Experiential Learning at Forefront of UT Haslam Marketing Programs

Experiential learning is a key element of an education from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Haslam College of Business. At both the graduate and undergraduate levels, the college’s Department of Marketing makes the mission of hands-on learning core to its curricula. Marketing students are given chances for collaboration with organizations and businesses facing real challenges, helping them gain critical skills and discover new perspectives and career options.

Students Helping Startups

In spring 2025, students in a Haslam marketing course partnered with hard-tech startup founders from across the country through Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s (ORNL’s) Innovation Crossroads program. The class of 55 students collaborated closely with the startup leaders to address their challenges.

Students were placed into teams and paired with one of the six startup founders and developed strategic marketing solutions tailored to each venture’s needs. From brand kits, logos and website updates to social media strategies, ad campaigns and event marketing plans, the students were challenged to creatively and strategically apply their education to help the ventures overcome their specific marketing challenges and set them on the road for success. Students then presented their work to stakeholders from ORNL and the broader Knoxville business community, conveying the lessons they learned, competencies they gained and actionable deliverables they provided to the hard-tech startups.

Christine White, assistant professor of practice and the marketing department’s director of partnerships and growth initiatives, taught the marketing course during which students partnered with the deep-tech startup founders. She explains that the students were challenged, but they succeeded in providing marketing strategy support in industries where many had no prior experience.

“There were more than a few graduating seniors who explored and secured jobs in the hard-tech sector, which was something they had never considered as an option until taking this class,” she says.

Haslam alumna and current graduate student Sophie Bradford (HCB, ’24) echoes the impact of this experiential learning opportunity.

“The class was one of the most hands-on, rewarding experiences of my undergraduate career,” she says. “The unique opportunity to partner with ORNL Innovation Crossroads and work directly with various startup tech companies which gave us a different approach to real-world work.”

Working directly with the startup founders gave Bradford and her classmates an early understanding of the challenges and strategies involved in building a brand from the ground up.

“My group worked with a startup that was in the early stages of launching and needed help developing a strong marketing foundation to stand out in a competitive industry,” she explains. “We proposed four key marketing tactics to support brand development and growth strategy, focusing on website strategy, social media planning, white paper development and tradeshow and event engagement.”

According to Bradford, the experiential learning opportunity was a bridge between classroom concepts and real-world application, allowing her to develop practical skills in a dynamic environment.

“Working on this ORNL Innovation Crossroads project and being supported by faculty who trusted us to engage with early-stage entrepreneurs helped me grow in ways I hadn’t expected,” she says. “It strengthened my ability to lead through ambiguity, balance creative and logistical thinking and communicate recommendations with clarity and confidence. These are skills I know I’ll take with me into any future career.”

A Dynamic Field for Learning by Doing

The ORNL partnership is just one example of how the marketing department is redefining marketing education through robust experiential learning at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, bridging classroom theory with real-world practice.

According to Alex Zablah, marketing department head, Gerber/Taylor Distinguished Professor and Kinney Family Faculty Research Fellow, marketing is a field grounded in specific principles but rapidly evolving in practice, and that dichotomy makes the discipline perfect for experiential learning.

“Learning by doing can happen through a variety of avenues for marketing students,” he says. “One of the most impactful forms is working on client projects to address real challenges, from issues experienced by for-profit firms and entrepreneurs to problems facing non-profit agencies.”

White explains that Haslam stresses this real-world skill-building at all levels. “Our department consistently prioritizes creating hands-on learning opportunities throughout both our undergraduate and graduate curriculum,” she says.

She also believes this type of learning empowers students to put their theoretical knowledge to the test, readying them for careers in marketing.

“We prioritize remaining in sync with industry skill demands, trends and career expectations,” she says. “By creating a culture where industry and academia are consistently connected, we ensure that our students are equipped with the skills needed to successfully begin and ultimately excel in their careers.”

Masters-Level Insights in Action

At the graduate level, experiential learning is embedded in the Master of Science in Marketing program, particularly in the data visualization and storytelling course taught by Zablah. During one semester of the class, students partnered with Total Wine & More to address several marketing challenges by leveraging large data sets.

Kacey Cannon (HCB, ’24, MS in Marketing, ’25) says the course was a turning point in her graduate experience, which played a key role in her hiring as a loyalty strategy specialist at Pilot Company.

“It was one of the most impactful classes I took in the program,” she says. “Through our partnership with Total Wine, I worked on a real business problem using live data. It pushed me to sharpen my analytical and storytelling skills, and the final project became a standout piece in my portfolio. It directly helped me land my current role at Pilot Company.”

Relational, Not Transactional

For White, the key to successful experiential learning lies in relationships.

“We work hard and are always focused on creating collaborations that are a win-win for each party involved,” she says. “Partnerships to us aren’t transactional. They are relationships that we hope to grow and foster long term.”

Flexibility and shared goals made the ORNL partnership a strong fit for the course. “We were fortunate to find a collaborative and open-minded team at Innovation Crossroads,” she adds.

Strategic alignment also plays a major role in the department’s partner selection process. Zablah affirms the importance of mutual commitment to engagement, student growth and academic excellence.

“When partners are in it for the students, the outcomes tend to be fantastic,” he notes.

Gaining Professional Skills and Confidence

The marketing department’s experiential learning initiatives emphasize applying marketing theories, but they also help students grow their professional capabilities. Through collaborative projects, students sharpen technical skills in areas like data analytics and market segmentation while also developing equally important professional competencies like communication and working collaboratively.

“Students can often be apprehensive and a little bit overwhelmed,” Zablah says. “However, their sense of accomplishment and pride after completing a project is evident, as is their growth in their confidence as professionals.”

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CONTACT

Leah McAmis, senior editor, leah@utk.edu

Contact

Leah McAmis

Senior Editor

lpowel20@utk.edu

Haslam College of Business - Experiential Learning at Forefront of UT Haslam Marketing Programs