Career Services Event-Employer Panel

Yesterday, February 18, 2015, I had the opportunity to attend a workshop sponsored by Career Services Department. It was called Employer Panel: Nonprofit & Government Careers. Five guests sat on the panel and discussed various aspects of their individual careers. Those individuals were Holly Langley from the Department of Homeland Security, Arin Lopez from the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Arizona, David Parziale from the Alliance of Arizona Nonprofits, Holly Prasetio from the Maricopa County-Office of Public Defense Services, and Shannon Scheel from the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Each panelist discussed their education and background and how they had come to the careers they currently serve in. While I wish there would have been more time reserved to ask them questions and speak with them, I did appreciate everything they had to say and did find it quite informative. Most of them emphasized how important volunteer work is. As someone that has volunteered for various organizations for several years and have had excellent experiences and opportunities because of it, I completely agree and was that much more receptive to everything else they had to say. They discussed the ups and downs of their jobs, many of which I've thought about, but several I never had. And they gave some great tips on how to succeed in each of their respective fields.

I enjoyed the panel and felt enriched by it, if nothing else, these are fantastic contacts that I would feel comfortable reaching out to in the very near future. Throughout my career, I have learned and come to appreciate how key networking is. Should there be another similar panel, I would happily attend again.

A shot of the panel