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There’s a people person, and there’s a people’s person—and Meghan Desai ’21 is both. After a month of traveling and spending time with family and friends, Meghan jumped into her full-time role as the people operations coordinator for Codeup in July 2021. Based in San Antonio, Codeup is a career accelerator/boot camp that helps adults launch careers in the technology industry. Meghan supports the staff in all things human resources—benefits, learning and development, growth, engagement, and celebrations.

The working environment at Codeup is ideal for Meghan. “I love being part of a small, growing company because the opportunities to make an impact are endless,” Meghan says. “It’s truly rewarding to see and interact with our staff and students and feel a part of an amazing culture and mission of empowering life change.”

Meghan earned her bachelor’s degree in human resources management, a new major under �԰�����’s Neidorff School of Business. The major was designed with input from professional human resources managers and is accredited by CSB International and the Society for Human Resource Management. The tailored courses use projects and experience-based learning to prepare students for the HR certification exam and for their careers beyond �԰�����. For example, the senior capstone project assigns groups of students to local nonprofits that do not have full-time HR managers. This real-world experience gives students the experience of working in a professional setting.

In addition to earning her degree in HR, Meghan also participated in Students + Startups, a program that matches students with San Antonio startups for summer internships.

“The Students + Startups internship program matched me with Codeup my sophomore year and led to my first role that allowed me to get experience in the operations of a business and apply what I was learning in the classroom,” Meghan says. “It also ultimately led to my full-time role as I continued to work with the company for my final two years at �԰�����.”

Meghan also utilized the resources provided by �԰�����’s Center for Experiential Learning and Career Success in her job hunt. “Career Services definitely played a part in helping me land that role [the full-time job at Codeup]—between resume review and interview prep, I’d be remiss not to thank them,” she says.

Meghan’s time at �԰����� was packed with other activities, too. She was involved with the Student Programming Board, CliftonStrengths Peer Educators, HOPE Hall, and various on-campus jobs. “Inside and outside of the class- room, [�԰�����] allowed me to grow and develop both personally and professionally, and I’m beyond grateful for those opportunities.”