Brand Promoted

New program educates students on life transitionsEryn OlsonTHE SANTA CLARAOctober 31, 2013The move from high school to college can be tough. Adjusting to the workforce after college can be even more of a struggle. SCUBrand4U is a new personal brand management program that helps undergraduate students transition smoothly into college from high school, and later, into a career.H. Buford Barr, business and communication professor at Santa Clara, founded and directs SCUBrand4U. He promotes the program to students and parents as a way to receive a great return on their educational investment.“These are life-changing moments that this program, if successful, will truly make the Santa Clara education experience much more valuable,” said Barr.There are three branches within the program: High School 2 College, Personal Branding and College 2 Career. HS2C caters to freshmen, and stresses building relationships with professors, exploring career options and joining on-campus clubs. The Personal Branding workshops include an exercise created by Fred Hoar, a Silicon Valley public relations and marketing executive and Santa Clara professor who died in 2004.With College 2 Career, students learn about the differences between college and the business world. Kate Peters Bushnell said, “Millennials I’m meeting are struggling with transitioning into a career.” She listed on a sheet of paper 12 things she wished she had learned in college, including engagement, being open to change, asking questions and networking.Through SCUBrand4U, Barr said, “Students get more out of their education than just a ton of facts.”SCUBrand4U hosted six sessions last week in the residence halls on campus and in the University Villas. The average turnout was 23 students. Barr said he wants to implement some kind of incentive to increase its popularity. He cited how two or three of the 28 colleges in the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities have already made the personal branding program a graduation requirement. Barr said how he would love to see the program used during freshman summer orientation.“Students are our raw material,” Barr said. “We are taking raw material and turning it into a polished product so that they can bring value to the people who hire them.” SCUBrand4U began last year as a pilot program. During the fall of 2012, 80 students attended the HS2C session in Dunne Hall. Only two students showed up for the next session, partly due to its location in Lucas Hall and the rainy weather.There will be two College 2 Career sessions on Jan. 30 and Feb. 18. Two Personal Branding workshops will occur on April 24 and May 14.  Contact Eryn Olson at eolson@scu.edu or call (408) 554-4852.