After just three semesters at the University of Dayton School of Business Administration, James Marr, a sophomore Operations and Supply Chain major and Insight-selling minor from St. Louis, secured a co-op at GE Aerospace outside of Cincinnati, demonstrating how Dayton’s early, experience-driven approach helps students gain real-world skills, connect with employers, and launch their careers ahead of schedule.
Marr credits Dayton’s early-career preparation, including required experiences and assignments through the Career Flight Plan, such as resume-building and attending the career fair, with helping him get there.
What started as a class requirement became a turning point helping him build confidence, connect with recruiters and return the next year ready to compete. And it was competitive.
“The only reason I’m really at GE right now is the career fair,” he said. “My proudest achievement as a UD student is securing this co-op,” said Marr. “I realized very quickly after meeting a lot of the other co-ops from other schools at orientation, securing that co-op, knowing it’s such a competitive class, means a lot to me.”
Learning by Doing
During the Spring semester, Marr commuted from his campus housing to GE every day where he worked on supply chain optimization, collaborated with teams, worked with suppliers on things like availability, fulfillment needs, pricing and lead times, and improved real systems. Along the way, he has built technical skills in tools like Excel, Microsoft Access, AutoCad and SharePoint while strengthening communication, teamwork and adaptability.
“I like working with the full-time employees and making sure that everything implemented is to the benefit of the company, but also a benefit to them,” said Marr. “Employees are who make up the company, and if their job is more difficult, then the company will struggle.”
Marr will continue his co-op this summer.
Experience Is the Expectation
That kind of hands-on learning is not optional. It’s the standard. Beginning with Fall 2026 incoming students, the SBA requires 100% of business majors to complete at least one paid internship or co-op as part of its Career Flight Plan before graduation.
Students were already close to that mark. According to UD’s Flyer Destination survey, 93% of UD business students completed paid internships or co-ops and gained experience across industries nationwide. For Summer 2026, students are working in 17 states across the country and three countries across the globe, with additional international internship opportunities with major companies like IBM, Salesforce, Deloitte, PNC Bank, Chicago White Sox and more.
The Career Flight Plan courses are designed to help students develop the professional skills, practice, and exposure needed to successfully secure an internship.
“If you apply yourself to those assignments, you can build a very, very strong foundation from networking and talking to people in industries that you are interested in, to building a resume that you can use to apply for internships and jobs. So altogether, building a very good foundation for a professional image of yourself.” He added that he completed three assignments using Flyer Connection, a UD platform that connects students with alumni to support networking and career exploration.
Growth Beyond the Classroom
Marr’s experience also highlights an important lesson: students often have more relevant experience than they think. From past jobs to class projects, learning how to communicate those skills can open doors.
“I feel like there's a lot of opportunity at Dayton, especially for a smaller-sized school. A lot of people might think that the smaller size means fewer resources or opportunities, which is completely the opposite, since UD gives a much more personalized, hands-on approach to developing students.”
At Dayton, that growth is supported every step of the way through faculty mentorship, career preparation and real-world opportunities that build both confidence and direction.
Bottom line: At Dayton, experiential learning isn’t something students hope for; it’s something they all do.
Note: Internships and co-ops are both paid, hands-on learning experiences. Internships often take place over the summer while students are not balancing coursework. Co-ops (often called internships at Dayton) take place during the academic year, when students work full-time while stepping away from classes.
