Speedy advice for graduate students
Concordia alumni and graduate students — from both Concordia and McGill universities — converged at GradProSkills’ inaugural speed-networking event in the Engineering, Computer Science and Visual Arts Integrated Complex on March 29.
“It feels good to give back,” said Robert Sibthorpe, EMBA 00, BA 95, whose successful industrial packaging company started as a business plan for his thesis. Sibthorpe had already made a few connections as participants trickled in for the evening.
During a series of 10-minute networking rounds, students moved to different alumni mentors who shared their career experiences and offered advice to those entering the workforce. The 27 mentors are experienced alumni from diverse employment sectors including engineering, finance, web and social media, fine arts, manufacturing, communications, health and fitness.
“I found it very useful to get tips from experienced professionals and to learn about how they got their jobs and developed their careers,” said engineering student Yaneth Aguilar Diaz.
Mentors generously volunteered their time to help graduate students and post-doctoral fellows. Many alumni find the benefit is mutual.
“Events like these give me the opportunity to connect with young people and to gain energy from the interaction,” said Eric Stern, MBA 84, who runs the consulting firm Expertech CMSC.He stressed the importance of getting young people hooked on the idea of networking early on to get ahead in their careers.
To set students on the right foot before the timed networking sessions began, Denise Gaumond, EMBA 94, a consultant at the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), highlighted the importance of continually networking throughout one’s career.
“It’s important to know yourself and to know about others.Be curious about those around you. People usually like to talk about what they do, so ask exploratory questions. This is what got me in with the STM,” she said.
Human resources consultant Joy Gandell, MBA 01, followed with a presentation featuring tips on networking. “Lifetime employability requires networking. It’s important to know what your goal is and to have a prepared elevator pitch explaining what you want and what you can offer,” she said.
Gandell also recommends that young job seekers carry business cards, which can be obtained for no charge through websites such as vistaprint.ca, and that they create profiles on the LinkedIn professional networking site.
“I wish I had someone to guide me when I was a student,” said Vila Woo, MA 06, GrDip 99, BFA 98. Her advice to students is to connect with people from other employment backgrounds.
“People are often drawn to others who work in the same industry, but you never know where your path may lead,” said Woo, a fine arts and education graduate who now finds herself running her own business. “I encourage students to network with as many different people as possible.”
The GradProSkills program provides professional skills training to graduate students and post-doctoral fellows to prepare for the transition from academic research into the workplace by developing soft skills that aren’t normally learned in a classroom, studio or lab.The program was launched by the university’s School of Graduate Studies in August 2011.
Concordia also offers other mentoring opportunities. Advancement and Alumni Relations runs a successful mentor program that facilitates relationships between alumni and students.
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