Category Archives: Alumni Event

An SAA Guide to Networking

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This past Wednesday, November 7th, SAA held their Student and Alumni Networking Night. As someone who took part in the event, I can tell you that it was a huge success. We had 25 Alumni participate and take time out of their busy week to come network and share their knowledge with students. Networking may seem a bit scary for some people, so I am here to help ease that intimidation.

The first step in conquering a networking night is to make sure to build up your resume. Participating in campus clubs, activities, or volunteering in your community are great ways to do so. If you’re looking for ideas, SAA is a great place to start and gain some experience. Next, you need to find a nice business casual outfit. However, the key is dress to impress but don’t break the bank while doing it! Many places such as JCPenney, Marshalls, and Walmart are all great college budget-friendly places to get an outfit for networking events. Finally, you want to perfect your elevator pitch. Practice a 60-second pitch about why you are a good candidate for your position of choice. Make sure to display confidence and be aware of which company the person you will be speaking to represents. Asking questions about the person’s experiences at their company is a great way of expressing genuine interest in them as well as the company they work for.

The key to succeeding at any networking event is just to relax and have a good time. Alumni are there because they want to help you. UMass has made an important impact on their lives and they want to give back to UMass students. Learning to network yourself is an important attribute, and is something that you will have to do throughout your professional career, so there’s no harm in starting early. Practice makes perfect and taking advantage of these opportunities is only helping you excel. If you are interested in more of the amazing opportunities SAA provides for the students of UMass, follow us on Social Media. We will keep you up to date on what’s going on in and around SAA! Alumni, are you interested in coming back to campus to share your professional success after UMass? Contact the SAA office and ask about participating in future events! We always love seeing Alumni come back to campus!

 

Sophia Coughlin ’20

As you begin to move on, consider “MOVING TO”!

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With graduation rapidly approaching, we here at SAA have been trying our best to help seniors out!

We know that graduation can be stressful with all of the choices that have to be made and deciding where you will live can be amount the worst. This is why we want to highlight a series of free presentations hosted by the UMass Alumni Association: The “Moving To” Series.

Each presentation features a certain area, such as Boston, D.C, Pioneer Valley, and New York, and provides valuable information about what it is like to live there. Presenters are experienced professionals who can offer tips and tricks about things such as budgeting for new expenses, creating a new social circle, and finding affordable housing.
The Moving to Boston, D.C. and Pioneer Valley presentations were extremely successful and we are so thankful to everyone who came! We hope that you walked away with both newly acquired knowledge and peace about moving to new location.

We are excited to announce that there is one more “Moving to” event… “Moving To NYC”! If you are looking to head to the Big Apple after graduation or just want to learn more about what is like to live there, register here. Then, come to Memorial Hall on Tuesday, April 9th from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.to meet Sarah Beth Hill ’10, founder of Perfect Strangers of NYC. The event is sure to be fun as well as informational.

Thank you to the Alumni Association for supporting the UMass students and providing great resources to aid us as move on to new adventures!

Jamie Downer ‘19

Making an Impact: Mass Impact 2017

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Early this past Saturday morning our SAA members paired up with UMass Alumni to participate in Mass Impact Day. Mass Impact day is an annual day of service where many UMass Registered Student Organizations (RSO’s) come together in order to help the surrounding community. This is our fourth consecutive year participating in this event and we have found that our members and alumni really enjoy working together to help this wonderful cause.

This year we helped clean up the Connecticut River. Our members picked up trash along the riverbed and in the river itself. Erin Lemay, the social media coordinator of SAA attended and found it to be a really fulfilling experience:

We found various items of trash in the river itself and we were able to fill up at least five truckloads of trash to be properly disposed of. Even in the short amount of time we spent there it was easy to see how our work made a huge difference.

Both the students and Alumni concluded that they were happy that they went. We have found that our members really enjoy doing community service together.

In the last year we created a philanthropy committee to provide our members with ample opportunities to do community service. We are proud to announce that they have a lot of fun events coming up such as I Love UMass Day and volunteer opportunities at Craig’s Doors, to name a few. Kasey McKenzie, the chairman of community service in the philanthropy committee is eager to get members involved in all that they do. She says,

Philanthropy is important because not only does it show appreciation for others, but also improves the situation of others through donations or charitable service.

We are really excited to get more involved in more community service outreach and see what else Philanthropy has in store for us this year!

Written By:

Hallie Menchin

Publications Coordinator

Student Alumni Association

 

UMass Alumni Welcome SAA to D.C.

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Guest blogger Lauren Richardson ’17 writes:

While SAA was visiting Washington D.C. last weekend for the CASE ASAP National Convention, we were lucky enough to meet up with area alumni for dinner at Clyde’s, a buzzing pub located in Chinatown. Our alumni group, including Klyde Siegfriedt ’80, David Garriepy ’04, Philip Bakerman ’07, and Susan McCarthy ’05 were kind enough to share their Friday evening with us, but also their suggestions for making the most of our UMass connection both now and when we graduate.

Time flew by at our table, as we discussed our UMass experiences, our favorite Amherst restaurants, “Deflategate,” and our plans for the future. Our alumni shared their career paths from graduation to present, and they advised us how to tackle the real world after UMass. They encouraged us to frequently ask questions of ourselves and others to ensure that we are on the right track to achieving our goals. As we plan our future classes, internships, and ultimately the career we will each seek after graduation, this advice will remain helpful and relevant.

Our student-alumni group poses for a photo at Clyde's restaurant.

Leading by example, they suggested taking advantage of the UMass Alumni Networks. These Networks span the entire country, providing opportunities for professional development, as well as provide an avenue for athletic, social, volunteer, and family engagement. The D.C. chapter even plays intramural sports on the National Mall lawn together! It was comforting to know that no matter where we move in the country, the nearby Alumni chapter can help us get settled in a new city and make connections both personally and professionally.

I found our dinner to be a very rewarding experience.  The alumni were amazing people (even though David was a Buffalo Bills fan and I am a staunch Patriots supporter). We bonded over our love for UMass and made plans to meet up at the Homecoming football game this fall. I’m grateful for this opportunity because the connections we formed at dinner were personal, not just professional. The alumni made achieving success in the real world seem a little less daunting, and a lot more possible. Go UMass!