Conference to celebrate women in business

This year will mark the seventh meeting of the annual Undergraduate Women in Business (UWIB) Professional Development Conference, which will take place Feb. 13-14 in the Mendoza College of Business Atrium.

Conference co-chair and junior Patricia Bartlett said this year’s theme is “Finding a Career Path You Love,” which will focus on the many career paths available to business and non-business majors.

“The conference is a great opportunity for women to connect with each other on various topics, for undergraduates to learn from experienced professionals and for companies to promote their brands,” she said.

The conference aims to provide undergraduate women the necessary skills to discover their interests and abilities in order to better understand how those skills translate into a career, Bartlett said.

“We feel that it's important to open the eyes of undergraduate women to the variety of opportunities, including non-traditional career paths, available after graduation,” she said.

Fellow co-chair and sophomore Whitney Spiegel said the conference will include two keynote speakers: Kristin Boyd, a vice president in equity derivative sales at Credit Suisse, and Laura Hollis, an associate professional specialist in Mendoza. Other scheduled conference events include a panel discussion and speed-networking session.

“For the conference, the UWIB board decided we wanted to highlight individuals with non-traditional career paths as well as give them a broad spectrum of experiences,” Spiegel said.

Although the conference traditionally hosts a faculty keynote speaker and an outside speaker, Spiegel said the two women will provide different perspectives on potential career paths.

“The UWIB Conference will allow undergraduate women to network and build relationships with successful businesswomen while learning about their unique experiences,” Bartlett said.

This year, Bartlett said conference attendees will include the Notre Dame Career Center and 13 companies: KPMG, Ernst & Young, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Deloitte, Grant Thornton, BP, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, AT&T, General Mills, Cardinal Health, Nielsen and General Electric.

Spiegel said conference attendance last year exceeded 120 undergraduate women and included 10 different companies as well as two keynote speakers.

“Each year, we have expanded in student attendance and company participation, and we hope to continue the trend this year,” she said.

This year’s conference will host the largest number of companies and undergraduate attendees since the conference began seven years ago, Spiegel said.

“The undergraduate women attendees will gain invaluable connections with female professionals across a variety of industries that will help these students discover their passions,” she said.

The conference will include meals and giveaways and cost $5, according to the event's Facebook page.