USF Athletics

Enhancing U Hosts USF Athletics Student-Athlete Career/Networking Fair

February 21, 2020

By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, FEB. 21, 2020 – USF Athletics continued its mission of getting student-athletes ready for life after sports by giving them a prime opportunity to meet professionals earlier this month.

Several Bulls from a wide range of sports teams interacted with nearly 30 organizations in the Bay area and beyond during the inaugural USF Athletics Student-Athlete Career/Networking Fair on Tuesday, Feb. 4.

No matter if they were freshmen or seniors, student-athletes from every academic year were invited to the event held inside the Lee Roy Selmon Athletics Center. Serving as the host was Enhancing U, the Bulls' Student-Athlete Enhancement program.

"For the younger student-athletes, it allowed them to get comfortable speaking with professionals in that space," said Kristen Harris, who oversees Career Development for the Student-Athlete Enhancement program. "For the older student-athletes, it really gave them a chance to see what's out there."

USF's network of attendees included representatives from Amazon, GEICO, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, ReedTMS Logistics, Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, Tampa Police Department, Forristall Enterprises, Inc., and Northwestern Mutual among many others.

"It was a success. The student-athletes who attended said they really enjoyed the evening and knew it was a great opportunity for them," Harris said. "We're just hoping to build off of this one in the future."

Enhancing U is dedicated to developing student-athletes personally, professionally, in the community, and as leaders. Numerous Enhancing U programs, like the Selmon Mentoring Institute, have a solid history of preparing professionals upon graduation.

Any organizations wanting to get involved with Enhancing U, the Selmon Mentoring Institute, or the Bulls' summer internship program, can contact Harris at 813-974-9749 or by email at kharris14@usf.edu.
 
About USF Athletics
USF Athletics sponsors 19 varsity men's and women's teams that compete in 11 different sports, 18 at the NCAA Division I level in the American Athletic Conference. The Bulls' athletic program began in 1965 and is in its 54th season in 2019-20. Nearly 450 student-athletes train and compete in the athletic district located on the east end of the campus in Tampa, Fla. The Bulls have claimed 19 American Athletic Conference team titles since joining the conference in 2013, and own 120 conference titles overall. Eleven USF programs reached national postseason competition in the 2018-19 season and six were ranked in the Top 25 nationally. The Bulls posted a combined annual grade-point average over 3.0 for the fourth straight year in 2018-19 and have posted a program record 10 straight semesters with a combined GPA over 3.0. USF has had 309 student-athletes earn their degree since 2016-17.
 
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