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ALUMNI INTERVIEW: I was a double major in mathematics and physics, now I…

Meet Alison Cheung ’06, Engineer at MIT Lincoln Laboratory.

In one sentence, what does your job entail?

I work sensors such as a large optical telescope to monitor the space environment and enable the nation to meet the challenges of an increasingly congested and contested space domain.

What planned and unplanned events connected you to your industry and your first employer after Holy Cross? How did you learn/decide it was a good fit for you?

During my sophomore year at Holy Cross, I was informed of an opportunity via email from the physics department to get funding through the Massachusetts Space Grant Consortium for a summer internship at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).  I had been looking at various internship opportunities from the financial industry to the department of defense, but had not previously thought about NASA or the space industry.  After submitting a resume and talking to a mentor at JPL, I jumped on this opportunity.  I worked hard that summer, had frequent conversations with my mentor, and fell in love with the work environment and the space missions.  This resulted in me returning for a total of three summers under the same mentors but with exposure to various mission areas.  Knowing that a graduate degree is incredibly valuable in this type of environment, I attended graduate school but kept in contact with my JPL mentors.  After completing my master’s degree, I chose to return to JPL as full-time staff.

What were you involved in when you were on campus?

On campus I was involved in the marching band/pep band, Holy Cross Chamber Orchestra, Society of Physics Students, Science Student Ambassadors, SPUD, and admissions office host for prospective students.

What was your major and how did it affect your career decisions?

I was a double major in mathematics and physics.  I always had a hard time picking a favorite between these majors and struggled to decide which area to go to graduate school in.  Ultimately, I looked for ways to keep a balance of both fields and have continued to do so.

What are one or two skills that you developed at Holy Cross that you use in your work?

My first exposure to MATLAB was at Holy Cross during my senior year and have continued to use MATLAB on a regular basis since then.  Additionally, Holy Cross helped me develop my communication and interpersonal skills that often set me apart from others in my field.

What advice do you have for students on campus today?

My largest piece of advice for students on campus today is to seize any opportunity that comes your way and work hard to make a positive impression.  This could mean being the first to submit a resume or respond to an email.  Don’t worry about how the opportunity came about and don’t doubt your qualifications.  Imposter syndrome is a real thing.  Instead of thinking about why you were given an opportunity, put your energy into making the most of that opportunity so that it leads to further opportunities.  When gaps in your knowledge arise, ask good questions and continuously improve.
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Meet Caroline Legare ’18 Intern at Catchpoint Systems

Meet Caroline Legare ’18 Intern at Catchpoint Systems

Tell us about where you are interning and the kind of work you are doing.

This summer, I interned at Catchpoint Systems, a tech company in NYC. At Catchpoint, I worked on the marketing team, and completed a vide array of tasks. Some of my tasks included research projects utilizing Excel, writing a case study, and sending a biweekly company-wide report on the internal and external content produced by the marketing team!

Give us an example of how you have applied your academic learnings to your internship?

It’s super refreshing to know that the skills acquired through my history major carried over into the workplace! A number of employees on the marketing team stressed the need for “good writers” in the marketing field– and that is definitely a skill that the history major demands of its majors. Similarly, the ability to analyze key information and write concisely is another skill I have acquired through my major. I definitely tapped into these skills while writing the case study and sending biweekly reports!

What has surprised you about being an intern?

The immense responsibility of your role! Many students associate internships with coffee-runs or completing mundane tasks. However, at least at Catchpoint, my work actually mattered to the company, which was definitely rewarding.

How did this experience influence or connect to your future career plans / goals?

I now can officially say I have a clear desire to pursue a career in marketing, which gives me somewhat of a game plan! Catchpoint provided me with an experience that makes me excited about the field, and gave me a great overview of what to expect!

Any internship advice to pass on to other Holy Cross students?

Document your tasks! I made an Excel sheet and filled out my tasks for the week, including the skills I utilized and what I learned from completing the task. This will make resume adjustments easier, and will give you plenty to share when people ask what you did!
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Meet CrusaderIntern Jenna Marinis ’18

Meet Jenna Marinis ’18 Research Analyst/ Clinical Observer at NYU Winthrop Hospital

Tell us about where you are interning and the kind of work you are doing.

This summer I interned as a clinical observer/ research analyst at NYU Winthrop Hospital. Throughout the summer I was able to experience a number of different medical disciplines from working in a office setting conducting research to watching open heart surgery. Towards the end of the summer I was able to begin my own research project analyzing patient anxiety levels in relation to certain prostate cancer treatments, which gave me the opportunity to experience the process of publishing an academic paper. Days when I was observing in the hospital consisted of shadowing doctors and physician assistants in a number of different fields, getting a front row seat to a day in the life of a medical professional.

Give us an example of how you have applied your academic learnings to your internship?

Holy Cross has provided me with a well rounded education which helped me adapt to the different environments that I was exposed to throughout the summer. Whether it was critical thinking skills in the research setting, or care, compassion, and understanding in the hospital, the education provided to me by Holy Cross has prepared me to succeed in any professional setting.

What has surprised you about being an intern?

At first interning seemed intimidating, but I was surprised to find how normal it was to sometimes be confused and to ask questions. Everyone turned out to be completely understanding and more than willing to help me whenever I needed it.

How did this experience influence or connect to your future career plans / goals?

Being a pre-medical student at Holy Cross consists of strictly classroom prerequisites, which can sometimes cause you to lose sight of why you are doing what you’re doing in the first place. This internship has allowed me to realize why I am putting in the work that I am in the classroom and has motivated me to keep working hard in order to eventually achieve my goal of one day becoming a medical professional. I am extremely thankful to career services as well as the Holy Cross Alumni who set up this opportunity because it has truly opened my eyes to all that is possible in my future.

Any internship advice to pass on to other Holy Cross students?

Ask, ask, and ask again. Interning is all about what you make of it. You can spend your time sitting in the background, and being confused or you can ask questions and be involved. Don’t be intimidated, everyone is for the most part understanding of your situation and that you may need some help sometimes. Work hard and be sure to go the extra mile, because you never know who may be watching. Interning is an extremely special opportunity, be sure make the most out of it!
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Meet CrusaderIntern Maureen Hodgens ’19

Maureen Hodgens’19 interned at SenseAbility Gym this summer. Learn all about the fun and rewarding work she is doing tutoring kids.

Tell us about where you are interning and the kind of work you are doing.

I am interning at SenseAbility Gym, a nonprofit corporation serving special needs children in the greater Worcester area. The gym, located in Hopedale Massachusetts, provides children a safe, clean, spacious area where kids can play and accommodate their sensory needs.

I run the Summer Refresher Program which provides one-on-one academic support (mostly reading comprehension and math) to students. The gym is an excellent location for sessions because students are able to earn break time where they can choose what they would like to do based on their needs (such as relaxing in the quiet room or jumping on the trampoline). The gym serves as a great setting for learning and focus, and the kids feel safe and comfortable going to the gym because many of them have been going since they were just 2 or 3 years old. In addition to tutoring, I also help out at open gym, which is unstructured time where parents and kids can play together while using the equipment. I have been able to assist instructors and other professionals (such as occupational therapists, special education teachers, social workers, and speech pathologists) to help teach children different social, emotional, and physical skills.

Give us an example of how you have applied your academic learnings to your internship?

I took the course, Educational Psychology, last semester where I learned about many of the challenges that children face on a daily basis at home and in the classroom. These may include a learning disability, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, developmental disorder, physical disorder, sensory disorder, speech and language disorder, autism spectrum disorder, or emotional and behavioral disorder. Reading about the descriptions of these types of disabilities in a textbook and then memorizing them was a good start, but definitely not sufficient enough to gain a real grasp of these challenges. In order to understand the obstacles that these children face, it is necessary to interact with them and get to know them as a whole person, which is what this internship has provided. Although these labels are used in order to identify and classify types of disabilities, I have learned that even children within these “boxes” are completely different and special in their own way. Through my internship, I have also learned that a child can never be expected to act the same or have the same needs as another child with the same diagnosis. This experience helped me to see students in a much more holistic way.

What has surprised you about being an intern?

It’s surprising that internships can actually be really fun! The work I do isn’t easy by any means, but after spending so much time planning a tutoring session and then executing it, the feeling afterwards is so rewarding. I was also surprised at how quickly I felt welcome at my workplace community. Thanks to my supervisors, Tina and Alysia, as well as the other members of the SenseAbility Gym community, I love going into work each day. I learn something new every day! I think that for a lot of college students, the word “internship” can cause some anxious or negative feelings. However, I have learned that an internship can actually be a positive experience that enriches your skills and helps you to grow as a person.

How did this experience influence or connect to your future career plans / goals?

As a future educator, it is a top priority for me to have exposure and experience with children of ALL needs, and most especially those who have special needs. This internship has reaffirmed my love of children and teaching.

I have learned about classroom strategies to help students with Sensory Integration Dysfunction (SID) such as reducing sensory overload, providing comfortable furniture, planning movement breaks between and during activities, and devising team or group experiences. When coping with sensory integration dysfunction, it’s important for future teachers to know that growing older doesn’t mean getting better at many physical or intellectual tasks. Many teachers don’t learn about SID in their educational training, but the child with SID often has enormous difficulty in the classroom. These students will play a key role in my future classroom, lesson planning, and ultimate execution of my lessons as a teacher.

As a content teacher, I will be able to collaborate effectively with my special education professionals to make the classroom environment more welcoming and effective for all students. Exposure to these children and their parents early on in my training will allow me to facilitate future collaboration with the special education department and enrich the experiences of my future students on IEP’s and 504’s. I’m so grateful that I have had the opportunity to work with children with a variety of needs in an educational setting so far this summer– I have already gained so much more confidence working with children of all abilities!

Any internship advice to pass on to other Holy Cross students?

There’s no doubt that finding a summer internship can be really hard. Sometimes you end up accepting an internship that isn’t your #1 choice, and that’s okay. If you go into your internship with an open mind, you can end up applying what you have learned in ways you never thought were possible. Even though your internship may not be exactly what you want to do everyday for the rest of your life, you can still acquire skills that will help you in the future. If you don’t enjoy your internship even after coming in with an open mind, remember that crossing off a career field from your list is still beneficial. Make note of what you enjoyed doing during your internship, as well as what aspects of your day you didn’t love as much. Tracking what makes you passionate as an intern can help to determine what future job is the best fit for you. Narrowing down a career search is always a positive, so accepting an internship will always be a win-win situation for you!

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Meet CrusaderIntern Lexi Tamburello

Meet Lexi Tamburello ’19 Accounting Intern at Dovetail Internet Technologies

Tell us about where you are interning and the kind of work you are doing.

I am interning at Dovetail Internet Technologies, a company located in Worcester that creates custom website solutions for businesses. At Dovetail, I work along-side the head accountant. I process account receivables and account payable, enter and analyze data in excel, and complete book-keeping tasks.

Give us an example of how you have applied your academic learnings to your internship?

Much of what I have learned in my accounting course has come to life in my internship. For example, I was able to understand first hand, rather than read in a textbook, how important a cash flow statement is.

What has surprised you about being an intern?

I was surprised how much I was able to learn in a summer long internship. Specifically, I was given tasks that were important and required responsibility. (ex. checks and contracts)

How did this experience influence or connect to your future career plans / goals?

From this experience, I have come to a greater understanding of what I want and what I do not want in my future career.

Any internship advice to pass on to other Holy Cross students?

Enter the internship with a positive attitude. Your experience is truly what you make it.
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4 Tips for Surviving Your First Week of Fall Semester

Aaaaand we’re back! Welcome to fall semester 2017! We hope you had a fun-filled, relaxing, productive summer. Here are a few tips for getting through your first week.

Plan

Figuring out where your class is, hugging friends you have not seen since May, and making sure to wake up on time on Wednesday is a lot to do. So, plan ahead as much as you can. Remember to check your email for any classroom changes. Text your friends to meet up for an early breakfast on Wednesday, that way you can all walk to class together and be on time.

Rest

This week will be filled with excitement! You may feel overwhelmed by how much there is to do. Try your best to go to bed early or take a nap while your roommate is at class.

Eat

You know you missed _______ (insert your favorite Kimball’s food here). Enjoy! For you first year’s, go ahead and have cereal three times a day, we won’t tell.

Smile

We are excited you are all back on campus! We look forward to seeing familiar smiles and meeting new students at the Career Kickoff (Hoval) on Wednesday. Stop by for a snack and enter the raffle to win a giftcard to the bookstore.
Enjoy your first week!
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ALUMNI INTERVIEW: I Was a History Major, Now I am Senior Manager of Enterprise Support

Meet John Vatalaro ’13, Sr. Manager of Enterprise Support at Yext.

In one sentence, what does your job entail?

I oversee the technical support and training provided to some of Yext’s largest and most strategic enterprise customers and their franchisees.

What planned and unplanned events connected you to your industry and your first employer after Holy Cross? How did you learn/decide it was a good fit for you?

I found Yext through a one of my Holy Cross roommate’s cousins.  A little networking over drinks got me connected with her friend who worked at Yext.  After a few emails, I was on site for an interview and it was a perfect match right away.  It was the summer after graduation and I had only recently been exploring a possible career in tech, mostly focused around customer service, and this role was a really great fit at a small and exciting company.  Joining a ~200 person venture-funded start-up in NYC was certainly not what I was expecting after graduation, but I just couldn’t turn away from the people, the perks, the company’s mission, and the product.  After joining, I quickly realized it was a place I could learn, grow, and excel quickly with incredibly talented people (including some other HC alumni!) so it was a great environment for me.

What were you involved in when you were on campus?

Outside of classes, Men’s Varsity Swimming and my part-time job as a Kimball Captain took up most of my time but I was also involved in Student Athlete Advisory Committee, Varsity Club, HC Goes Unified, College Advisory Board on Alcohol, House Council, and Inter-House Council.

What was your major and how did it affect your career decisions?

I majored in history and minored in art history.  They originally drove me to want to pursue a career in the arts, but later I realized my love of history and art history was more just a passion for learning, understanding people, and recognizing patterns, regardless of the subject matter.  This allowed me to move into tech, where I had the opportunity to apply those skills to become a product and process expert.  As a result, I put myself in a spot to share that knowledge and empower others, whether customers or teammates, to succeed.  Since then, I’ve leaned heavily on my liberal arts education to help me understand varied aspects of our business simply because I understand how to analyze a situation, think through problems, and see the big picture.

What are one or two skills that you developed at Holy Cross that you use in your work?

How to work with others: Being on the swim team, working in the dining hall, living with new friends, and collaborating on schoolwork with others provided me plenty of opportunities to develop the invaluable social and communication skills that helped mold me into the person I am today. You can be the smartest person in the room, but if you can’t get along with others or speak up about your opinion you won’t get very far.

How to give a damn: Really dive into something you care about.  This will help you apply that same passion and drive towards your job/career.  In school,  maybe it’s a passion for competition, learning, helping others, solving problems, or being funny – whatever it is, find it!  When hiring for my teams, I’m always looking for someone who gives a damn about their work or their passions over someone who appears qualified on paper.

What advice do you have for students on campus today?

Take the classes and do the activities that you actually get enjoyment out of.  If there’s anything I’ve learned in school or in my career, it’s that you do your best work when you’re challenged by something you enjoy.  So find that class, find that extracurricular, and find a job that brings your joy.  The grades, success, the “right job”, and even money will fall into place if you focus on that.
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Meet CrusaderIntern Rosemary Weiss ’18

Meet Rosemary Weiss ’18 Development Intern at Hot Snakes Media

Tell us about where you are interning and the kind of work you are doing.

I worked on the research and development of a documentary series.

Give us an example of how you have applied your academic learnings to your internship?

I study Theatre at Holy Cross, and act and work on the technical side of production. I have learned that you have to work hard, be adaptable, and always keep in mind the end goal–the production.

What has surprised you about being an intern?

How immersed I am in the production of this TV series.

How did this experience influence or connect to your future career plans / goals?

I have always wanted to work creatively and in the entertainment industry–either writing, acting, or producing, theatre, TV, or film. This internship has put me in the center of it all and prepared me to go forward in my career.

Any internship advice to pass on to other Holy Cross students?

Give it your all, do not be afraid to share your ideas, and be ready to learn from the pros.
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Alumni Job Shadowing Experience in the Legal Department at Circle

Alexandra Curtin ’19 shadowed Noah Spaulding ’02 at Circle this summer. He works in their Legal Department as a Legal Director.

Describe your shadowing visit:

Within seconds upon arriving, Noah greeted me with some (very yummy) doughnuts. He introduced me to all of his very friendly coworkers and then we went into a conference room to discuss the plan for the day. He also told me more about Circle and his journey to the company. Next, I met Noah’s two attorneys, Saige and Christina, in their meeting about the legal contracts for Circle’s ambassador program in the U.K. While Noah was in his next meeting, Christina and I went over each provision in a draft of a Non-Disclosure Agreement. She then took me to lunch across the street because Noah’s meeting went on longer than expected. We finished going over the NDA after lunch. I also met and spoke with Cherie, Circle’s director of compliance in North America. I accompanied Cherie, Noah, and Saige to their meeting about forms for potential investors of Circle. Finally, Noah gave me a Circle t-shirt and took a picture with me!

Do your skills, interests and values align with your shadowing experience (industry of interest)?

Yes, I have always been interested in law so it was interesting to shadow a legal director. Additionally, my International Studies major and proficiency in French align with how Circle is an international company with numerous locations around the world.

Based on this experience are there any skills that you need to develop? If so, what are they and how do you plan to do so?

I definitely need to become more familiar with legal and financial terms. I plan to do so by taking more Economics classes and going to law school.

How has this experience changed or reinforced your career goals?

This experience has definitely reaffirmed my interest in going to law school and pursuing a career on an international level. It showed me the amazing various opportunities provided by a law degree. My experience at Circle also demonstrated how increasingly connected the world is becoming through technology.

Based on this experience what is next in your career plans?

I plan on talking to my advisor about the Pre-Law program and starting to study for the LSATs!

Would you recommend your shadowing visit to other students? Make sure to explain why or why not?

Yes, I would definitely recommend my shadowing visit at Circle to my classmates! Noah was a very welcoming and accommodating host. He and his colleagues took time out of their day to make sure that I learned a lot about the company and how it operates.
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Meet CrusaderIntern Sahra Hassan ’19

Meet Sahra Hassan ’19 Intern at Central West Justice Center.

Tell us about where you are interning and the kind of work you are doing.

My day to day work involves reviewing client documents and figuring out why the client’s benefits (either Food stamps, SSI, or EAEDC) have been reduced, cut or terminated. My long term projects include writing a commercial script about Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP or Food Stamps) to the purpose of educating the public about the importance of SNAP, who is eligible, and de- stigmatizing it. The other project involves writing a benefits booklet about TAFDC, EAEDC, and SNAP.

Give us an example of how you have applied your academic learnings to your internship?

I have utilized my writing skills a lot. I often write statements to clients and the Department of Transitional Assistance (administers food stamp program).

What has surprised you about being an intern?

I was surprised at how quickly I was able to follow and understand legal terms and documents.

How did this experience influence or connect to your future career plans / goals?

This internship made me realize that law school is not for me; however, I appreciate the experience I had at Central West. I now know that I am more passionate about humanitarianism than legal work.

Any internship advice to pass on to other Holy Cross students?

Do yourself a favor and do an internship that is fulfilling and makes a good experience and not one that just looks good on your resume.