Rachel Bayerl’s Story of Growth and Connection through Embracing Opportunities

Outside of Residential Life, Bayerl was involved in Impact (now called Student Events) and worked in Admissions her junior year. Being a tour guide had been on Bayerl’s bucket list, and it was also her first exposure to more of an office job.

Bayerl says time at Minnesota State Mankato and her willingness to be open to new opportunities influenced her professional career. She was a double major in accounting and marketing, and she landed her first job with Hormel Foods after graduation. She started in accounting and now works in data analytics. She shared that Hormel is a great company to work for, but it wasn’t on her radar at all prior to a career fair on campus. Bayerl encourages students to take the extra effort to go to networking events on campus, not knowing what those opportunities may lead to. She shared that “half the battle is just showing up… just get yourself out there!”

Rachel’s husband, John ’16 MA, ’19, studied communications during undergrad and stayed at Minnesota State Mankato for his master’s in educational technology. As a graduate student, he had a graduate assistantship position within IT Solutions, which turned into a staff position when the D2L administrator opened up. D2L is the official learning management system used at Minnesota State Mankato, as well as at many other colleges and universities. Upon completion of his master’s degree, John began his career doing similar work for various Minnesota State colleges, ultimately landing his current role working directly for D2L.

Rachel shared that “both of us are successful at our roles because we can talk to people,”— skills that she feels were strengthened through their time at Minnesota State Mankato. The couple now lives in Rochester and credits a lot of their current professional success to Minnesota State Mankato and the experiences gained as students, and especially by taking opportunities to get involved and try new opportunities.

 

Big ideas, real-world thinking and inspired action on campus and in the community.