Harpur prepares graduating students for real-world experiences
Many decide to look outside their comfort zones
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Jordan Musante, a graduating senior, switched her major six times while at Binghamton University.
“I was neuroscience for a while, and I really liked that it was a combination of hard science and humanities,” Musante said. “But after doing it for a year, I realized that it wasn’t the right balance for me.”
Musante exemplifies a thread that unites Harpur College students: exploration.
Binghamton University’s home to more than 10,000 liberal arts students, Harpur College prides itself on its breadth. From cinema to actuarial studies, Harpur College boasts a variety of programs that allow for interdisciplinary opportunities.
Because many students enter Harpur College without a major, students are encouraged to grow outside of their comfort zones.
That’s what happened to Musante, who moved through neuroscience, psychology, human development, business and biology before finding a topic that stuck.
“I took Intro to Human Epidemiology and I absolutely fell in love with it,” she said.
Musante decided to major in biological anthropology in order to pursue a career in epidemiology, a branch of medicine that studies statistical analysis of disease risk, incidence and control, as well as other health factors.
She found her path to graduate school through the Anthropology Department.
“The Anthropology Department held a panel on public health and they talked about all of the different fields that you can go into, and all of the reasons you would want to go into public health,” Musante said.
She will attend Boston University in the fall to pursue a master’s of public health degree in epidemiology and biostatistics, with concentrations in maternal and child health and infectious disease.
While applying to graduate schools, Musante found help from Alexis Avery at the Hinman Success Center.
Avery, who works for the Fleishman Center for Career and Professional Development, is Hinman College’s career consultant-in-residence.
“She’s helped me with résumés and cover letters,” Musante said. “She even helps when I’m like ‘Lexi, I don’t know what to do with my life! What do I do?’”
Avery’s main office is in the Hinman Success Center, where you can find her having meetings with students and coordinating the Johnson City mentorship program, a two-credit internship program that pairs University students one-on-one with a middle school student.
“I’m impressed every day with Binghamton’s students and what opportunities they manage to fit into their busy schedules,” Avery said. “I’ve had the most amazing students send me emails and thank me for my help, saying that because of working with me they were able to land their dream job or internship.”
For Avery, working with students on their career plans is fulfilling. However, advising has also allowed her to step back and take a look at her own life.
“Students also push me to think about my career, and advocate for myself, which is something I talk with them about quite a bit,” she said. “It’s important to always grow and develop, especially in my role, so students definitely inspire me to want to learn more and push myself to be innovative.”
From the Fleishman Center to Harpur Academic Advising, staff members at Binghamton University cherish their community.
Jill Seymour, who has advised students for 35 years, has stayed with Harpur College for the people.
“The reason that I love this work so much is students,” Seymour said. “I love that I have this enormous extended family of students.”
From walk-in appointments to mentoring students, Seymour leaves a lasting impression on the students she works with.
“I get invited to weddings and baby showers,” Seymour said. “They let me know when they’ve been promoted or gotten into graduate school. They even reach out when they have opportunities to help current students, and they’re always ready to help when I ask.”
Another Harpur advisor, Celeste Lee, focuses on international students and their needs.
“We help them select courses, explore majors and develop a degree plan that enables them to discover and meet their educational and personal goals,” Lee said.
Lee works with international students because she knows they can experience academic and cultural adjustment issues, and her job is to assist their transition.
“They come with different difficulties, such as language barriers or cultural differences,” Lee said. “We offer advice based on their individual situations and provide them with resources. Maybe get them in touch with tutoring, make sure they get proper class placement, find out what resources can help them understand more about the culture here.”
The most common challenge that students encounter is finding a job. Lee tries to help students by letting them understand that their major doesn’t necessarily determine their career path.
“They think to get a high-paying job they have to be a certain major,” Lee said. “I help them look at their degree as more than just a major; to look at what skills they are building, what areas they have foundational knowledge in, and at what extracurricular activities they can do to help get into the field they want.”
Making connections
Harpur College encourages every person to get real-world experience in whatever field they want to pursue.
Wendy Neuberger is the director of Harpur Edge, a campus office that provides students with resources that help prepare them for graduate school and careers. Through programs such as Harpur Edge Distance Mentoring, the Physician Mentor Program and the Liberal Arts to Careers Externship (LACE), Neuberger stressed the benefits of connecting with past Binghamton University students.
“Alumni are great resources for students on a variety of topics,” Neuberger said. “They can answer general and specific career questions, and offer advice and personal perspectives. Harpur alumni can address student concerns about how to articulate the value of a liberal arts degree to prospective employers. One important fact that many students are surprised to learn when speaking with alumni is that one’s major is not as important as skills and experiences acquired outside the classroom. Including alumni in a student’s professional network can lead to introductions to other professionals and possible employment opportunities.”
Neuberger believes that seeking experience before searching for a full-time career position is beneficial.
“Every interaction adds to a student’s understanding of what they want (or do not want) from a career. Externships have led to internship offers. Internship experiences have led to job offers,” she said.
Mike Strack, a graduating senior and political science major, has found some of his most useful skills have come from doing work outside of the classroom.
Strack, who transferred into Harpur College for his sophomore year, left his previous college as an engineering major. At Harpur, Strack realized that his career possibilities were endless.
“I’ve gotten more opportunities than ever before,” Strack said. “In college you’re with a lot of people like yourself; same age, similar ideas, so if I want to do something I just have to look around to make it possible.”
Since his arrival, Strack has become a resident assistant (RA), the president of BTV and a member of several other on-campus committees. Though Strack is still exploring his options for after graduation, he believes that Harpur College has prepared him to do just about anything.
“I never would’ve expected to be an RA or be the president of a club,” he said. “But Binghamton University really allowed me to reach my full potential.”
Into the work force
Jessica Weiner ’16 also found opportunities outside the classroom. These led to her current job as a math teacher in New York City.
Weiner majored in psychology with a minor in education during her time at Binghamton, and said she credited the University with the life skills she learned along the way.
“Binghamton University taught me perseverance, self-esteem and to believe in myself,” she said. “I joined the Phi Sigma Sigma sorority during my sophomore year and it taught me leadership and communication skills, as well as patience. Binghamton taught me how to balance work and downtime throughout my four years there.”
Michael Polvere, a graduating senior economics major, is starting his career this June at a bond-rating agency in New York City.
“It’s a bittersweet feeling because I love being in school with my best friends,” Polvere said. “It’s nerve-racking having to leave and go to be a real person.”
Polvere entered Harpur College without a major, but there was one class that helped him find his niche.
“I had Solomon Polachek for Economics of Labor, and he helped me realize that economics was the field that I wanted to keep pursuing,” he said.
Polvere continued with economics, taking classes and interning over the summer. His internship experience is what later allowed him to line up a job.
“I got the job through an internship from the previous summer,” he said. “I reached out to them as I was sending out applications to follow up and see if they had any openings.”
Though Polvere eventually wants to get a business degree, he found this opportunity to be perfect for the moment.
“A lot of times, business schools want to see experience before you apply,” he said. “More importantly, I wanted to find a job that would help pay for my education.”
While Polvere is already feeling nostalgic about his time at Harpur College, he’s excited for what lies ahead.
“Enjoy your time while it lasts because you’ll only be an undergrad once,” he said. “But look forward to the exciting experiences ahead.”