Balancing it all leads to richer college experience for busy Management major

Passion will get you everywhere, even if it seems like you’re everywhere at once.

At least that’s how York College of Pennsylvania senior Brandy Jenkins sees it.

Brandy’s a busy Management major and Human Resources minor, with all the coursework that entails. On top of school, she’s all but working full time, between her internship with RHI Magnesita and her personal business with Mary Kay Cosmetics.

It takes a lot of balance to do all of that at once — and do it well — but it helps that Brandy has fun with it.

Why Human Resources?

Like many students, the East Berlin, Pa. native didn’t go into college with a set career goal.

In fact, she says she’s still a bit uncertain as to what she wants to do. But her introductory-level HR management course with Dr. Mary Meisenhelter led her to not only an unexpected minor, but it also helped her find a direction.

“In that course, I discovered that HR is a lot more than firing people, and it can be a very fulfilling career path,” Brandy says. “I’ve had a few classes that I’ve loved, but that class takes the cake because it is what helped me find my passion!

Brandy’s not 100 percent sure what she wants to do after graduation, she says, “but I know I’ll love whatever it is as long as I get to work in HR and with people.”

She’s observed another level of balance through her classes and internship that adds to the appeal of the human resources arena.

“From what I’ve noticed, the HR field is actually pretty balanced between men and women,” Brandy notes. “Most people I’ve been in contact with care more about the greater good and aren’t focused on gender roles or superiority complexes.”

Busy but unburdened  

While Brandy feels she has learned a great deal inside the classroom, she’s also been able to hone her skills through her outside involvement. Thanks to her internship, she’s gaining hands-on experience in the HR field.

“RHI Magnesita is the largest refractory company in the world and allows me to work with all sorts of people,” she says. “It has been an amazing experience so far.”

The internship involves almost full-time hours on top of classwork. Each weekday, Brandy works at least five hours, if not more, at her internship, then goes to classes in the afternoons.

And in between all that, she runs her Mary Kay business, holding appointments on afternoons or weekends. But she doesn’t see it as burden.

“I absolutely love Mary Kay and all the opportunities it has to offer,” Brandy says. “It has helped me learn a lot about running a business and work ethic, and it’s also a lot of fun.”

All about time management

So how does she stay on top of all of this?

“It’s honestly all about time management and willingness to work until things are done,” Brandy says. “I know what my schedule needs to look like in order to successfully complete things.”

She sometimes has to stay up later than she’d prefer to get schoolwork done, but she manages it because she’s not willing to sacrifice any of the things she chooses to do.

“So, the sacrifice might need to be sleep sometimes,” she says.

As Brandy wraps up her college career, she’s achieved a level of balance that may make juggling it all seem easy.

But that wasn’t always the case, and she wants to encourage younger students who may be struggling to find that balance.

“They are awesome and can handle anything life throws at them,” she says. “And if they feel like dropping out, they should try changing their major first – that’s what I did.”

Explore the business programs at York College of Pennsylvania.