As the pandemic started affecting job and internship offers for graduate business students, the Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business Career Management Center (CMC) stepped in. With a clear need to span this gap for students to apply their skills, knowledge, and energy, the CMC created the Bridge Program—a program designed to bridge the gap for students to attain purposeful and career-enhancing internship opportunities while providing support for community-based organizations.
“As soon as I heard that Katz was putting together a supplementary Bridge Program, I got incredibly excited,” said Pat Savage, a second year MBA student.
Over the course of eight weeks, more than 50 graduate students matched with community-based organizations to assist in offering solutions for the complex challenges that these organizations are currently facing. Through team-based projects and guidance from staff and Executives-In-Residence (EIRs), graduate students were able to apply their business skills and experience to help the local community while developing critical skills for their future careers.
Savage and his team partnered with the Pittsburgh Business Group on Health.
“The only thing I was asked to do is what any other Katz student was asked to do: take what I’ve learned at Katz and create a useful project for our clients,” said Savage.
Currently, the Pittsburgh Business Group on Health and the Katz team are working to potentially create a publication or grant writing to further refine the model created by the business students.
To learn more about the Bridge Program, please contact the Katz Career Management Team at careermanagement@katz.pitt.edu.
