A “gut-feeling” brought one UC student to the Carl H. Lindner College of Business

Dominique Jones, LCOB ’22, still has one more year of college, but already her resume reveals an accomplished businesswoman who has both feet firmly planted on the career ladder and is ready to move skyward.

A finance major with a minor in math, Dominique is an intern in the Financial Analyst Development Program at Target Corporation. She is a PACE Leader for the UC Lindner College of Business, providing guidance to first-year students, and a Lindner College Ambassador who helps to recruit new students and to promote the college. She was one of 485 high-achieving, diverse students selected for an 18-month professional development program in Washington, D.C. And at the Indianapolis University Kelley School of Business National Diversity Case Competition, she captained a team that placed second in their bracket with a strategic plan for boosting engagement and retention of minority STEM employees at 3M.

Working for Target has been a highlight of her UC education. “The experience has been incredible,” she says. “This is my first internship that has me producing real work that will have an impact on the company. We’re finding trends within their digital fulfillment methods and making recommendations based on research and calculations. The project addresses a problem they don’t know the answer to yet. It truly gives me the creative freedom and innovative critical-thinking time to challenge myself and display what I know.”

Dominique, who was raised in Columbus, Ohio, had planned to attend Ohio State University to study biochemistry. But a last-minute “gut feeling” brought a change of plans. Once at UC, she discovered the business world and found her passion in finance. Her college years, she says, have flown by. “It’s kind of sad. But I don’t feel I’ve missed anything, which is a great feeling.” 

Scholarships have been of critical importance for Dominique, who has sole responsibility for her education and living expenses. “The generous donations that funded my scholarships motivated me to support and mentor fellow UC students,” she says. “College hasn’t been an easy journey, but the incredible awards and recognition that I have received have been crucial to my success and perseverance. Without that financial help, I don’t know where I’d be right now. I would not be able to be interning with Target, and I probably would not be as involved in outside activities because I’d have to struggle to make it financially.”

Dominique aims to be one of those generous donors herself one day. “My ultimate goal is to build as much as I can to give as much as I can away. I want to start small, whether that’s owning small businesses or investing in real estate, and allowing those investments to fund other initiatives. Eventually, I want to create a nonprofit and spend the rest of my life just giving and providing. I know it’s going to take a lot of work, because I was not born into money, and it’s all coming from square one. But that’s where I see my future headed.”

To support Dominique and other students like her, please visit the Lindner College of Business giving website.