As many of us already know, Fairfield University prides itself on its success in finding students creditable jobs once graduating. However, the newly introduced alumni job shadow program has created internship and job opportunities for junior and senior students.
This basic jest of this program is to match up the students who apply with alumni based on career interests and home location.
Here’s how it works: Students submit applications that are later reviewed by the career planning center. After the reviewing process the students will be matched up with an alumnus in the student’s desired field of work.
The shadowing program has had extreme success in the past with over 275 student-alumni matches last year.
Something noteworthy about this program is that it takes place during the Fairfield winter break so the students are still able to focus on schoolwork and other extra curricular during the school year.
“When I found out I got Facebook I was a little bit nervous because it’s very intimidating, but it’s such a great setting and it’s really such a great experience.”
–Ally Tuozzoli ‘16
This program has no limits; students who have participated have majored in marketing, finance, psychology, biology, communication, engineering, nursing, media and film product, information systems, international studies…the list goes on. The participating students are not required to have any experience in the chosen career, which takes a ton of pressure off of the applicants.
Obviously a typical workday depends on the company a student is working with but an example of an average day could be:
- Observation of individual employees’ activities during the workday
- Informational interviews with employees
- Meetings with people like the president, CEO, and department heads
- Lunch with Fairfield alumni
- A tour of the company
A few of the companies that have taken Fairfield students “under their wings” are Gap, AOL, Facebook, CBSSports, LinkedIn, Macy’s, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Morgan Stanley, and Google.
The Fairfield Alumni Shadow Program gives students the opportunity to experience the real world before graduating which not only gives them a head start on networking but it gives them confidence that cannot be gained in a classroom.
Applications are due by October 21st