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Classroom to Careers: Ferris State’s Hannah Nunamaker’s expansive opportunity in Nashville caps her Hospitality Management internship experience

Ferris State internship Hannah Nunamaker in Nashville
Big Rapids native Hannah Nunamaker is shown here during a dynamic internship in Nashville.
BIG RAPIDS, Mich. — 

The Music City Center encompasses 2.1 million square feet over six blocks in downtown Nashville. For Ferris State University senior Hannah Nunamaker, that massive venue offered an opportunity to learn and contribute to the operation.

Nunamaker, of Big Rapids, is a Hospitality Management major who spent her summer working at the Music City Center as an intern.

“The operations staff for the center focuses on assuring a great experience for their event guests,” she said. “Beyond a month of guest experience roles, I had a rotation of duties such as audio/visual services, being an ambassador at the convention center’s front desk, and assisting with the parking operation, food and beverage operations, technology duties and rigging equipment for vendor displays.”

Nunamaker consciously broadened her resume before graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Hospitality Management in December.

“I knew I wanted to be in a large city for my final internship and found this opportunity by searching online,” she said. “I followed the position placement process and moved on to interviews that ended in March, with my accepting an internship at the Music City Center.”

Nunamaker appreciated the breadth of assignments that comprised her stay in Nashville.

“I think it was my best internship because of its diversity and the exposure I received in convention sales and convention tourism, which are great professional avenues that are not always available in these assignments,” she said. “The management team made sure I had a well-rounded experience, and I was able to make many connections out of state. I was so glad to be in Nashville and experience a different city.”

Nunamaker has also grown outside her classroom learning by participating in Ferris State’s Student Alumni Gold Club and a campus registered student organization. Her experiences lead her to offer advice to students regarding internships.

“If you have a dream of something, go for it, because if you don’t try, you will never know what was possible,” Nunamaker said. “Working with the Alumni Office and the SAGC and being part of the Hospitality Management Student Association prepared me for the growth I have accomplished, along with the great instruction from the faculty in my program. I know that helped me succeed in my assignments with the center.”

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects the hospitality industry will add 1.9 million jobs before 2031 – the fastest projected growth rate of any sector.