Every January, Ithaca College has an annual Networking Night in New York City. I went in 2002 when I was looking for full-time work with the hope that networking with other Ithaca College professionals in my chosen field would be helpful and productive. Ithaca is a great school, don't get me wrong. But it loves to tout that Ithaca alumni help other Ithaca alumni and that the Ithaca connection lasts forever. Well, I haven't seen it... and that's OK. Like I said before, everything I've accomplished, I've earned and done totally on my own. But the whole proud Ithaca alumni "connection" is bogus. Other institutions of higher learning tout their alumni connections and actually act upon it, but with Ithaca, it's a bunch of hot air.
I believe that at the age of 17 or 18 when we graduate High School, we are still much too young to go to college. High School, or some sort of organized education, should last until the age of 21, then the college education can begin. Why do I feel this way? Well, as a tour guide at Ithaca, there were so many prospective students who didn't know what they wanted to major in or what career path they were interested in. Part of it is the prospective student's fault. Does any course of study or career not interest a high school graduate at all? It doesn't mean that it will be their career in 5 or 10 years, but at least there should be a foundation of the beginning of a career. Heck, I've had 3-4 careers already in my 15 or so years of professional work. And part of it is the college's fault, for having "exploratory" programs and accepting students into the institution who have not declared a major. And then, of course, after 2 years, they choose to major in "communications." For people like me and others I've met in grad school, Communications is a very serious course of study. Unfortunately, for many others, it's a cop out major.
So why am I going to the Ithaca networking night? Well, I didn't have the most pleasant college experience, some of which was my fault, and some being that nature just didn't make me mature enough yet to handle the pressures of college and living away from home for the first time. So really, it's just a practice for me in phony networking, as that's a major part of my new job.
2 comments:
Just because the network didn't work for you isn't cause to say it isn't there. It is for many of us. I certainly benefited from it. I recently met an alumnus who is an exec for one of the big radio stations in NYC and he was describing how he had helped another alum get his first job in radio and that person in turn got the guy who is now, ironically, his boss, his first job. The last broadway show I saw, Wicked, had 5 Ithaca alumni in it. Talking to them afterwards they talked about what people in New York call the "Ithaca Mafia" and how IC alumni working on broadway all help each other get parts.
Just because it didn't happen for you doesn't mean it doesn't happen.
Tom.. I appreciate your comment and wish you and those in the "Ithaca Mafia" continued good luck and success.
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