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KEYNOTE SPEAKER Steven B. Sample put some direct and thought-provoking questions to the nearly 300 undergraduate students, graduate students and recent alumni who attended the USC Alumni Association’s second annual Career Conference Feb. 28.
“How do you feel about money? How important is money to you?” he challenged the participants, there to learn how to strengthen job-search skills, explore new career opportunities and build relationships in the Trojan Family.
“The world is full of unhappy people who have never figured out how they really feel about money,” Sample continued. “There are priests, teachers, artists and public servants who would be more fulfilled by the pursuit of wealth, and who, in following their inclination, would probably make much more significant contributions to society.
“On the other hand, there are people caught up in profit-seeking jobs who would be much happier and more productive if they were engaged in more altruistic occupations.”
Sample stressed personal choice and a do-what-you-love criterion in regard to these issues. “Others influence your career,” he said, “but you’re the one responsible.”
Leading a panel on Career Options in Manage-ment Consulting were Michael J. Alpert (left) of Toshiba America Information Systems; Leonard R. Fuller (center) of Fuller Consulting; and Mark Wilbur of project: ENTASIS. |
The conference provided four sessions with a variety of concurrent workshops and panels led by almost 70 alumni from various professions. Mock interviews were conducted in each session. In addition to sessions such as “Plan Your Career Effectively,” “Give a Great Interview and Get a Great Offer” and “Networking,” career options were discussed in sessions on communications and media, management consulting, finance and investment banking, computers and multimedia, human resources, education and administration, entertainment, engineering, real estate, the non-profit sector and health fields for the non-M.D.
A networking luncheon, at which leader-ship guru Warren Bennis spoke, provided an opportunity for attendees to mingle with alumni seated at tables designated by their profession.
“The conference reaffirmed the goal of the Alumni Association to provide career guidance and education to its younger constituents,” said Robert S. Rollo of Rollo Associates, who chaired the conference. “We had a tremendous turn-out, and I think every attendee went away with helpful information and new contacts.”
Linda Dean Maudlin, president of the Alumni Association, was also pleased by the number of attendees. “The response indicates that the students, both undergraduate and graduate, and recent alumni want this kind of opportunity to meet and network and really learn from our professional alumni,” she said.
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