Nia Gooden - Attending a career-related workshop or seminar: 2-3 points

 

    

                                           J.P. Morgan Chase Career Fair/Networking Event

    On November 14th, I had the pleasure of attending the J.P Morgan Chase career event for college students. When I first heard about this career event as an opportunity for students I jumped on it, especially because I had no previous experiences with career fairs that year. Attending this event taught me a lot about career fairs, professionalism, networking, and how to get the most out of professional events, and conducting a serious and productive conversation with a possible future employer. On my way to the program I saw one of my honors sisters so we decided to go to the event together. Upon our arrival to the event, we were given name tags to wear and ushered into the room where there were about 8 employees from various sectors of J.P. Morgan Chase’s company. During this sector of the event we were able to approach people as we wished, reading the banners located nearby behind them that specified which specific departmen they were in. First I spoke to a man who had gone through a specific program offered by J.P. Morgan Chase so that he was able to go straight from graduating his bachelor’s degree to his rotational internship where he got to spend an even period in different positions at Chase so as to find the specific career path he hoped to find. Eventually, I connected with a woman named Nia Malone with whom I not only shared a name but also a connection to the illustrious Spelman College. It was rewarding to see in real time how networking with Spelman Alumnae will make a big impact on my career.

I found the activity of networking very informative and new, I took note of what I felt prepared for and what parts of the networking process I would want to change next time. I learned that it may be helpful to have a printed resume just to have it looked over even if there are no potential employers in attendance. The networking room reminded me of one of the key takeaways from Dr. Hite’s FYE class. Dr. Hite emphasized to us the importance of learning how to tell your story. While in our class Dr. Hite referred to telling one’s personal narrative as an important skill for post-graduate education opportunities, I realized in the moment at the chase event that it also referred to the way in which you tell your story when networking or meeting people. I considered the impact it would have had if I had offered a short antidote about my experience with business when I was younger in addition to my Spelman intro. The idea of meeting a lot of new people who were not only older but also far more professionally experienced was intimidating at first but it expanded my understanding of where I am situated in my life currently. While I am a student and that is my full priority, I am also a future employee, owner, and graduate degree holder. Being able to perceive myself through that lens was certainly helpful. This event taught me a lot about the many careers that go into banking. I can apply the tips and lessons I learned at the networking section to not only the next career fair I attend but also to other professional settings such as job interviews and engagements at the President’s house.