By Michael Bernaschina, Staff Writer
The Career Development Center hosted its annual on-campus Breakthrough event, where students could interact with alumnae and employers within their field.
The event began on Thursday, Feb. 15, with the career expo, which ran from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and was held in Mellon Lounge. At the expo were multiple local organizations and companies including the Geisinger Health System, the Mutual Benefit Group, the Selinsgrove Area Chamber of Commerce, and the Evangelical Community Hospital, as well as university organizations like the Susquehanna IT department.
First-year Chandler Higley said, “When I first heard about the career expo and Breakthrough events, I was excited and worried because of the fact it is my first Breakthrough event. I really didn’t know how to open up to the Alumni, but the CDC and CAA have helped me prepare to network.”
Breakthrough continued the following day, Friday, Feb. 16, beginning at 12:15 p.m. with the Financial Literacy Luncheon in the Shearer-Weber Dining Rooms. Friday also featured the “That Was Your Major? How I Found a Different Path” panel in the Benjamin Apple meeting rooms at 7 p.m., the “Team Skills in the Workplace” event for both male and female athletes at 8 p.m., and a reception for the athletes in the Garrett Sports Complex following.
The final day of the event, Saturday, began at 10 a.m. and featured a student-alumni lunch and a number of panels hosted by alumni and community leaders. At these panels, students were able to talk to alumni about their experience in the workplace, as well as ask for advice.
“Don’t let that inner voice win, I’ve done that too many times,” said Sam Berger, ’15, at Saturday’s “Maximize Your Summer: Internships, Job Shadowing, and Volunteering” panel, advising students to be confident in their abilities and not doubt their qualifications.
The panel, which also included Kristen Konski, ’01, Tyler Shields, ’15, and Madison Summers, ’16, also advised students to make sure they take all of the experience in their field they can get. “Just because something might not be in your direct path doesn’t mean it’s something you won’t want to do,” Berger said.
“Don’t be afraid to put in the time early on, you’ll see the rewards later in your career,” Konski added.
Saturday also included the “Visual Arts, Broadcasting, and Media” panel which featured Brad Bishop, ’90, Craig Housenick, ’98, Jason Mammen, ’00, which put a heavy emphasis on the importance of internships, and keeping up with the needs of the job. “Show up early, don’t be late, have a good attitude, and be proactive,” said Bishop, the executive vice president of Critical Content.
Another panel students were able to attend was “Working in the Nonprofit Sector,” which featured Joanne Troutman, ’00, the president and CEO of the Greater Susquehanna Valley United Way, along with Andy Nagy, ’08, Bethany Slear, ’16 and Ainsley Rossitto, ’13.
The panel spoke about how rewarding the nonprofit sector is, highlighting that it is an area where students can bounce around and use to build their way up after college. The panel also made sure to debunk the myth that those who work in the nonprofit sector don’t get paid.
“Every single day is different, every single year is different,” said Troutman. “I’ve done some really neat things.”
A panel session “Legal Careers” which featured Megan Will, ‘09, Scott Heller, ‘82, Rachel Maryan, ‘10, Seth Mosebey, ‘03, and Emily White, ‘76. The panel spoke on the various paths of legal careers after law school. A number of the alumni spoke about how a day in the life of a lawyer is almost never routine.
The one point the panel made sure to make was that there will always be a need for lawyers.
Towards the end of he afternoon, students and alumni sat down in the Evert Dinning Room to participate in “Speed Networking.”
The “Speed Networking” allowed five minutes for each student and alumnus interaction as they switched partners, much like speed dating.
Breakthrough concluded at 5 p.m. that Saturday with a student-alumni networking reception in the Fisher Hall atrium which gave students a final opportunity to speak and network with alumni in their desired field.
“After talking to the individuals at the career expo and the alumnae pannels,” Higley said. “[networking] became less scary and more of a learning experience.”