The College of Business Administration has announced the launch of its Center for Professional Selling, developed to accelerate job-readiness for Marquette graduates. A sales education allows graduates to “ramp-up” 50% faster than non-sales educated peers, while sales graduates also average 2.8 job offers before graduation and report an over 77% career satisfaction rating.
The Center for Professional Selling will feature an ethical, pragmatic and applied learning experience that drives value for students, the university and corporate partners, according to Tim Hanley, acting Keyes Dean of Business Administration.
“This is an exciting step for the College of Business Administration at Marquette,” Hanley said. “Our mission with starting the Center for Professional Selling is the development of ethics-focused salespeople in line with our long history of developing ethical, Jesuit-educated leaders across multiple industries. We are proud to be able to offer this transformative opportunity to students pursuing sales as a career.”
The center offers three specialized courses in professional selling—professional selling, sales management and advanced professional selling—and features two affiliated faculty members in Dr. Alex Milovic, director of the center and assistant professor of practice in the Department of Marketing, and Dr. Jessica Ogilvie, assistant professor of marketing and the center’s associate director.
“The Center for Professional Selling at Marquette will prepare students for their sales career with the necessary skills to hit the ground running and an ethics-first education which prioritizes maximum outcome for buyer and seller in line with the long-term nature of sales relationships,” Milovic said. “We are excited for the opportunities the center will have to innovate and branch out with partnerships on campus—with courses offering sales skills to complement other disciplines—and in the community.”
Marquette is the first Catholic, Jesuit university to develop a Center for Professional Selling, becoming one of just over 60 member schools in the University Sales Center Alliance. A concentration in professional selling was added in fall 2020 and a minor was developed for fall 2021.
“We want Marquette to be a destination for students looking for a career in sales, as well as a difference-maker in keeping local talent in Milwaukee and training them for a bright future right here at home,” Milovic added.