning a PhD in Geographic Education.

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Several recent MBA alumni from the Hong Kong program demonstrated their business skills in CapSim, an international strategy simulation competition that draws hundreds of competitors from business schools all over the globe.

The CapSim Challenge draws students from top ranked business schools, and the UNI students beat out such competition as Indiana University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York, the Wharton School, and the University of California. The competition started with 349 students, whittled down to 181 in several rounds of competition. In the competition with the 181 teams, four UNI MBA alumni were among the top 26. Alex Wong finished in the top six and therefore moved to the final competitive round where he finished second overall.

According to UNI Business Dean Farzad Moussavi, “Our Hong Kong students are very proactive, and I knew it was only a matter of time before they took on activities that would bring recognition to the program.”

Six students entered the CapSim competition.
Pictured above: Samuel Lo, Johnny Wong, Tommy Leung, Stanley Lau, and Alex Wong.  Not pictured: Emil Chan.

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The Women’s and Gender Studies program, in conjunction with several university and community organizations, marched in the Homecoming parade and held the Safe Date Tailgate. The event was organized to raise awareness about relationship violence and to provide information on what a safe date includes, such as shared decision-making and communication. At the tailgate, free barbequed pork sandwiches and Pepsi products were served with the help of UNI athlete volunteers. Drink holders and literature on relationship violence and alcohol abuse were handed out to students who visited the table. The function was a huge success, and will most likely be held again next year!

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UNI’s chapter of the Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM) traveled to Cedar Rapids for their annual fall trip. Students visited with human resource (HR) personnel from Alliant Energy, Aegon Insurance, and Verizon Business. Industrial/organizational (I/O) psychology graduate students and business undergraduates participated in this trip to learn more about the Human Resources (HR) profession and the skills and abilities needed to be successful in this field.

I/O psychology applies psychological principles to the workplace to maximize the potential of workers. Topics relevant to I/O psychology include recruitment and selection, performance appraisal, training and development, organizational development, and change management.

Each company visit provided the students with a unique view of HR operations and how various issues influence HR practices. For instance, Alliant Energy is currently faced with issues such as an aging workforce and how the physical labor demands on the job influence the number of worker compensation claims. HR personnel at Alliant Energy also discussed the process of dealing with unions and being sensitive to their regulations.

While at Aegon Insurance, students discussed the Family Medical Leave Act with Aegon’s corporate attorney. This event emphasized to the students the importance of keeping up with current legislature and continued professional development. Aegon’s president in human resources personally encouraged second-year I/O psychology graduate students to apply for full-time positions and emphasized his desire to attract young, educated professionals into the company.

The visit to Verizon Business provided students with an entirely different view on how technology influences the everyday interactions in the HR field. The HR representative at Verizon Business manages employees across the nation entirely through the Internet and telephone. She is the only HR representative in the entire building and does not manage any of the employees in her building. She spends the majority of her day on the phone conducting conference calls. During her time with the company she has been through company mergers and bankruptcies. She stressed being flexible as an important quality for those interested in the field.

Overall this trip provided I/O psychology graduate students an opportunity to step outside the classroom to see how these psychological principles are being applied in the real world. This trip also allowed for networking opportunities with professionals in the HR field and yielded valuable opportunities for graduate students looking for full-time jobs and internships. All the HR personnel were delighted to have the group visit their company and encouraged students to keep in touch about possible job shadowing or internship opportunities.