Students from WSU Tech's Digital Marketing program visited Wichita State University's Barton School of Business during the Spring 2023 semester. Their main objective was to learn more about the digital program at the Barton School and get a glimpse of what life on a larger, four-year university campus was like. The visit was a collaboration between the Barton School's MKT 607 Brand Planning and Promotion class, led by Professor Duane Nagel, and WSU Tech's Digital Marketing program.
During the visit, the students attended a lecture on storytelling and the role of brands in marketing. Afterward, they were broken up into groups with students from The Fairmount Project, which is part of Professor Nagel's class. The goal was to provide the WSU Tech students with a real-life case study experience and work together to help solve some of the client's problems.
The visit aimed to remove any intimidation that the WSU Tech students may have felt about transferring to a larger university. By engaging with Barton School students, the WSU Tech students were able to see that they aren't that different, they just took a different starting path. The collaboration also gave WSU Tech students the chance to get a closer look at the Barton School's class size, structure, and overall culture “without having the feeling of not being good enough,” as one WSU Tech student noted.
The feedback from the visit has been overwhelmingly positive. Chad Steele, who was part of the group, shared his thoughts on the experience:
WSU Tech student
Overall, the collaboration between the Barton School and WSU Tech's Digital Marketing program was a success. It provided WSU Tech students with a valuable learning experience and gave them a glimpse of what a course at a larger university could be like. It also allowed Barton School students to connect with students from different backgrounds and gain insights into their perspectives and approaches to problem-solving.