Students behind the scenes: Organizing Career Education Day

Career Education Day once again brought together students, employers, and industry professionals at RIT Croatia, first in Dubrovnik on February 25, and then in Zagreb on March 4. A unique highlight of this year’s event was the introduction of a student organizing committee, developed in collaboration with the Career Services and Alumni Relations Office, which led the overall initiative and guided the process. This approach not only ensured the event content resonated with the needs of the current student body but also gave students valuable insight into event planning and execution.

“This year, we involved students in organizing the event, giving them hands-on experience and a real voice in shaping the program,” says Aleksandra Gečević, Career Services and Alumni Relations Coordinator. “It was inspiring to watch students grow, contribute, and embrace the opportunity.” Students from both campuses, Tita Butić, Leonela Krajač, Matija Mravunac, Jan Pavlin, and Mia Stjepčević, played an active role in planning and executing one of RIT Croatia’s largest events, gaining hands-on experience that goes far beyond the classroom.

Behind the scenes of CED

For Leonela Krajač, a senior Global Business Management student, joining the organizing team was a natural next step after experiencing CED from multiple perspectives. “In the past, I attended CED as a regular student, and one year I was volunteering as an Employer Support,” she explains. Building on that experience, she applied, went through the interview process, and became part of the planning committee, taking on the role of Student Volunteer Lead.

In this role, Leonela coordinated a large team of student volunteers, ensuring every aspect of the event ran smoothly. “I navigated 40 students who volunteered for CED in areas such as material preparation, employer support, accreditation, and registration,” she says. Managing such a dynamic environment required constant communication and adaptability, but it also proved highly rewarding.

Building on the strong visual identity developed last year by New Media Design student Sandra Prašnikar under the mentorship of Dr. Jurica Dolić, Matija Mravunac continued to evolve and expand the event’s creative direction. He played a key role in further developing the event’s visual identity. “We were supporting and discussing different ideas that we could use to make the event even better than before; from selecting a slogan to helping decide what companies should be invited,” he explains.

“For me, the most important task was to enhance the branding for the event. I created visuals from accreditations and presentations to social media templates,” he says, noting the large volume of materials produced. Seeing everything come together was especially rewarding: “I saw visuals I created everywhere I looked, and that was very special to me.” Alongside him, fellow sophomore New Media Design student Beata Gržan contributed by designing and 3D printing the awards presented to partners, further highlighting the creativity and practical skills of RIT Croatia students.

Bringing ideas to life

Together, their contributions reflect what it means to work behind the scenes of a large-scale, fast-paced event. As Leonela explains, “Coordinating an event of this scale means constantly staying in close contact with all volunteers, employers, and the organizing team.” That effort became most visible on the day of the event itself. “Seeing ideas translated from paper to execution was the most rewarding part,” Leonela reflects. Matija shares a similar sentiment: “Seeing the event in full swing with minimal issues was amazing; everyone seemed to have a good time.”

Beyond the event itself, the experience helped students develop practical skills essential for their future careers. From organization and teamwork to problem-solving and communication, these are competencies best developed through real-world experience. As Matija puts it, “teamwork and organization were one of the most valuable skills I could get since in reality those are the two most important skills when it comes to the design world.”