Economics senior switches major, lands job offer

Bloomsburg University senior Drew Bryant began college with aspirations of becoming an electrical engineer. However, that plan got short-circuited sending Bryant towards a new career goal.

Bryant, a Lansdale native and 2014 graduate from Methacton High School, chose BU to take part in the electrical engineering 3 + 2 program with Penn State. After getting two-and-a-half years into the program at BU, his desire for working in that field disappeared.

“I discovered that I would not be able to transfer into the major I wanted at Penn State due to their enrollment control,” Bryant said. “I realized I needed to find something else I am interested in.”

Bryant decided to switch to a major in economics and a minor in math due to his interests in accounting, finance and marketing.

“I started from scratch spring semester of my junior year and decided if I’m going to do this, I’m going to go all in,” Bryant states.

Most would worry about fitting in the classes needed to graduate on time, but for Drew, switching majors led him to his job offer at Keystone Automotive Operations Inc., the largest aftermarket automotive distributor in the United States.

After he decided on his major, he went onto BU’s HuskySync, a website for student organizations on campus, and there he found the Global Business Association (GBA). The GBA is club that offers students the opportunity to explore international business issues and differences, which he now serves on the executive board as the human relations officer.

Bryant feels he can attribute many of his accomplishments to the GBA.

“The group focuses on how different cultures interact in business. There are networking opportunities such as field trips, international business dinners and case competitions,” he said.

Case competitions, where students from other schools compete to come up with the best solutions to business-related problems, helped him stand out from other job applicants. When looking for a job, he logged onto BU’s Husky Career Link and submitted his resume to Keystone receiving an immediate reply that led to the job offer he accepted.

“I applied to about 100 different places and got about five interviews,” Bryant states. “With Keystone, I submitted my resume and within two hours, I got offered a phone interview. It was the best interview I ever had and I made a great connection.”

After graduation in May of this year, Bryant will begin a two-year leadership rotational program at Keystone where he will train for six months in each of the four departments: sales/ customer service, marketing, fulfillment and delivery. For one of the six-month rotations, he will train in Flower Mound, Texas. He will then select the department he feels is the best fit after the full rotation.

“To prepare, I plan to start waking up earlier, read company newsletters, and continue participating in the GBA by attending a case competition this semester in Saint Louis,” he states.

During his final semester, he is working remotely as an intern with Keystone as a data analyst and has the opportunity to attend a networking event in Texas.

Even after Bryant’s original plan blew a fuse, he managed to reboot his career plans and spark an opportunity on a path far from electrical engineering.