The National Sales Challenge Boot Camp gives students the opportunity to work alongside
experienced sales professionals to discover their career purpose, develop career skills, and
cultivate lasting relationships with other sales students. It is a 5-week program designed for
junior and senior college students pursuing a career in professional sales and eager to develop
future career skills, and land their first sales job.

To prepare for the Boot Camp, I had to construct a professional resume, make a LinkedIn, and
provide a short essay. In the short essay I had to introduce myself, explain why I am interested in
pursuing a career in professional sales, explain how this career path would have a positive impact
on my life, and my strategy for success.

This Boot Camp was very helpful because I knew I wanted to major in Marketing, but I wasn’t
sure what type of marketing or industry I wanted to work in before enrolling in the program. The
Sales professionals worked with me to select a career path based on my interests and personality
and then to identify opportunities that aligned with my designated career path. The next sessions
taught me valuable interviewing skills and gave me the chance to Mock Interview with human
resource professionals.

Some advice that I would give future students who will be attending the sales boot camp is to try
to get the most out of it that you can. It is rare that students are given the opportunity to talk to
professionals from so many different industries that are so willing to help. You will get out of it
what you put into it so I would advise you to pay attention and try to make as many connections
as you can because you could even get a job opportunity out of it. It would also be a good idea to
keep a journal and take notes on what you learn throughout the five weeks because this is
information that will be valuable to have for many years to come.

Written by Natasha Wagner