What is the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA)?
Running your own business one day seems like a viable dream now, but without the right mentorship from organizations like the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA), there is no real way to know if you’ll make it to the top. The nature of business is competitive and the only way to get ahead is to start now.
Future Business Leaders of America holds a National Leadership Conference each year in which top competitors from each state that were selected during state-level conferences, go on to partake in a four-day summer event in which they establish themselves as global leaders in the business community.
During the event, participants develop relationships with industry leaders and the battle for cash prizes and scholarships which will advance their business careers and secure placement into Ivy League business programs at Colombia, Harvard, and Yale.
A Columbia graduate even started the Future Business Leaders of America competition back in 1937. Each year, the Future Business Leaders of America helps over 230,000 members in 4 divisions prepare for careers in the dog-eat-dog world of business.
Why Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA)?
Learning business is more than just learning economics in a textbook, it’s understanding the social dynamics and personal skills required to excel in both your college experience and in your future career. Test your leadership skills by participating in community events like organizing a charity event for the March of Dimes.
Develop knowledge that will help with career and college placement like getting assistance on your resume or cover letter. The Future Business Leaders of America currently has high school members from grades 9-12 and over 70 competitions across the United States.
To become a member and compete in competitions register within your local charter, and then enter into one of the following events as either an individual or charter project.
Students who excel beyond state-level conferences will compete in the national conference in over 55 categories such as entrepreneurship, or business math. Each year a community service award is also given to specific Future Business Leaders of America members from a charter that has exemplified extraneous hours of hard work in servicing their community needs.
But there is a lot more that FBLA offers its student members than simply the chance to compete in and win competitions. Students who get involved in FBLA also get the chance to explore college and career opportunities through many different co-curricular education programs.
They also get to take part in networking events with people who are already well-established in the business world such as conferences, community service projects and more.
Moreover, student members get the chance to have exclusive access to scholarships at some of the best academic institutions in the world.
One other really exciting opportunity that high school members of FBLA get access to is the FBLA Membership Awards Programs. Through taking part in FBLA, high school students get the chance to really broadcast their personal and academic achievements. Members of FBLA have the chance to earn recognition and awards at the local, state, and national levels.
As these competitions put an emphasis on important values such as service, education, and leadership, any student who gets involved in FBLA can rest assured that their applications will look incredible once they get into the hands of college admissions officers in some of the best schools in the country.
By taking part in FBLA, students learn the importance of what it means to give back and be an active member in their school, their community, and the greater economy!
How does FBLA prepare students?
FBLA has a primary mission of helping students who get involved to become more community-minded business leaders. In order to achieve that goal, FBLA has developed six specific areas that it utilizes in order to help students become successful business leaders.
Those areas include:
Leadership development
Perhaps more so than anything else, FBLA makes it a priority for students involved to hone their leadership skills. For starters, students have the chance to hold officer positions at the local, state, or even national levels. Students also get the chance to work on their leadership skills through seminars, competitions, and workshops.
Academic competition
Students also can take advantage of the opportunity to practice and improve their skills and knowledge when it comes to academic-related topics. These competitions take place at the local, state, and national levels and allow students the opportunity to gain recognition and valuable prizes. These competitions often gather hundreds of students and offer a chance for those students to begin to create their own professional network.
Education programs
FBLA also offers students the opportunity to enhance and improve their own academics in multiple important ways. First off, FBLA offers partner programs for teachers to bring into their classrooms. These allow students to develop their skills when they are in the classroom and when they are out in the world. Beyond that, students get the chance to apply to a series of scholarships that are only offered to members.
Benefits
Students who are members of FBLA gain access to a lot of unique benefits such as scholarships and discounts. Beyond that, students all gain exclusive access to the business and leadership focused magazine, “Tomorrow’s Business Leader.” In this publication, students will get to reason lessons and stories about leadership, career exploration and development and much more.
Community service
Being an active and productive member of society is one of the core tenants of FBLA. for that reason, the group provides students with numerous ways to take part in community service events.
The largest such project is their work with the March of Dimes, which is FBLA’s service partner.
All in all, members get the chance to participate in campaigns and fund-raising opportunities so that their local communities can be involved in supporting the organization. This helps students who want to build connections with community leaders and take roles of leadership.
Awards and recognition
We’ve already gone over it a bit, but it is still important to mention here. The awards and recognition that FBLA offers its student members the chance to win can help a student beef up their college application so that they application really jumps off of the page when it arrives at the desks of admissions officers at some of the best colleges and universities in the country.
Top Reasons Students Join FBLA
The Future Business Leaders of America currently has high school members from grades 9-12 and over 70 competitions across the United States. To become a member and compete in competitions register within your local charter, and then enter into one of the following events as either an individual or charter project.
Students who excel beyond state-level conferences will compete in the national conference in over 55 categories such as entrepreneurship, or business math. Each year a community service award is also given to specific Future Business Leaders of America members from a charter that has exemplified extraneous hours of hard work in servicing their community needs.
Now that you know quite a bit about both FBLA, you probably have a pretty good understanding of why so many high school students decide to join the clubs each and every school year.
Still, there is nothing wrong with going over some of the primary benefits of joining clubs such as these, especially when high schoolers already know that they plan on pursuing a degree in business, and perhaps even an MBA before they head into the exciting worlds of business and finance.
Let’s get started!
They help turn young adults into leaders
One of the best things that a high school student who is interested in attending one of the more prestigious and competitive schools in the country is to take advantage of opportunities that allow them to lead and/or learn leadership skills.
FBLA is particularly well known for its ability to help learn about leadership in business and improve their leadership skills. In fact, FBLA spends much of its time creating and organizing national leadership conferences, annual conventions, and highly valuable mentorship programs.
If students are interested in becoming the best leaders that they can be when it comes to the world of business, learning the lessons that FBLA has to offer can be incredibly valuable.
They offer valuable scholarship programs
Another really important benefit that high school students can benefit from by joining FBLA are the scholarship programs that can turn into incredible opportunities for students.
When it comes to scholarships from private sources as well as some of America’s most prestigious schools and educational programs. Through these internships, FBLA makes it easier for students who do not come from means to pursue and achieve their collegiate and professional goals.
They open up unique doors of opportunity for students
The beauty of joining a high school group such as FBLA is that it gives exceptional high schools valuable things to do outside of the classroom. Of course, high school students should put their studies 1st in order to earn great grades in all four years of college.
However, it has become increasingly important over the years for students to also make the most out of their time outside of the classroom. This often comes in the form of extra curricular activities such as teams, clubs, And more.
By making a group like FBLA an extracurricular activity, students get the chance to meet incredible new people, express their thoughts and ideologies, and begin to develop their ever-important personal network. Moreover, students get the chance to engage with industry professionals who can become inspiring mentors and teachers for many years to come.
They help students figure out what matters to them
Without a doubt, the high school serves as an important time for young men and women to figure out who they are and what their values are. while socializing, and having fun with friends is important, it is also important that students are able to prioritize things that will impact them now and into the future. By getting involved in a business-related program outside of school such as FBLA, students will be able to start forming their real-world values.
Remember, you are never too young to start preparing for the challenges and opportunities that life will offer you in the future.
High school students who take steps to make sure that they are surrounded by the right people – such as peers and mentors – are sure to have a leg up on the competition, whether it comes to getting into the college or university of their dreams, or landing that first big job out of college.
Students gain access to unique benefits and discounts
In the case of FBLA, students who become official members actually gain benefits and certain discounts with specific companies and brands. For example, FBLA members will actually get discounts at certain hotels, restaurants, shopping districts, car rentals, educational resources, and even insurance!
They help people grow
Perhaps the most important reason why high school students should consider joining a business-related group such as FBLA is that the challenges, opportunities, and experience that comes along with it allows students to grow in ways that they may not have thought possible previously.
They teach people important lessons, valuable ethics and values, and much more that will not only come in handy during high school and college but far beyond that as well.
As people who are about to take the exciting next step in their education and lives, being a part of something like that can be valuable in truly immeasurable ways.
Conclusion
Pursuing competitive events through charters like the Future Business Leaders of America which prepare emerging business leaders for college and career success is only one of the ways to stand out on your college admissions essays.
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