CDC Hosts Alumni Networking Session with Students

BRENDAN CLARK ’21
STAFF WRITER
The Trinity College Career Development Center (CDC) hosted a Career Connection networking session with alumni from a plethora of fields last Friday, October 20 during Parent’s Weekend. The session, which was the first of its kind for the CDC, provided Trinity students with an opportunity to speak with Trinity alumni who have gone on to successful careers in a number of professions.
Some of the professions represented included law, technology, marketing, education, healthcare, non-profits, and finance. The session drew 77 students and more than 28 alumni who spent an hour and a half together discussing everything from future goals to the lessons that alumni had learned from their experience. The event, which was promoted across the CDC’s social media, website, and email lists, was “a great success,” according to Joseph M. Catrino, the Director of Career Development. The event, which also featured light hors d’oeuvres, was “an opportunity to utilize and leverage networking with a distinctive alumni network,” added Catrino, stressing that “this was a unique experience for our students.”
The networking event came “out of a joint conversation with the Office of Enrollment and Student Success and the Development and Alumni Relations Offices,” added Catrino. Catrino, who was formerly in a marketing position with Trinity, stated that this was “my first big event at the helm of the CDC” and that the event “had a good turnout, good food, and good conversation.” Kaylen Jackson, ’21, felt that “the event was an excellent opportunity to better understand the profession I want to get involved in.” Jackson, who is interested in pursuing a career in law, stressed that she “learned a great deal about law school and the legal profession and now has a plan about how to direct some of [her] studies while an undergraduate at Trinity.”
The Career Development Center, located on the bottom floor of the Admissions Building, is also planning to host a variety of other events aimed at preparing students for the professional world and life beyond college. These include Resume Studios, which occur every Thursday during common hour in the Library in B03. Here, students can receive guidance on their resumes and cover letters as well as suggestions on how to begin them, if they have not yet started.
Further, the CDC is planning a Nest competition for first-year students. The Nest with the most students who schedule and complete welcome appointments by Nov. 16 will receive a trip to Nomad’s Adventure Quest. Catrino, who is focused on expanding the CDC’s program offerings for younger students, says, “We want to build relationships with students not when they are juniors and seniors, but when they are first-years arriving on campus.”
Additionally, the CDC will be holding a Life After College series, with the first being “How to Develop Your Plan” on October 31 in Seabury N130 at 9:30 am The program will continue, at the same time and place, with “How to Develop Your Personal Brand” on Nov. 7, “How to Network” on Nov. 14, and “How to Interview” on Nov. 28
Also, for seniors, the CDC will present its annual Bantams and Beyond program on Jan. 19, a full-day program offering workshops, panel sessions, and networking opportunities in order to prepare graduating students for life after college.