The classroom is the place where students gain a majority of their academic experience at Boston College. The classroom, however, is just that - a classroom. So how are students to learn about what their intended career entails?
Luckily for BC undergraduates, The Council of Women for Boston College (CWBC) and the Student Advisory Board (SAB) have an answer, the "Take a Student to Work Day" program.
Looking to further their involvement in the undergraduate population of BC, the CWBC turned to the students for ideas.
The SAB, recognizing the limitations of the classroom, devised the concept of "take a student to work day." This program is designed to put students right into the heart of their intended careers. As a participant, an undergrad shadows a BC alumni for a day at one of Boston's many business hubs. Students visit in groups of four. This fosters a sense of intimacy between the alumni host and the students chosen to shadow them.
The program is a sort of "day in the life," said Alison Finck, CSOM '08. As chair of the SAB, Finck was a driving force behind the new initiative.
As a pilot program, Take a Student to Work Day only involves three companies, though if it is deemed effective, more will be added. BC boasts alumni like Linda Dunne, BC '84 at the State Street Corporation, Jenny Theiss, BC '06, at Goldman Sachs, and Nancy O'Donnell, BC '81, at Rackemann, Sawyer & Brewster.
So far, the Take a Student to Work Day program has made two ventures: one to State Street and the other to Goldman Sachs, each with four BC undergrads. The third trip, to take place on Feb. 13, will be to Rackemann, Sawyer & Brewster.
When asked about the benefits of "Take a student to work Day" Finck said, "The main idea was to give some real life experience; to find out what [students] are or aren't interested in. Where you start off professionally isn't where you're going to end up." She added that the program allows BC students to feel more comfortable being around BC graduates.
"It was definitely worthwhile, it's an experience you don't get in the classroom," said Sarah McCormack, CSOM '10. As a finance and marketing major, McCormack attended the Goldman Sachs session and was very pleased about her experience there.
"It was the day after the stock market had dropped and being on the trading and sales floor was intense," McCormack said of her time there. "This program allows you to see exactly how the job is."
McCormack said that she interacted with people in various jobs within the corporation.
"Six of the nine people I talked to were BC alumni," McCormack said.
McCormack expressed appreciation for the small group as well. "The best part was the group of four, we got to sit down and talk to people. It was a very personal experience," McCormack said.
With Take a Student to Work Day being a new program and still in the pilot stages, assessments must be made of the sessions. Both the undergraduate students and their hosts fill out evaluations based on their experience.
"Overall I would say [the sessions] were very successful," said Mary Lou DeLong, vice president of the CWBC and one of its founding members. DeLong said that the evaluations would be used to determine where to go with the program.
As some may know, BC was formerly an all-male institution, DeLong said. Up until recently, the male alumni outweighed their female counterparts. Yet as the ratios evened out, culminating in a 50-50 split at the 2006 commencement, University President Rev. William P. Leahy, S.J. wanted the female alums more involved in the BC community, she said.
And so the CWBC was formed in December 2002. "BC alum want to reach out to do anything for students," Finck said.
The CWBC is a volunteer group that demands the time, experience, and finances of female BC graduates.
The purpose of the CWBC, DeLong said, is "to increase the involvement, the engagement, and the leadership of female graduates."
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