Almost half of Fletcher's student body traveled to New York last week for the school's annual career fair.
Classes at the school were cancelled Thursday and Friday so students could attend information sessions and network with alumni in the city. The trip attracted 150 students -- compared with 110 last year -- and included panels on careers in finance, law, media, human rights, and other areas, as well as site visits and an evening reception.
Susan Ingleby, the director of Fletcher's Office of Career Services, said the trip was informational, "not a career fair with guaranteed jobs."
"As the majority of students at Fletcher use their time here to change careers," she explained. "The different panels offer first-hand information about a new field that students may be considering but don't know very much about," she said.
OCS Associate Director Tamara Golden said the trip tends to attract more first-year students, who arrive at Fletcher either undecided on or wanting to change their career paths. "Part of the information gathering is for them to hear first-hand from the panelists what the work is like, what the lifestyle is like, and the salary range," she said.
Most of the panelists were Fletcher alumni. "It's great fun to meet with the students most of who come from interesting backgrounds," said Edward Schumacher (F '72), who moderated a panel on careers in the media. He is now the chief executive and editorial director of Meximerica Media.
Students expressed mixed opinions on the success of the trip. Some said that while they found the trip informative, they were less sure that it was successful in helping students create valuable contacts with alumni.
First-year student Roberto Porzecanski was surprised by the panelists' honesty. "They tell you 'you're not gonna be the king of the world' just because you have a Fletcher degree," he said.
Ben Mazzotta, another first-year student, discovered differing views on the usefulness of a Fletcher degree. "It's useful to know whether a Fletcher degree is all you need," he said.
Second-year student Odil Ruzaliev said the panelists gave him a better understanding of how to search for a job. "Most of the time, you don't know the best approach to look for a job," he said.
But some of those same students found networking difficult. "It's easy to overestimate what a two-hour reception can do in terms of networking," Mazotta said.
Porzecanski agreed that the trip was more useful as a source of information than for making contacts.
But Golden said she has seen many cases when students make contact with panelists who eventually hire them or help them contact someone else within their organization.
"People have found internships, careers and even spouses on the career trip," she said.
Alumni also recalled instances of when they had helped students. "I've tried to introduce to students other people and help them get jobs," Meximerica's Shumacher said. "When I was at The
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