Assessment tool helps Clarkies explore career paths
Network. Network. Network.
It was the message stressed repeatedly during the Jan. 31 Sophomore Summit, where Clark sophomores explored career options, strengthened their resumes, learned about internship opportunities, and got advice on improving their LinkedIn profiles.
Students split into two groups to take the STRONG Interest Inventory, a career assessment tool that aligns their interests to potential career paths. The sessions were led by Melisa Alves, associate dean and director of career education and experiential learning in the Career Connections Center, and Midaly Carrasquillo Delgado, associate director of career education and experiential learning.
Students received step-by-step guidance on how to understand their results. Faith Andala ’28, who majors in political science and minors in marketing, said the assessment was a helpful tool as she figures out her career path.
“I have clarity from the STRONG report and through hearing people talk about their goals and how their goals have changed,” said Andala, who is investigating internships and considering the 4+1 Accelerated Master’s Degree Program. The most impactful information she received during the summit, she said, was figuring out how everything students do in classes and clubs translates to core competencies. “That is something that had not clicked,” she said. “I realized my classes and activities promote critical thinking and time management.”
While some students found that the STRONG assessment results closely aligned with their desired career paths, others had an epiphany. For example, the assessment gave chemistry and computer science major Dhruvi Moradiya ’28 an idea for a new career to explore. “My future career recommendation surprised me,” Moradiya said. “My top one was accountant, and I have never even thought about accounting, I’ve always been interested in STEM. So maybe I’ll try to look into that now.”
The event included an alumni panel, where Ashley Valois ’25, MPA ’26, spoke about transforming from a shy kid to a confident leader as the president of the Undergraduate Student Council.
“I grew a lot as a person in ways that I never expected I would have the opportunity to,” Valois said. “I put a lot of importance on networking and building support. It was very formative.”
Other speakers on the alumni panel offering advice and insights were:
- Corey Bernstein ’17, child-focused recruitment social worker, Commonwealth of Massachusetts
- Allegra Marra ’14, CDP ’15, director of corporate and volunteer engagement, Women’s Lunch Place
- David Quiroa ’17, community and government affairs manager, City of Worcester
- Kefiana Wairimũ Kabati ’17, third-grade ELA teacher, City of Holyoke
- Navy Vela ’26, animal care intern, EcoTarium
The day began with attendees getting a free headshot for their professional profiles, connecting with peers, and chatting with juniors and seniors who have completed internships. Sharing their internship experiences with the sophomores were:
- Sarah Al Mozani ’26, a psychology and sociology major who was a clinical research intern at Brown University
- Luna Pagan ’27, a biology and geography major who was an animal care intern at the EcoTarium
- Kate Placido ’26, a political science and Spanish major who interned at El Buen Samaritano
- Meridian Stiller ’26, M.S. ’27, a geography and international development major who was a farm intern at Sanctuary One and an archival research intern for the Strassler Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies Research
- Nehemias Torres Pacheco ’27, an interactive media and game design major who was a videographer/marketing assistant intern for New England Low Vision and Blindness
Asked about what they learned during their intern experiences that will be important down the road, Torres Pacheco and Pagan said they gained leadership, communication, and critical-thinking skills. “I had to be able to identify areas to help and become assertive,” Placido said.
Economics major Mikhail Kostin ’28, who is considering a managerial career, enjoyed a session on optimizing LinkedIn and building a network. “The session had great advice about following up and being meaningful,” he said. “Fostering a human-to-human interaction is important.” He followed this advice by reaching out to his former employers for conversation and coffee.
The session was insightful for biology major Giorgi Bakuradze ’28, too.
“Sometimes we might be overly focused on following people on LinkedIn, but you also have to use the relationships with people you already know,” Bakuradze said.
A session about applying for an internship highlighted a number of opportunities, as well as funding for internships, research, and projects. The session also highlighted the Academic Internship Program, where students can do an internship outside of Clark for academic credit.
