This past January, students and alumni came together to take part in the Jumpstart College to Career program, a three-day virtual career conference that provided upperclass students with strategies and tools to apply to their personal career plan.
From January 20-22, the Jumpstart conference offered an array of workshops, online presentations, and group meetings while also integrating offline activities and exercises. One of these activities was the use of alumni informational interviews, where students were matched with alumni for a one-hour interview to assist with networking and to learn how to properly interview in the job market.
“The alumni informational interviews in particular gave participants a special opportunity to learn more about their career field of interest and to make a professional contact,” explains Dorin Thibault, assistant director of employer relations at the Career Development Center and organizer of the Jumpstart College to Career program. “We are deeply appreciative of our alumni who took valuable time out of their schedule to assist our students with their career exploration.”
The informational interviews with alumni were designed not only to assist students with their career search, but also to help them become more comfortable with the interviewing process, speaking with professionals, and developing their network. Alumni shared information about their own career journeys and connected with students about organizations and contacts in the professional world.
“As a member of the Saint Anselm College alumni community, I was happy to help in any way that I could,” says Ian Snyder ’13, the Director of Student Activities at Saint Patrick Academy. “It was great to see that these relationships could extend beyond campus and that I could continue to learn from current students ... and hopefully share some of the knowledge that I've gained.”
Communication major Katy Meehan ’21 had the opportunity to interview with Snyder and was extremely pleased with the information she received on working in a private school and the various connections Snyder provided. “Through the Jumpstart program I learned that getting yourself out there and networking is super important while building your professional network,” explains Meehan. “I would recommend this to any student at Saint Anselm because it really opened doors for me on starting my job search and building my network!”