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February 2008
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ALUMNI NEWS |
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Annual Visit to NYC Provides Students with Insight into Alumni World About 90 students attended the sixth annual New York City Trip Jan. 8–11 to network with alumni and businesses in the Big Apple.
The trip, a collaboration between the Career Center, the School of Communication, and the Kogod School of Business, has grown since it started in 2003, said Bridget O’Connell, acting director for employee outreach and marketing in the Career Center. On the trip, students and recent graduates attended a networking reception and an opening night dinner. They also visited six companies, where they went on tours and heard from employees, including many alumni. Students chose from 26 different sites, up from 24 last year. Sites ranged from Fox News to Macy’s. The trip was focused on the communications industry, which is so well known in New York, O’Connell said. The increase in the number of hosts, O’Connell said, “suggests to us that [alumni] are committed to helping students who are going through similar experiences … as they did in their undergraduate careers.” Alumni hosts participate for a variety of reasons. Tara Lilien, SOC/BA '98, senior VP of North American human resources at Manning, Selvage and Lee, said she hosts so students “get a better understanding of public relations life and the type of work we do for clients.” She said she hopes that it “piques their interest for entering the field.” Richard Baumer, KSB/BSAB '78, president of VentureDirect Worldwide, found another benefit. “I like to stay connected to the school,” he said. “I absolutely got a lot from it… and I enjoy staying connected to the institution by seeing the different groups of people that come through.” Tim Race, SOC/MA '84, health care editor of the New York Times, hosts to give back as well. “I like staying involved because if people are serious about their career, they deserve to be taken seriously,” he said. “If I can help, great.” Hosts had much praise for the students. “This session seemed to be a lot more dynamic,” said Race, who has hosted for the past six years. “There was a lot more interaction between the students and the panel.” Most students go on the trip hoping it will lead to an internship or job, said O’Connell. It is a unique way to network. Many success stories have resulted from the trips. This year alone, one student has obtained an internship and three have interviewed at companies, a fact O’Connell is proud of. “It is proof of the tremendous alumni support, [and] the commitment and preparations among students who take it seriously,” she said. “It is a great testimony of the planning and programming that goes into it.” Student Alex Preist ’11, said the trip helped him gauge “what I was really interested in and get a leg up on the competition.” Junior Justin Mushnick '09, echoed that sentiment. “It’s hard to say how it might help me in the long run,” he said. “[But,] if I want to be an intern, I would be a step ahead of the other applicants.” -Brian Kalish '08 | |||
