As an undergraduate at Barry University, Jason Golden secured his first internship by attending the Sport Management program’s annual career fair hosted by Barry’s School of Human Performance and Leisure Sciences. Today, the Barry alumnus, who works as a coordinator for Corporate Partnerships at the Miami Marlins, has traded places to pay it forward to his alma mater and HPLS’ Sport Management program.
Golden, who graduated from Barry with a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in sport management in 2009 and 2011, respectively, continues to connect with Barry Sport Management students by representing the Marlins at Barry’s Sport Management Career Fair each year, conducting annual mock interviews with undergraduates, and guest lecturing in Sport Management classes whenever possible.
In 2014, Golden took his involvement with Barry’s Sport Management program to the next level by co-hosting the first Sport Management-focused “Dinner for Ten Buccaneers,” an informal mentorship opportunity for 10 Barry students to engage with alumni over an evening of dinner afforded as a gift-in-kind by the Barry graduate. Following the “Dinner for Ten Buccaneers” with Golden, one student capitalized on the connections she made with Golden and earned a game-day-operations position with the Marlins.
“Connecting with students at Barry career events is important to me, because that’s how I met people in the program/industry and got connected myself,” Golden said.
Golden, who is in his fourth season with the Marlins, credits the connections and real-world experiences he gained while in Barry’s Sport Management program to helping him jumpstart his career.
“It was easier to network in a smaller program where you know most of the people there,” Golden said. “The connections at Barry helped me find out about and land a couple of good internships to get some real-world sports experience.”
Those connections have even followed Golden to the workplace, he said, as he has worked several jobs, including his job at the Marlins, with other Barry graduates.
As a coordinator for Corporate Partnerships at the Marlins, Golden is responsible for fulfilling contracts with sponsors and serving as the middle man between sponsors and the Marlins while providing customer service to sponsors throughout the sponsorship process.
As an undergraduate and master’s student, Golden made it a goal to have a career in professional sports, he said. As an undergraduate student, he completed an internship with the South Florida Super Bowl Host Committee, which earned him a full-time position that he held during his first year of graduate school; however, the seasonal position eventually ended. As a graduate student, he completed an internship as a staff assistant for the Miami Dolphins before landing an internship with the Marlins in its Corporate Partnerships department. After nearly a year with the Marlins, Golden attained his goal and was hired full-time by the Marlins as a coordinator for Corporate Partnerships.
Golden’s favorite aspect of working for the Marlins?
“Although it's a long season, no two days are the same,” he said. “I like the game-day atmosphere. “
For more information about Barry’s bachelor’s degree program in sport management, visit https://www.barry.edu/hpls/sport-management-bs/
For more information about Barry’s master’s degree program in sport management or its dual degree option leading to master’s degrees in both sport management and business administration, visit https://www.barry.edu/hpls/sport-management-bs/about/five-year-bs-to-ms.html