UMD Smith Launches Career Boutique and Wellness Room to Empower Student Success

, /PRNewswire/ — The University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, in partnership with Enterprise Mobility Foundation, has launched a co-curricular initiative aimed at helping students dress for success—literally. The Enterprise Mobility Foundation Career Boutique and Wellness Room, located in Van Munching Hall, will be a donation-based resource that provides free professional attire to Smith School and BSE (Business, Society and Entrepreneurship) Scholars preparing for interviews, job fairs and new career opportunities.

A collaborative effort between Smith’s Office of Career Services (OCS) and the BSE Scholars Program, the boutique will offer access to suits, blouses, ties, shoes, accessories, and even styling consultations. Workshops such as “How to Dress for an Interview” and a future personal shopper component make the space a full-service professional preparation center.

“This initiative is about more than clothing; it’s about confidence and career readiness,” says Clinical Professor Oliver Schlake, director of the BSE program.

BSE Scholars Program Assistant Director Obioma Akaigwe emphasized the boutique’s sustainability model, noting that donations from alumni, local businesses and community members fuel its operations: “We want every student to walk into an interview feeling confident, no matter their financial situation.”

The Career Boutique will have specific hours and will be run by trained student staff from the BSE program, who continuously develop plans for growth and work directly with job seekers to understand upcoming trends and needs.

“In addition to providing a vital resource for our students, we see the boutique as a great live-learning tool that allows students to test new ideas in a start-up environment,” says Schlake. “Initially, the boutique is funded by grants, but they will not last forever, and students will be tasked to reimagine new business models to make the boutique a sustainable fixture at Smith. Every spring, BSE students will spend time during the capstone project to upgrade and improve the boutique. Two previous rounds of capstone have moved the project from idea to reality, and we intend to continue with that path.”

Akaigwe says, “Once established, we offer the boutique as a platform to other programs and classes as a co-curricular learning experience to teach essential skills in a real-life environment. We also want to partner with Smith and UMD entrepreneurs whose businesses are touching career readiness for exposure and commissions to sustain operations.”

This fall, the first student rentals will take place, and faculty, staff and alumni will see many requests for in-kind donations of interview clothing and, of course, the occasional ask for a $20 bill left in the suit pocket to support the project.

Head of Smith OCS Kimberly Rice DeGross, Esq., brought the career boutique to life by securing support from industry partners like the Enterprise Mobility Foundation, which financed the initial start-up cost. “It is a vital service to our students in a difficult market, but more than this, it is a great co-curricular learning experience to prepare students for the next phase of their careers,” DeGross says.

The wellness room will be a place for students to collect their thoughts prior to an interview, or decompress after an interview, and for all faculty, staff and students of the Smith School to get re-centered as needed throughout the school year, she adds.

A grand opening ceremony for the boutique and wellness room is scheduled for 11 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025, in Van Munching Hall, Room 2530. For more information, contact Smith OCS via [email protected].

About the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business
The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research. One of 12 colleges and schools at the University of Maryland, College Park, the Smith School offers undergraduate, full-time and flex MBA, executive MBA, online MBA, business master’s, PhD and executive education programs, as well as outreach services to the corporate community. The school offers its degree, custom and certification programs in learning locations in North America and Asia.

SOURCE University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business