Student getting popcorn.

At American University’s Kogod School of Business, students interested in the information technology (IT) field attended the annual IT's a Carnival event, hosted by the IT department and KCCD earlier this month.

"The goal of the event is for students to see how local business use IT to solve problems and give them a competitive advantage to talk to companies in terms of careers and jobs," said Joseph Mortai, Kogod executive-in-residence.

Speakers from 2U, Discovery Communications, Blackboard, Academic Technology at American University and Total Wine spoke to a packed room about the role IT plays in their jobs. Each speaker highlighted the intersection of IT with other departments in their companies and how it affects everyday decisions.

"IT is my concentration and I wanted to hear about the specifics of leveraging tech in business," said Sharon Kim, BSBA '18. "We learn skills in class, like how to use SQL, but don't get to experience the real world application in a business setting so I was pleased to see the panels."

Following the presentation, students congregated in the Kogod lounge for refreshments and networking opportunities. After helping themselves to some popcorn, students walked around to each company’s table asking questions and gaining more insight on the IT field.

"We are getting exposure and seeing what students are looking for in a company," said Dan Moyer, Manager, IT-Business Analyst from Total Wine.

The IT's a Carnival event gave students a chance to go beyond classroom learning and envision themselves applying their IT skills to future careers.