Fifty-three Wesleyan students explored the workforce firsthand during the Gordon Career Center’s Fall 2019 Career Treks.
Through five experiential learning trips, students directly connected with Wesleyan alumni and engaged with employers across a wide range of industries.
During the fall 2019 semester, the Gordon Career Center’s team of career advisors facilitated career treks to local, Connecticut-based employers: ESPN, Hartford Hospital’s Center for Education, Simulation and Innovation (CESI), LEGO Systems, Inc., and Pfizer. Additionally, the GCC hosted a day trip for students to Boston to attend the Reach(OUT) LGBTQA+ Career Conference at Northeastern University.
Alumni hosts included Rob King ’84, senior vice president of original content at ESPN; Jordan Schildhaus ’15, assistant account manager, and Ethan Sack ’97, head of US marketing at LEGO; and Giselle Reyes ’18, MA’19, senior associate scientist at Pfizer.
Additionally, on Oct. 26, three seniors traveled to Boston and attended the Reach(OUT) LGBTQA+ Career Conference at Northeastern University. The career conference is designed to focus on the perspectives and concerns of queer, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, gender-nonconforming, nonbinary, intersex, and asexual students in preparation for co-op, internships, and professional life beyond campus. Presentation topics/titles included Assessing Fit and Culture, Working OUT: Navigating Visibility at Work for transgender or gender-nonconforming (TGNC) People, and Rights Benefits and Negotiation. These workshops touched on subjects such as navigating micro-aggressions, corporate culture, and gender presentation.
The next career trek will be offered March 18–20, when students can participate in a three-day immersive career exploration program. Participants will begin with a day of career development work and preparation on campus, followed by a day trip to Boston to meet with Wesleyan alumni at their places of work.