UMD Smith Launches Profession Boutique and Wellness Room to Empower Pupil Success
Profession Climbers / twenty seventh August 2025
The College of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith College of Enterprise, in partnership with Enterprise Mobility Basis, has launched a co-curricular initiative geared toward serving to college students costume for achievement—actually. The Enterprise Mobility Basis Profession Boutique and Wellness Room, situated in Van Munching Corridor, will probably be a donation-based useful resource that gives free skilled apparel to Smith College and BSE (Enterprise, Society and Entrepreneurship) Students getting ready for interviews, job festivals and new profession alternatives.
A collaborative effort between Smith’s Workplace of Profession Providers (OCS) and the BSE Students Program, the boutique will provide entry to fits, blouses, ties, sneakers, equipment, and even styling consultations. Workshops akin to “The right way to Gown for an Interview” and a future private shopper element make the house a full-service skilled preparation heart.
“This initiative is about greater than clothes; it’s about confidence and profession readiness,” says Scientific Professor Oliver Schlake, director of the BSE program.
BSE Students Program Assistant Director Obioma Akaigwe emphasised the boutique’s sustainability mannequin, noting that donations from alumni, native companies and neighborhood members gasoline its operations: “We wish each pupil to stroll into an interview feeling assured, regardless of their monetary scenario.”
The Profession Boutique could have particular hours and will probably be run by educated pupil employees from the BSE program, who constantly develop plans for development and work immediately with job seekers to know upcoming traits and desires.
“Along with offering a significant useful resource for our college students, we see the boutique as an ideal live-learning device that enables college students to check new concepts in a start-up atmosphere,” says Schlake. “Initially, the boutique is funded by grants, however they won’t final without end, and college students will probably be tasked to reimagine new enterprise fashions to make the boutique a sustainable fixture at Smith. Each spring, BSE college students will spend time in the course of the capstone venture to improve and enhance the boutique. Two earlier rounds of capstone have moved the venture from concept to actuality, and we intend to proceed with that path.”
Akaigwe says, “As soon as established, we provide the boutique as a platform to different applications and lessons as a co-curricular studying expertise to show important expertise in a real-life atmosphere. We additionally wish to accomplice with Smith and UMD entrepreneurs whose companies are touching profession readiness for publicity and commissions to maintain operations.”
This fall, the primary pupil leases will happen, and school, employees and alumni will see many requests for in-kind donations of interview clothes and, in fact, the occasional ask for a $20 invoice left within the go well with pocket to assist the venture.
Head of Smith OCS Kimberly Rice DeGross, Esq., introduced the profession boutique to life by securing assist from trade companions just like the Enterprise Mobility Basis, which financed the preliminary start-up value. “It’s a important service to our college students in a troublesome market, however greater than this, it’s a nice co-curricular studying expertise to arrange college students for the subsequent part of their careers,” DeGross says.
The wellness room will probably be a spot for college students to gather their ideas previous to an interview, or decompress after an interview, and for all school, employees and college students of the Smith College to get re-centered as wanted all through the college 12 months, she provides.
A grand opening ceremony for the boutique and wellness room is scheduled for 11 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025, in Van Munching Corridor, Room 2530. For extra info, contact Smith OCS through smithocs-ae@umd.edu.
Concerning the College of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith College of Enterprise
The Robert H. Smith College of Enterprise is an internationally acknowledged chief in administration schooling and analysis. Certainly one of 12 faculties and colleges on the College of Maryland, School Park, the Smith College provides undergraduate, full-time and flex MBA, govt MBA, on-line MBA, enterprise grasp’s, PhD and govt education schemes, in addition to outreach companies to the company neighborhood. The college provides its diploma, customized and certification applications in studying places in North America and Asia.
