Shana Retherford, Class of 2004, Research Assistant for Transportation Analysis, MacroSys Research and Technology

Career Services at Clark is all about connecting students to information and resources to help them with their career paths-and there's no better resource than Clark alumni. Each year, Clark plans special student-alumni career-networking events, linking job-hunting students with alumni who offer them guidance, encouragement and ideas to invigorate their job searches. As a student, Shana Retherford '04 says Clark alumni helped her get a grip on what she wanted to do "after Clark." As an alumna, Shana is excited to return the favor. Below she shares her experience at a recent Washington, D.C. student-alumni networking event.

As someone who was a Clark student not long ago, I remember how confused I was at times during my senior year. I was unsure of what I wanted to do after graduation, like many other students, and I started looking for some direction. While I was exploring career options and deciding where I should live after Clark, I turned to several Clark alumni in the Washington, D.C. area for advice. These alumni offered me tips on finding my first job and finding one in a desired area, as well as a general perspective of where their careers have led them.

As a student at Clark, I experienced a wonderful time full of personal growth. I had classes full of phenomenal, down-to-Earth students who were active in the community and with some very innovative research and class work. I think this contributed to my increasing drive to try my best. I double-majored in geography and international development and really enjoyed being involved with the Geography Department and its faculty. As a senior, I took a course on urban transportation, and that led me to my current career as a research assistant for transportation analysis at MacroSys Research and Technology, a consultant to the federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics. I work with data and research on all modes of transportation, so it's important for me to stay current on all transportation trends and research. I use the skills I learned in Clark's School of Geography every day on the job.

Because of the great advice I got from Clark alumni, I was able to find a job in the field and city that I wanted. Just as Clark alumni had helped me, I had the opportunity to participate in a student-alumni network reception and relate some of my experiences as a recent graduate in the hopes of helping soon-to-be Clark graduates.

The reception was a wonderful arena for Clark students to network with alumni. The alumni in attendance had pursued careers in divergent fields, and so there were a lot of different perspectives and experiences for students to hear. I think the students who attended really valued the opportunity to see how alumni have taken their Clark experience and education and applied it in so many different career fields. Hopefully, it enabled these students to envision in what directions their dreams might take them in the future.

For me, the networking reception was a lot of fun and an opportunity to see other alumni I know-it felt like I had "come home." I think Clarkies always have a special connection to one-another based on our unique Clark experiences, and it was great to rekindle that sentiment with current students and other alumni. It was also notable how successful each alumnus/a who attended was in their own right, as could also be said of the students, who had all been involved with fascinating internships and meaningful activities outside their class work. I think the students who attended the reception left with a sense of how their individual qualities and skills could be translated into achieving large postgraduation dreams, and I hope this experience will encourage these students to continue to aim high.