Career Development Blog

October 7, 2024

Meet Alum Josh Ryor ’10, Assistant Secretary of Energy at Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs

Name: Josh Ryor

Class Year: 2010

Title: Assistant Secretary of Energy

Organization Name: Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs

1. In one sentence, what does your job entail?

I develop and execute strategic energy policy initiatives for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, with a focus on EV charging infrastructure and clean energy deployment, and provide guidance and support on energy policy and utility regulation matters to officials in the Healey-Driscoll Administration, including Governor’s Office officials and the leadership of the Commonwealth’s energy policy and utility regulation organizations.

2. 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?

This is a bit of a story. My first job out of Holy Cross was as a high school physics teacher at the Academy of the Holy Angels in Demarest, New Jersey. Frankly, I didn’t have a plan for what to do after college. I just knew that I wanted to do something where I’d have a positive impact. I considered applying for the GE finance leadership program for a bit or applying for other positions in finance but it just didn’t feel like the right fit for me, plus I hadn’t done any finance internships while at Holy Cross.

Second semester of my senior year two things happened. First, I started telling people that I was interested in getting into teaching, at least while I figured something else out. I’m not exactly sure who I was telling or why, but apparently that’s what I was doing because it seemed like every science major knew that that was my plan. I had been a physics tutor at Holy Cross for a couple of years and I enjoyed helping people succeed in their classes and to understand a subject I loved. One Friday evening at a party, a friend, Meg Emmich, asked if I was still looking for a teaching job. I said that I was and she connected me with the folks at Holy Angels the next week. The rest, as they say, is history.

Second, I took Energy Economics taught by Professor Matheson. I knew about halfway through the course that this was what I had been looking for: something that took the math and problem solving skills I had been learning in my physics and economics courses and applied it to tangible problems and projects. Since it was so late in the year when I realized I wanted to pursue energy issues more, I decided to give teaching a shot for a couple of years and to keep my interest in energy in the back of my mind. In my second year of teaching, I started looking at graduate programs in clean energy and energy policy. In 2011/2012 there were surprisingly few programs with a technical focus (now there are well-established programs at Yale, Michigan, Duke, MIT, etc.), so I decided to go the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, which had a program in Sustainable Energy Systems out of their School of Engineering that also had energy economics and policy courses as part of it’s curriculum. Ultimately, I took an unpaid internship in D.C. after grad school with the American Council on Renewable Energy focused on federal energy policy. After that, the policy stuff stuck.

3. What were you involved in when you were on campus?

I was an extended Fall Orientation leader, I volunteered at an orphanage and tutored at a school in Worcester through SPUD, I participated in a weekly student religious and support group (I forget the name), I participated in two Spring Break service trips, I was part of the Physics National Honor society, I was an physics tutoring, and I participated in basketball and soccer intramural. There may have been more, but that’s all I can remember now.

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

I was a Physics and Economics double major. The analytical and problem solving skills I developed in these disciplines led me to clean energy and climate policy. As I said above, I wanted to do something that had a positive impact. Physics and Economics also helped me further develop my love for solving complex problems and honed the skills needed to solve all types of complex problems, not just the problems put before me in the specific courses that I took. Once energy and climate issues were presented as a set of problems to solve in Professor Matheson’s course, it was obvious that this was how I could use the skills I had learned in my majors to have an impact in the world. Certainly, I can’t think of a more urgent, complex, and timely problem than climate change.

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

I’ve already mentioned problem solving in general, but I’d also add, and really can’t stress enough, that the liberal arts education Holy Cross provided has been instrumental in my success in the energy policy space. Energy policy requires a fundamental understanding of the physics, engineering, economics, finance, legal, and political aspects of various interrelated social, political, bureaucratic, and physical systems. Very rarely am I the expert on a given subject in the room; in fact, I am most frequently more like a student who is peppering others with questions to understand and dissect the key issues of a subject. Holy Cross is where I learned how to ask the right questions.

Also, I simply wouldn’t be in my current role if I didn’t have to take courses outside of my majors like a traditional college experience. I came into Holy Cross a lazy, unorganized writer with little patience for or skill in the finer points of writing (or really any of the points). Holy Cross helped me understand the importance of both clear and persuasive writing. While I didn’t hone my craft until much later, I simply wouldn’t have been able to succeed in graduate school or after without the foundation Holy Cross gave me.

6. What advice do you have for students on campus today?

I have three general pieces of advice:

1) Listen to this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTJ7AzBIJoI;

2) Work on understanding who you are, what you value, and being comfortable and confident in the answers to those questions. The rest tends to figure itself out when you’re honest and comfortable with yourself, but it’s not a perfect system and the process is never finished; and,

3) Be careful with advice. It’s just what worked (to varying degrees) for the person giving the advice. I appreciate the irony here.

In terms of advice for a career in energy policy, an ability and/or willingness to learn new things in different disciplines and a passion for addressing climate change will go a long way.

October 7, 2024

Meet Alumna Olivia Shamleffer ’22, Associate, Emerging Leaders Program at Fidelity Investments

Name: Olivia Shamleffer

Class Year: 2022.5 (December 2022)

Title: Associate, Emerging Leaders Program

Organization Name: Fidelity Investments

1. In one sentence, what does your job entail?

I’m part of an 18-month rotational program aimed at cross-unit experience building and leadership training, along with twenty other first-year associates who all have liberal arts degrees.

2. 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?

Handshake! I also networked with current associates and alums of the program who went to Holy Cross, as well as more senior HC alums at Fidelity. I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do after college, so the rotational aspect of the program really stood out to me – I’ll have on-the-desk experience in four different departments by the end of it. Learning about the historically strong connection between Holy Cross and Fidelity also especially made me want to work there

3. What were you involved in when you were on campus?

I was involved with Mock Trial all four years and was co-president for the last two. I also worked in the Religious Studies Department for three years!

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

International Studies. I wanted to major in something that increased my critical thinking skills and taught me how to write well, not geared toward specific future career paths. I went into interviews feeling extremely confident in my soft skills, even if I didn’t have a business or numbers background.

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

The ability to think creatively. You learn how to make unique connections quickly, which is a huge benefit in the workplace. Another skill is the emphasis on being curious and asking good questions – it’s the quickest way to seem like the most engaged person in the room in my opinion.

6. What advice do you have for students on campus today?

Don’t be intimated that you don’t come from a traditional business school background! Lean into the unique strengths gained from having a liberal arts education instead of focusing on trying to overcome perceived deficits in technical skills. And, of course, take advantage of the HC alumni network!

October 7, 2024

Meet Alum Dan McLaughlin ’93, Senior Writer, National Review

Name: Dan McLaughlin

Class Year: 1993

Title: Senior Writer

Organization Name: National Review

1. In one sentence, what does your job entail?

I write arguments, analyses, and commentary on matters of politics, law, history, and culture for the nation’s flagship conservative publication.

2. 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 went straight to law school after doing a semester in DC, meeting Clarence Thomas ’71, and seeing how many lawyers were in politics. I ended up staying in legal practice for 23 years, partly because of law school debts and starting a family, and partly because the work was interesting. I started writing on the internet in 2000, doing a weekly baseball column for a website run by Bill Simmons ’92, who had been the Crusader’s chief sports columnist. After my law office in the World Trade Center was destroyed on 9/11, I got back into political writing. Eventually, I wound up bringing my writing to National Review in 2016, and left the law to take a full-time position as a writer in 2020.

3. What were you involved in when you were on campus?

I was a weekly op-ed columnist for the Crusader (now the Spire), writing largely about politics. I also did work-study in Kimball, intramural softball, and competed against other schools in debate and quiz bowl.

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

History. It was good preparation for law school, and I’ve returned to a lot of historical writing in my work. I’ve written a good deal about Woodrow Wilson, whose intervention in the Russian Revolution was the subject of my senior thesis.

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

The discipline of a weekly column with a deadline, no assigned topic, and really nobody I answered to but myself if I didn’t write something on time was great preparation for what I do now. So was taking Constitutional Law and learning to read judicial opinions and think about how the Constitution works.

6. What advice do you have for students on campus today?

One, get to know a lot of people on campus. You’ll discover at your reunions how many cool and interesting people you wish you’d gotten to know better. And you never know where people will go: it was mutual friends putting me in touch with Bill Simmons that launched my writing career. I also met my wife at HC. Two, don’t be afraid to stand for something even if it’s out of fashion. People didn’t always agree with my columns in the Crusader, and they don’t always agree with them now, but I’ve always had an audience that appreciated where I stood and how I defended my positions.

September 10, 2024

Meet Alum Beau Lescott ’95, COO -Public Investing at Silver Point Capital

Name: Beau Lescott

Class Year: 1995

Title: COO, Public Investing

Organization Name: Silver Point Capital

1. In one sentence, what does your job entail?

I help out with all facets of running a large investment organization active in global credit markets, including strategy, talent management, and operations.

2. 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?

In 1995 the career services office was much less developed and pre-business did not exist. My process was self-directed and conducted primarily through the mail. My interest in banking and finance stemmed from independent reading about the field and my perception that the field would prepare me for a number of different paths. What is as true now as it was then is that HC alumni love to help. I did a number of informational interviews with alumni, and those really prepared me for the real thing. My first job was with an American outpost of a Japanese bank where the department head had also been a philosophy major. Ironically, philosophy is what got me my first job in finance. When you begin your career I believe that what matters most is whether you feel challenged and intellectually stimulated by the people around you. In that respect, I loved my work right away.

3. What were you involved in when you were on campus?

I was involved in various service activities like SPUD. I recall working for a displaced womens’ shelter that was particularly rewarding. I was also fascinated by computers and my roommate had a job in the computer lab. I have great memories of staying up all night and connecting to the very early internet through the college’s VAX computer system. I loved theater, but I came to it late. I wish I had gotten involved earlier.

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

I was a philosophy major and will go to the mat insisting that unless you are pursuing a specialized engineering path, major does not matter to career path. What matters is that you develop a love of learning, and you have the best chance of doing that by choosing a subject area that genuinely interests you. Success in any field is largely a function of continuous learning and keeping an open mind.

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

Two of my favorite classes were logic, taught by philosophy professor Karsten Stueber, and a philosophy of mind class that was offered jointly by the philosophy and psychology departments. These classes taught me the power of a multidisciplinary approach to problem solving. As an investor, there is nothing more important than to be able to evaluate a puzzle from multiple angles. This ability grows in relative importance the further you are in your career.

6. What advice do you have for students on campus today?

While in school, study what interests you. You will be a more interesting interviewee if you can teach your interviewer something new. After school, two things: first, work really, really hard and strive for excellence. Opportunity is the intersection of luck and preparedness, Second, invest in relationships at all stages. Lift people up when you can; there will come a time when you need people who can lift you up.

September 10, 2024

Meet Alum Jordan Forester ’08, Entrepreneur- Climate Tech Crusaders

Name: Jordan Forester

Class Year: 2008

Title: Entrepreneur (former Wall Street energy banker)

Organization Name: Climate Tech Crusaders

1. In one sentence, what does your job entail?

I meet and support ambitious climate tech entrepreneurs battling every day on the frontlines of the climate crisis.

2. 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?

The path that led me from economics major to Wall Street banker to climate tech entrepreneur was one full of zigs and zags, a mix of planned and unplanned events, persistence, serendipity, pivots, and lucky breaks from the universe. I graduated from HC in 2008 without a job during the Great Financial Crisis. It wasn’t until March of 2010 that I received my first full time job offer to work for BofA as an analyst in the healthcare lending group. During my time on the Hill, I was interested in Wall Street finance, although I honestly didn’t know the difference between a stock or a bond. I had been turned down by every firm that gave me an interview, from Fidelity to Citigroup to Morgan Stanley to Brown Brothers and more. Although relatively painful at the time, those No’s were blessings in disguise that helped me build thicker skin and forced me to learn how to cold email, put myself out there, network, and build meaningful relationships from scratch during perhaps one of the toughest economic climates and brutal job markets in 100 years. What I viewed then as struggle (which in hindsight, after seeing real poverty in my recent journey to help entrepreneurs in Africa, LatAm, SE Asia and India last year) would eventually build my character, adaptability and ability to persist. It helped me during an eventual startup journey that involved navigating uncertainty and rejection.

I remember feeling caught in a ridiculously frustrating Catch 22: One weakness preventing me from getting hired, I was told, was lack of experience. Come again? The only business experience on my resume is serving hors d’oeuvres at weddings for my father’s catering company! I had a binder chock full of Wall Street interview guides and possible questions that were carefully curated by HC career center staff. How did my classmate who chose to study Greek Mythology instead of economics secure that offer with Lehman Brothers?

I imagined HC alumni and Boston Celtics basketball legend Bob Cousy himself throwing me an easy alley-oop pass and me continuously bricking it.

What was I missing?

It didn’t help that I was attempting to break into finance during the Great Financial Recession in 2008: the worst job market in 100 years. But even if it had been a bull market, I neither knew how to tell my story nor translate the incredible privilege of a Holy Cross education into a job offer. I wanted to work in finance and was proud to have graduated, but felt I had missed the boat: stuck at the starting line and scared I’d never catch up.

After graduation, I spent six months cold emailing companies from my childhood home in Wakefield. I applied for hundreds of jobs online without an inside connection. Crickets. Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. In the fall of 2008, I caught a lucky break, and found a three-month internship at a Boston-based investment bank called America’s Growth Capital. About half-way through the internship, Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, and I was not hired full time. I did some back-office temp work for JPMorgan for nine months and then, again, was not hired. I made a list of every HC alumni working in finance, entered each into an excel spreadsheet (which I still use) and started writing from the heart, asking for help and advice.

My luck changed when I met HC alumni Ted Lynch, an MD in BofA’s Restaurant Group in Boston. One of our common bonds was that we were both HC alumni interested in finance. That first short first conversation changed my life’s trajectory. Eighteen months after graduation, thanks to Ted’s kindness and generosity, I was able to land my first real job as a credit analyst at BofA. I finally had realized the true power of the HC alumni network.

3. What were you involved in when you were on campus?

I participated in Big Brother Big Sister, played intramural basketball, and spent lots of time throwing the frisbee on Easy Street. I also spent lots of time in Dinand Library, Cool Beans, and Kimball. I suppose I could have done more networking, but am grateful for the incredible relationships I built and friendships I have to this day.

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

I chose Economics because I thought it was the closest major to learn about business (other than accounting). I honestly wasn’t sure what I really wanted to do after HC, but was curious and drawn to business and Wall Street as a means of drinking from a knowledge firehose and learning from ambitious businesspeople. I had no idea how to read financial statements but had heard that the intensity of the work and hard skills I could learn (such as financial modeling or credit analysis) could provide a foundation and options that could lead to other opportunities down the road (eg MBA, working in private equity, working at another company, etc.).

Majoring in economics gave me a shot to break into finance. Some of the fundamentals of economic theory have helped me better understand how choices are made with the backdrop of resource scarcity, and what drives prices (whether oil & gas prices, or the price of a stock, or debt security that a hedge fund is analyzing). It also helped with ice breakers with other HC alumni in finance.

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

The most important skills I developed were 1) the ability to ask better questions to quickly learn something new / foreign and 2) connecting dots and finding the common denominators between seemingly unrelated disciplines.

I’ve worked for a decade in finance across various Wall Street firms, from JPMorgan to BofA to Webster Bank. In each situation I was forced to learn a new team and industry (eg Oil & Gas, Healthcare, Private Equity, Restaurants). When I moved into startup building with Courial to decarbonize mobility and help gig workers live better lives, I was lucky to receive support from the HC community of faculty and students who helped scale the company. I had to again learn new sectors and subjects from scratch (tech startups, entrepreneurship, venture capital, startups, and how to create a company from 0 to 1). I had to learn new languages all over again. The Holy Cross liberal arts framework was at the heart of my ability to pivot and learn new languages quickly under pressure, and in some cases unlearn what I had learned (to quote our little green friend Yoda).

I believe that the skill of looking for connections across different fields in a world that is changing faster than ever (thanks to advances in AI and machine learning, among other factors) is more valuable than ever. I was lucky at Holy Cross to learn a variety of subjects beyond economics, such as language (French), philosophy, fundamentals of music, computer science, global change biology, Russian Tales of Desire, and Bali Gamelan Music (my favorite) – which helped me broaden my perspective and over time bond with more people than I ever could have imagined. It was my ability to speak a little French that helped me navigate the Francophone speaking African countries, Ivory Coast and Senegal, last year. It was my course on Bali music which helped me engage in memorable conversations with entrepreneurs in Southeast Asia. They were impressed that I even had heard of the country, let alone played an instrument!

Building climate tech startups that are attempting to decarbonize every sector of the economy which means we’ll have to rethink what we previously thought was true and collaborate with people across different fields (chemistry, biology, AI, machine learning, policy, finance, energy, and academia, and more) to remix old recipes, build diverse teams. We’ll have to use a beginner’s mind and the Jesuit principles of giving for others to cook up solutions and technologies to save our planet.

6. What advice do you have for students on campus today?

Don’t be afraid to jump into new situations. Stay open minded, meet and learn from as many different people as you can, try to enjoy dancing with uncertainty, and follow your curiosities (not what your peers are doing or what’s popular), no matter how weird you think your interests might be. That is the path to unlocking your own unique superpowers. By learning and doing the things that make you feel most alive, you’ll be able to go deeper, engage in more lively conversations, and have more energy to find your own truth. It took me some time to learn that the HC alumni network is like an extended, life-long family that’s always there for you. Even though it’s so hard with so much on your plate, taking the time to network and go beyond your comfort zone is worth the investment. You don’t need to dive deep into the ocean to find buried treasure. You can find hidden gems in a conversation with anyone you meet. I’m constantly amazed by what I’m learning from both alumni and students (and sometimes random people on the street) who always have a story to tell and or a gem to share (if you know how to ask the right questions to unlock the door).

One of my favorite quotes is from Joseph Campbell: As you go the way of life, you will see a great chasm. Jump. It is not as wide as you think. My advice is to just jump!

September 9, 2024

Meet Alumna Sarah Noonan ’09, Founder of SarNDipity Solutions

Name: Sarah Noonan

Class Year: 2009

Title: Founder

Organization Name: SarNDipity Solutions

1. In one sentence, what does your job entail?

I help business managers and owners prioritize and delegate administrative and operational tasks so they have more energy to focus on extending influence, building relationships and capturing new business.

2. 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?

Seeking a career in media, I interned for a maritime publisher and conference organizer during my summers as a Holy Cross student. After graduating, I was hired full-time. Working within a small team serving a global audience taught me to become self-reliant and learn where and whom to turn to for information and support. I’ve carried these lessons with me into subsequent roles and in now starting my own company.

3. What were you involved in when you were on campus?

I wrote for the campus newspaper, worked stage crew for Alternative College Theatre, and volunteered through Holy Cross Cares Day and Student Programs for Urban Development.

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

I completed a dual major in economics and sociology, framing my thinking about my individual role within the job market and community at the macrolevel. This combination also sparked my curiosity for the social sciences, inspiring me to pursue a graduate degree in Applied Quantitative Research and directly build upon my foundational learning at Holy Cross.

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

The research and writing abilities I fostered as a Holy Cross have helped me navigate career transitions, market upheaval and thinking through what I want from my career and life beyond work.

6. What advice do you have for students on campus today?

Take advantage of all the information you have available. From career sites like Glassdoor and Indeed, to online learning sites like EdX and Coursera, there are so many platforms to enrich the Holy Cross curriculum that didn’t exist at their scale today when I was a student. Use these as roapmaps to bridge gaps between your experience now and where you see yourself headed post-HC. Also, get to know Maura Sweeney in the Alumni Career Development Office – She’s a great resource you’ll have to guide you when you graduate!

August 19, 2024

Meet Alumna Elizabeth DeLuca ’21, Senior Associate Consultant at Hayden Consulting Group

Name: Elizabeth DeLuca

Class Year: 2021

Title: Senior Associate Consultant

Organization Name: Hayden Consulting Group

1. In one sentence, what does your job entail?

My role as an SAC is to support project teams with addressing our clients’ market access questions, typically by conducting research and translating it into digestible strategic findings.

2. What planned and unplanned events connected you to your industry and your first employer after Holy Cross?

I completed pre-med courses at Holy Cross with the end goal of attending medical school. After graduation, I worked in a hospital and realized that medical school was not what I wanted. I began exploring other career paths and was drawn to life sciences consulting as a way to leverage my healthcare interest and problem-solving skills in a new context. Through a Holy Cross alumni, I was introduced to Hayden Consulting Group and have been there for about 2 years now.

3. How did you learn/decide it was a good fit for you?

Hayden is a good fit for me because I feel excited about the work I do and going to work. I typically work on 2 projects at a time which last ~3 months each, so the work I am doing and the project teams I am working on are always changing. I feel like I am constantly learning because Hayden is so focused on professional development; they have taught me how to code, conduct primary market research, create XLS models, etc. I think what makes Hayden stand out is the company culture that they have created. It is a place where I am welcome to speak in company meetings and I have a relationship with the founders.

4. What were you involved in when you were on campus?

I was a member of Student Programs for Urban Development (SPUD) and Counseling Outreach Peer Educator (COPE). I was also a Chemistry lab TA and STEM+E tutor.

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

I was a Chemistry major at Holy Cross and on the pre-med track. Looking back, I think in college I did not have a clear idea of alternative career paths for someone who was interested in the sciences/healthcare outside of becoming a physician. In my current role at Hayden, I leverage the knowledge I gained at Holy Cross when conducting background research on pharmaceutical products, understanding a treatment landscape, crafting discussion guides for physicians, etc.

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

The most valuable skill I learned from Holy Cross is analytical problem-solving. I think that this way of thinking is something I gained from my chemistry major and supports my everyday work. Our goal at Hayden is to answer our clients’ complex questions, so being able to take a problem and break it down into parts that can be answered is critical.

7. What advice do you have for students on campus today?

Graduating is such a special time in your life when you will truly become independent. Take some time and really think about what it is that you want to do and try to find a piece of that in your first job. You can build from there! And utilize the Holy Cross network – people are very willing to help in my experience.

December 5, 2023

What’s All the Fuss About Networking?

by: Pamela Ahearn, Manager Employer Partnerships, Center for Career Development

You’ve heard the term networking but what does that really mean? Networking is the process of building and maintaining relationships with people in a job, organization or career field that interests you. Through conversations with networking contacts you can learn about their day-to-day responsibilities, the skills and knowledge required to succeed in a particular role or industry and current trends in the field. Networking conversations can help you gain clarity, expand your professional network, and enhance your social capital. Let’s face it, not everyone has professional connections in a variety of fields. Networking is a way to build these connections and when cultivated, can lead to additional connections, opportunities, and future job or internship leads.

The great news is that Holy Cross alumni are known for their desire to help Holy Cross students. Most likely, they received assistance from alumni back when they were students. We suggest you begin networking by logging into the HC Network, a platform containing thousands of alumni who have volunteered to answer questions about their industry, their career progression, as well as how they have articulated their liberal arts education to prospective employers. LinkedIn is also a great resource to identify people with whom you might want to connect and converse.

Do you feel uncomfortable contacting someone you don’t know to ask them questions about their career? This is completely understandable. No need to worry, there are resources available to help you gain confidence in initiating a networking conversation and tips on how to lead that conversation. Take a look at the How to Videos on CCD on Demand 1) How to Conduct an Informational Interview and 2) Connect with Alumni on LinkedIn.

Please remember, it’s very important when you schedule a meeting or phone/Zoom call with alumni that you show up for that conversation. It is unacceptable to “no show” for that meeting and it could lead to the alumni no longer being willing to assist students. Additionally, you should always send a follow up thank you email in which you refer to any particularly interesting or useful information that was discussed during the conversation. Create a spreadsheet to keep track of your conversations including the date of the meeting, helpful comments, the names of any referrals and the date that you sent your thank you email. Stay in touch. Through emails, short notes or occasional phone calls, your goal is to establish an on-going relationship. This is how you build your network and potentially even identify mentors.

December 1, 2023

Interviewing Michael O’Brien ‘23 On His O’Hare Fellowship at America Magazine

By: Ashwin Prabaharan, Peer Career Assistant
November 29th, 2023

On November 20th, Holy Cross had the opportunity to interview alum Michael O’Brien. Michael recently graduated in the spring of 2023, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in English. He served on the Spire as a writer and ultimately became Editor-in-Chief. He now serves as an O’Hare Fellow at America Magazine. Michael walked me through the application process, his research on the Fellowship, and his experience thus far at the Magazine.

While attending the Silent Retreat at the Joyce Contemplative Center, Michael remarked that he came upon a magazine placed for reading, which coincidentally was a copy of America Magazine. “At that point, I didn’t have a job lined up for post-grad life as I went into the second semester. I had just worked at NBC the summer before so I was considering returning there. But I remember picking up a copy of the magazine, figuring that it was Jesuit-based since it was at the JCC. But as I flipped through it, I was really inspired by the work the magazine covered.” As a fellow, Michael takes part in a daily morning prayer held in the office that seeks to represent marginalized people who do not have a voice. While NBC will always be an opportunity for corporate journalism to turn to, the mission of America Magazine spoke volumes to Michael’s personal ambition to give back to the Jesuit community while working within his professional goals.

When discussing the application process, he noted that the application for the Fellowship required 4 writing samples, in which he used two articles he had written for the Spire articles. He then used two articles he had written for the Staten Island Advance newspaper while an intern in their office. The application also asked for two recommendation letters and two rounds of interviews. Additionally, Michael was asked to pitch three potential story ideas that he could begin working on if he were selected for the position.

On a day-to-day basis, Michael discussed how he and other fellows are placed on three cohorts or working teams. Michael has been assigned to work with the Dispatch, Video, and Social Media groups. The Dispatch team works on hard news stories, covering editorials and current events that come into the Magazine’s coverage. The Video and Social Media teams work on creating and managing the Magazine’s external content, using social media accounts on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and other platforms. “It’s been giving me a very well-rounded approach to journalism especially today when the main focus of many journals and publications is on digital content. Writing is important and a crucial part of journalism but it is a multi-faceted field, and I’ve seen a great deal of it as I help produce video content for YouTube or for our podcast. It’s been giving me a great background and foundational experience before I venture into my next career.”

Entering the Fellowship program, Michael expected his work to mainly pertain to writing and following relevant news stories. “But it’s been great to dip into the many different pools of work we have here and branch out into things I may not have considered before. This type of work can give me that professional leg up during the application process for future positions in the field too.” Michael remarked that his favorite part of his work so far has been the unfettered scope of the Magazine’s work into every sector of society, not just limited to the Church but rather into many different fields that we would not consider to be in the purview of the Catholic world. “We just covered a story on a pop music video that was filmed in a church here in Brooklyn, while writing on the progress of sports in Catholic colleges around the country. The thing that surprised me the most about the fellowship has been the opportunity to work with so many things I’m passionate about and how they interact with the Church and the faith.”

Giving advice to Holy Cross students on similar career opportunities, Michael emphasized the Spire in developing his writing and journalistic skills. “When I wrote my first article for the paper in my freshman year, I never envisioned myself being the Editor-in-Chief, but it’s all about taking that first step with anything you’re passionate about. If you’re at Holy

Cross and you’re passionate about sports media, go start a podcast talking about the field. If you’re interested in politics, start a blog talking about it. Doing something is the first step in achieving your goal in the field of journalism.” Given that Holy Cross does not offer a journalism major, Michael notes that the Spire is something to practice writing for while working under the campus umbrella. As Chief, he was able to track the work of his writers and see their writing abilities improve as the year progressed. Michael also notes that Holy Cross would be the perfect place to begin a career in Catholic media where groups like Campus Ministry can help make those crucial connections in the industry.

We would like to thank Michael for speaking with us as he embarks on this wonderful opportunity with American Magazine. We are very confident his insights into the field of journalism will prove invaluable for Holy Cross students considering a career in it. Everyone here on Mt. St. James wishes Michael the very best in his new position and in his future professional endeavors!

November 28, 2023

Meet Alumna Ganiyat Karimu ’23, Medical Assistant at Boston Sports and Shoulder

Name: Ganiyat Karimu

Class Year: 2023

Organization Name: Boston Sports and Shoulder Center

Title: Medical Assistant

1. In one sentence, what does your job entail?

My role as a medical assistant is to assist our orthopedic providers in patient treatments such as steroid injections, brace fitting, extremity casting and much more.

2. 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 Boston Sports and Shoulder Center through an email listing on Holy Cross’s Health Professions Advisory email. I decided to sit in on their informational session to learn more about the role and quickly realized that this role would not only be a great opportunity to gain clinical experience , but it would also give me an opportunity to explore a new specialty in medicine. Furthermore I realized that what I wanted the most out of this experience was to learn as much as I can before beginning a professional path into nursing. After the detailed informational session and further interviews with BSSC I realized how supportive the practice is in the learning experience of their medical assistants and instantly knew that the role would be fitting for my desires in employment.

3. What were you involved in when you were on campus?

While I was a student on campus, I interned as an event coordinator with both the Black Student Union (BSU) and the Caribbean African Student Assembly (CASA). I also worked with the Office of Advancement as a student philanthropy ambassador.

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

I graduated with a major in Health Studies and a concentration in Africana Studies. I believe that this gave me an insight to public health and has constructed how I approach my role in the clinic. My background in public health gave me key insights to many disparities that we see in health care. This altered my perspective and respectively influenced me to switch from a career as an OBGYN to a career as a certified nurse midwife.

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

I believe that a skill that I developed during my undergraduate experience at College of the Holy Cross was public speaking. I endured many opportunities to develop these skills with many oral presentations and presenting at the annual academic conference. This allows for me to have confidence when speaking to patients and providers around the office.

6. What do you hope to pursue after this role?

I have recently been accepted into nursing school, so after this role I plan on enrolling into nursing school to achieve my RN licensure and continuing to obtain a specialized degree to become a certified nurse midwife.

7. What advice do you have for students on campus today?

Do not procrastinate! Take a hold of opportunities when they present themselves to you and have confidence that you are capable of performing in such opportunities.