A solid start

Student, recent graduates turn to alumni mentors

Julie Mann's career path in information systems took her from Athens to Charlotte, N.C., right after graduation day. Despite the big change, she had no doubts or second thoughts because she had developed ties to the area - and landed a job - through relationships with alumni before she even left campus.

"My mentors got me excited about Charlotte," says Mann, BBA '02. "They can help answer all kinds of questions -where to live, fun things to do, ways to get involved."

Even alumni who've been out of school for many years can remember the stress of moving to a new city, searching for a job and missing friends and campus life. But among the ranks of Ohio University's nearly 170,000 alumni, new graduates have potential contacts and friends around the world.

"Ohio University graduates are CEOs, managers, owners and distinguished professionals. These are the people who can really make a difference in a young alumnus' life," says Ralph Amos, assistant vice president for alumni relations. "We need these folks to step up and take a young Bobcat under their wing."

Mentors come in all professions, and they devote as much or as little time as they are able. The role is open to anyone with professional experience who wants to improve his or her own life and career by supporting a young professional.

Robert Walter, AB '90 and MA '92, is one of Mann's mentors and program manager of mass communications for the Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars, which has placed Ohio University students in internships in the Washington, D.C., area since the mid-1980s.

"Most of the students say that it's a life-changing event living in D.C. and working in the real world for 15 weeks," Walter says. "They have set themselves head and shoulders above those who have not had an internship."

Walter keeps in touch with the students he places even after their internships end, a practice that may have payoffs for both parties. "I tell all my students in the program that if they want job advice, etc., I'm here to help," he says. "Down the line, he or she may be in a position that can help me out."

Mentors can provide invaluable tips and information to help recent graduates see their careers from a more seasoned perspective and avoid pitfalls common among early-career professionals. Their guidance also may take the form of life advice: what to do when moving to a new city, how to find a safe place to live, where to go to meet new people and how to learn about the local culture.

"As soon as I moved here, I was meeting new Bobcats who were willing to answer all of my questions about the new city I was living in," says Mann, who slipped into the role of active alumna just as easily as she did that of Charlotte resident and young professional. In February, she took over as president of the Ohio University Alumni Association's Charlotte Chapter. "It was nice to meet people who had a common interest," she says.

One of the first opportunities for students to find mentors is "Take a Slice of Ohio University With You." The event, held each spring quarter, invites graduating students and alumni chapter and society leaders to Konneker Alumni Center for pizza and conversation. Graduating seniors arrive with many questions, and the alumni leaders provide advice on relocation and other useful information.

"Making the initial contact with chapter presidents and representatives at 'Take a Slice' gave me automatic connection to the Charlotte chapter," Mann says "Once 1 moved here, I knew exactly were to go to meet new Bobcats.

Chapter activity is in fact, another effective way for mentoring relationships to develop. Alumni chapters provide numerous social and lifelong learning opportunities that bring Bobcats together. "I went to an alumni event two months after I arrived in D.C. and met a mentor, Walter attests. Some students meet their mentor at career fairs sponsored by Ohio University Career Services. Alumni often volunteer to be representatives at these fairs when they find out their companies are recruiting at Ohio University. That"s exactly how Mann met another one of her mentors, Randy Buck, BBA 81, an information technology recruiter for Wachovia Bank. He offered Mann her first job.

Many of Ohio Universitys colleges and schools, along with individual alumni, coordinate internship programs that help students find mentors and network for their first jobs after college. Thirty percent of our interns get an offer to stay, Walter says. Others make Important Job connections while they are there that lead to positions. Alumni societies also hold events that bring graduates from specific professions together with students who either are exploring those professions or trying to find jobs and internships.

One such event is Senior Saturday, conducted in February by the E.W. Scripps School of Journalisms Society of Alumni and Friends. "We had 55 seniors who took part in Senior Saturday. We also had 21 alums who came in from all across the state, Washington, D. C., and Chicago for the program, say Assistant Professor of Journalism Mary Rogus. The student response was very enthusiastic. The evaluation comments included praise for the information presented, the timeliness of the event and the opportunity to get together with seniors from all sequences (in the school).

Shadowing trips offer another networking opportunity for soon-to-be professionals. Those sponsored by the College of Communications allow students to follow working alumni during a day on the job."I got a chance to spend time with some amazing alumni who were generous enough to give us some of their time. We had the chance to ask them tons of questions in an open forum, and the shadowing experiences were amazing," Megan Jerse, BSJ '03, says of her shadowing trip to Chicago in November 2O01.

Even though her plans are to move to New York after graduation, Jerse has kept in touch with alumni in Chicago and can call on them down the road for advice or information. "I left Chicago knowing there was a whole city waiting for me," says Jerse, "where I had a network of alumni from Ohio University pulling for me and willing to help me with my career.

Sean Hughes, BSJ '96, is assistant director of marketing and communication for the Ohio University Alumni Association. Kelly Wahl, BSJ 03, is a public relations assistant for the association.