PROFESSIONAL WORKSHOPS

One of the best things about McCombs is that even in your first semester on campus, there’s ample opportunities to interact and connect with the companies at which you eventually hope to work. Our exec team has been in your shoes. We know this opportunity is exciting, but it can also be a bit daunting. With a series of four professional workshops designed by us, you’ll learn the things we wish we would’ve known when we were freshmen. We’ll cover topics such as networking, what other McCombs organizations to explore, how to make and deliver a slide deck for presentations and case competitions, LinkedIn profiles, and more. While your required McCombs classes will eventually discuss some of these topics, it might not be during the first semester, and it definitely won’t be with the unique insight of students who have just gone through your experience. Launch will provide you with the essential professional skills a standard business class won’t, and just on time for you to start your professional career as soon as you arrive at the Forty Acres.

SPRING PROJECT

In the spring semester, Launch members will split into teams and dive into a capstone project. This project will put the skills you’ve been honing such as leadership, collaboration, communication, and problem solving into action. Our exec team is currently coordinating with Austin companies to create a dynamic experience combining these areas of expertise with the real business world. Your newly developed professional skills will also be crucial to navigate interacting with and eventually presenting your work to the company executives with which we are coordinating. Details of this project are still being finalized and will be announced as the semester progresses.

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

You’re headed to UT, so leadership probably isn’t new to you. At Launch, we’re moving beyond the basics you’ve heard before. In the fall, members will partake in activities like personality assessments, core value exercises, and interactive simulations to discover what makes their leadership style unique, what drives their goals and decisions, and how they function in teams. In the spring, they’ll expand outward from the individual to consider bigger concepts such as what it looks like to be an ethical leader, what social responsibilities guide their choices, and how leaders are able to create maximum impact. Leadership and its underlying skills are crucial for personal and professional success. At Launch, you’ll learn not only how to be successful, but also how to find genuine fulfillment in your future as you discover who you truly are as a leader. 

SPEAKER SERIES

We’re confident our program has a lot to teach you, but we also know there’s a ton to be learned from those who have gone ahead of us. Throughout the year, members will hear from five speakers including corporate professionals, alumni, and older students on topics relevant to Launch’s mission. These speakers will provide valuable insight not only for your time on campus, but also as you prepare to enter the professional world. Launch members will have the chance to form relationships with speakers in a personal setting, making them important additions to their professional network that will be useful down the line.

Family System

At every meeting and event, you’ll be learning alongside and collaborating with other members, but this is only a start to forming real community and friendships. After joining Launch, you’ll be assigned into a “family” of freshmen led by a sophomore member of the exec team. Every couple weeks, your family will get together off campus to grab a bite to eat, explore a new part of Austin, or anything you decide on! Our exec team is so excited not only to get to know you, but also to be a resource for advice like where to eat on campus besides J2, and what teachers to seek out during the next round of registration. Your family will definitely be a part of your Launch experience, but we hope it will last long after our meetings end.