Category: Student Spotlight

And the Survey Says . . . Or Does It?

MBA student, Tao Guo

As part of our modern culture, people are inundated with questions regarding their personal opinions and experiences. College students, in particular, often experience the brunt of these inquiries. During their college careers, students may fill out countless surveys regarding their personal interests, classes, professors, and even some for their educational institution.

What if the information collected during these surveys isn’t always reliable? Should college students be surveyed in the same manner as non-students?

As a Michigan Tech MBA student, Tao Guo asked these questions while working as a research assistant. This inquiry led to a research project and a refereed paper presentation at the 2010 Marketing Management Association Fall Educators’ Conference in Indianapolis.

The paper, “The Effect of Rating Scales on Systematic Differences Between Students and Nonstudents in Survey Research,” was written with help from Junhong Min, assistant professor of marketing, and the late Bob Mark, professor of practice.

“Tao came to me with a question about using surveys in consumer research that kept leading to more questions. His enthusiasm and dedication to this project led to the honor of presenting at the conference. We’re very pleased with his work,” notes Min.

Guo’s initial research found two divergent views exist about the usefulness of college students as subjects. One stream of research questions the use of student samples, while the other shows no difference between student samples and nonstudent samples. Guo tried to fill this gap by examining when the differences between student samples and nonstudent samples occur.

Tackling a common practice found in consumer research studies that survey college students, Guo took a closer look at the use of scales. When examining data from student assessment surveys, he found that either a five-point scale or a seven-point scale was typically used. Both of these scales are employed to measure how strongly the subject agrees with a survey statement. His results empirically illustrate how the five-point scale is more effective at capturing the differences between student and nonstudent samples. In addition, Guo discovered that behavior-related questions (e.g., frequency, the number of purchases) are more sensitive to differences between students and nonstudents than attitude questions (e.g., willingness to purchase, perceived importance).

“The research suggests to the practitioners that they should interpret their results with caution when student samples are involved,” says Guo.

Guo researched the subject for five months. The opportunity to present his paper was a notable achievement for a student, since most presenters at the conference were professional business educators from universities across the nation.

“The professor hosting my section was very excited about my findings and gave me a lot of suggestions for further research,” he said. “I learned a lot by listening to others’ presentations and established several new connections with MBA students and faculty from other universities.”

Guo is from Zhoukou, a small town in Henan Province in central China. He attended Northeastern University in Shenyang, China, where he majored in English and minored in finance. Before coming to the US, he worked for four years at Northeastern University, including a position as deputy director of the Engineer Training Center.

“I came to realize the value of higher education and overseas experience after I interacted with several very successful scholars and corporate executives,” says Guo. “That’s why I made up my mind to switch my career and pursue an MBA degree in America.”

Support from faculty was important to Guo. “I have really appreciated the broad range and depth of interests of the faculty in the School of Business and Economics. Other than professors Min and Mark, I also worked on an independent study with Assistant Professor Maria Schutte. Every time you feel like you have a question or you want to learn something, you can always find the right professor. And they are all willing to help.”

Because of Guo’s research and his successful student career at Tech, he has been accepted into the PhD program in Personal Financial Planning at Texas Tech University. “I am very grateful to Michigan Tech for the opportunity to do research as an MBA student and for my educational experience in general. It was an overall great learning experience and will be very beneficial to me in my future endeavors.”

This article was originally published in Impact, the Michigan Tech School of Business and Economics magazine.

DECA Chapter Attends State Conference

Members of Michigan Tech's DECA Chapter at 2012 conference.

During the first weekend in February, the Michigan Tech DECA chapter made their way to Battle Creek, MI for the State Career Development Conference.  DECA prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management in high schools and colleges around the globe.  

Being the only chapter from the Upper Peninsula, it was a long 10 hour drive, but well worth it.  Competing in various events, four of the six participating members took away medals and plaques!

Michigan Tech Award Winners:

Brittany Barry, a third year Accounting major took 3rd place in the accounting competition.

Sarah Ochs and Gilbert Ramirez, third year marketing majors, both received medals, and were finalists for Marketing Management.

Cory Rokes, 5th year marketing and management major received a medal being a finalist in sales management.

Thank you to all who participated.  Way to represent our school, we couldn’t be more proud!  You are a testament that student’s from Michigan Tech’s School of Business and Economics can apply all the necessary business skills they learn in the classroom into real-world scenarios.

From Students: Michigan Tech is a Learning Playground….

Meet Danielle and Don. Both are students in the School of Business and Economics with different goals, ambitions and experiences. Danielle came to Michigan Tech for the outdoors and Don for his career goals. Hear from them why they chose Michigan Tech and what you have to look forward to as a student.

Danielle Boettger

“The Keweenaw is a playground for people like me. There are people here to help you if you haven’t experienced outdoor adventures before. It’s also one of the reasons I came here.”

[youtube width=”425″ height=”260″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pe0ANNPjAM[/youtube]

 

Donald Murray

“Being able to manage an investment portfolio as a senior is one of those opportunities you won’t have at every other school.”

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfPRPaE5rtg[/youtube]

Student Perspective: Career Fair

Travis White, former Michigan Tech student, reading over the resume of a potential new hire!

Campus was buzzing last week with over 170 companies seeking employees and interns.  Hear what a few students had to say and view the photos on facebook!

Jacquie Cowling

President of the American Marketing Association

“It was neat to see at the student organization fair the roles of the potential employers and students roles reversed. They were coming to us and introducing themselves to see what are organizations did on campus. It was really cool to see that different type of interaction in preparation for the career fair the next day.”

Ben Christensen

CCI Team/Ops Squad, ITOxygen Enterprise and Vice President, Association of Information Technology Professionals

“The Student Org Information Fair was extremely helpful to both organizations that I am involved in. AITP was able to talk about the different guest speakers we have each week and the other resources we provide to our members that gives them an extra edge in the Information Technology field.

ITOxygen was able to do the same, and also make some important connections for itself for business in the future.

When we asked members about their experience during the career fair, they said that they had multiple recruiters make a comment about the organization that never had mentioned it when they saw it before.”

Tidwell Outstanding Man and Woman in Business Selected

Sam B. Tidwell is a legend with former accounting students. Gifts given in his memory support the Outstanding Man and Woman of Business award.

Craig Storm and Megan Plis are the 2011-12 recipients of the Sam B. Tidwell Outstanding Man and Woman in Business.  This award is given to students who bring honor and pride to the School of Business and Economics through high scholastic achievement and involvement.  Students eligible for this honor went through an intense interview process that included an essay and interview with faculty.

Anne Warrington of the Undergraduate Scholarship Committee added, “Megan and Craig are two of the most competent, talented, and totally amazing students in the School of Business and Economics. They have everything it takes for professional success after graduation.  It has been a pleasure meeting and working with them in classes and student organizations.”

Outstanding Man in Business

Craig Storm is a senior in the School of Business and Economics who will graduate with his degree in Accounting this spring.  In his time on campus he has been affiliated with Kappa Sigma Iota Accounting Organization (KSI) and an International Business Ventures Enterprise team member while currently holding an internship with Lake Accounting.  Craig has a level of professionalism and maturity that he brings to the community and the classroom which made him a strong candidate and the recipient of this award.

When asked about receiving the award, Craig said, “I enjoy studying how companies function from an accounting and financial perspective. This was the biggest factor in choosing my major and where I want to go professionally. It is an honor to be selected for this award, and I look forward to representing the School of Business and Economics as I advance my career,”

Outstanding Woman in Business

Megan Plis is a senior, Business Management major and Spanish minor who will graduate this spring.  An extremely involved student, Megan makes time for a variety of extracurricular and leadership activities outside of the school environment.  She volunteers at her church leading the music at worship services and singing in the choir.  With three years of diverse sales and marketing experience at a Lolita’s Bridal Boutique, the Wooden Nickel, and River Valley Bank she has been able to put her education into action.

About the Award

The Outstanding Man and Women in Business is awarded annually and the School of Business and Economics is confident that this year’s selections represent the student body well with their efforts in leadership and extracurricular activities.  Undergraduate Scholarship Committee members Anne Warrington, Mari Buche, and William Breffle were heavily involved in the selection of this award.

“The Scholarship Committee has a challenging task to select these award recipients,” said Darrell Radson, Dean of the School of business.  “We, as a school, thank them for their continued commitment to recognizing students who excel in and outside of the classroom.”

When asked about the selection process, Buche noted “the selection process was very difficult this year.  All of the finalists were exceptional candidates: strong academic GPAs, demonstrated leadership skills, and clear commitment to the improvement of the school and Michigan Tech.” Other finalists for this year’s award included: Caitlin Pionke, Rhea-Ann Moses, Jordan Baker, Andrew Loucks, and Spencer Shandonay.