Over the past year, I’ve been working with a team of Digital Media and Journalism students on a special project. It’s called Ask Our Alumni, and its goal is to introduce students to one of Laurier’s most valuable resources—our more than 100,000 alumni.
The idea came from my time as a magazine writer and editor, where I learned how popular ask-the-experts columns can be and my desire to create a meaningful experiential learning opportunity for my students. Here’s how it worked: across all campuses, students submitted questions on a range of topics, from how to make the most of their time at Laurier to what happens after they graduate. Alumni were matched with questions that spoke to their expertise and interviewed by three of my Digital Media and Journalism students (Meghan Gauvin, Miles Smith and Yan Yu), who then wrote the resulting stories.
The project was made possible by a $5,000 grant from Laurier’s Special Initiatives Fund, which is made available from unrestricted annual giving donations, all of which was used to pay my student writers.
I’m really happy with how the project turned out. As you’ll see from the links below, we were able to cover a lot of ground in terms of the types of questions students asked and in the range of alumni from whom we were able to seek advice. Each piece is is partly an answer to the question asked and partly a profile of the alumnus or alumna, all of whom had great stories to share. I’m proud of the work my students did and thankful to my colleagues at Laurier Alumni, particularly Beth Noble, Brantford’s alumni officer, for all of their help and support.
Here’s a list of all the installments:
How can I turn my passion into a career when it isn’t the focus of my degree?
What’s it like to go back to school as a mature student?
How did you translate your experience at Laurier into a job?
How can I make my job application stand out?
What happens if I can’t land my dream job right after graduation?
How did your experience in student government help you after graduation?
What happens if I decide I don’t want to work in the field I’ve been studying?
How do I build a brand for myself and stand out in my field?
How can I stop eating out and start cooking more at home?
When I look back at my time as a student, what will be most important?
How can students learn to find a healthy work-life balance?
What advice do you have for young entrepreneurs trying to make a name for themselves?
How can students learn to find a healthy work-life balance?
What tips do you have on starting your own business?
What’s the most important financial advice for new graduates?
What’s your advice for looking for work internationally after graduation?