The world after college can be an uncertain and intimidating place.

Many employers want graduates to have first-hand experience in their field and the grades to match. For the members of Shippensburg University’s professional business club, Phi Beta Lambda (PBL), students are already gaining insight into their future careers.

In PBL, students get to meet business professionals, travel to competitions, volunteer in the community and more. Although the club’s name has Greek letters, it is not a fraternity. It is more like the collegiate version of Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA). FBLA-PBL was founded in 1940 and the Greek name has stuck.

Junior Allison Wilson, president of PBL, brought the club back to life last year with the help of accounting professor and club adviser Edward Pitingolo. The club was going strong at SU in 2009 and then fell off the radar for a few years. Now it is growing popular again with more than 30 members.

“We really want it to be about preparing you for the world after college,” Wilson said.

Just last week, a state employee came to a PBL meeting to share their experience with students. Guest speakers are frequently invited to PBL meetings.

Members of PBL volunteer weekly at the Cumberland Valley Animal Shelter and help with the SU Food Recovery Network. Once the weather warms up, PBL will work to create a Leadership Trail by Burd Run. Serving the community is an important pillar of the club, according to Wilson.

The national charity for PBL is March of Dimes, a nonprofit organization that fundraises to improve the health of mothers and babies. Most recently, SU’s PBL raised $162 for March of Dimes through a volleyball tournament.

Next on PBL’s schedule is the State Leadership Conference in Harrisburg. Nine members of SU’s PBL attended last year and they came away with eight awards. There is also a National Leadership Conference that students can compete in if they first qualify at the state level. Competitions cover a variety of business topics. They range from tests to presentations to mock job interviews, and more.

“Because of PBL, I’m going to have a job when I graduate,” Wilson said.

The club she helped raise back up has given her opportunities to network with future employers and learn about the field she loves — accounting.

“I’m weird, I like doing taxes,” Wilson said, “Its purpose is to communicate and I like that aspect.” After graduation, Wilson hopes to become a certified public accountant (CPA), and eventually, a partner in a CPA firm.

Whether a student’s passion is accounting or economics, business students can benefit from the experiences in PBL, although the club is open to all majors. PBL holds meetings bi-weekly in Grove Hall Room 101.

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