How We Got Here - Career Stories

Networking with your professors, overcoming rejection and being clear about what you want with Gina Frontino, a 2016 Nutrition and Food Science graduate of the University of Vermont. 

Gina is a Food Safety and Quality Manager for Fresh Local Produce of Ohio. 

Her story is one of tenacity and she brings a really interesting perspective to her career journey. We talk about a lot of very tangible strategies including: 

How to talk about your extracurricular activities in an interview

How the extensions office at UVM (not a lot of people know about) helped Gina land an internship by connecting her with people in her field 

Networking with your professors during AND after school 

Overcoming interview rejection and how it led to another opportunity for Gina

Being clear about what you want and sharing your goals whenever possible - this led to Gina's financial advisor connecting her with her current job 

A day in the life of a Food Safety and Quality manager

and much more! 

Using an entry-level position to establish a new career path, informal mentorship, and interview tips with Nicole Boritz, a Product Lead at Google. 

Nicole is a 2007 graduate of the University of Vermont as a Studio Art Major with a double minor in Art History and Advertising. 

This interview is loaded with practical tips in just 23 short minutes: 

We discuss the most important thing about choosing a major and how to pick classes (hint: it's about doing what you enjoy so you learn how to show up and commit yourself to a goal).

How Nicole's first job allowed her to be independent and develop confidence and self-reliance. 

How she got into advertising at a top firm in New York City, ultimately landing a role at Google.

How Nicole prepared for her interviews at Google and how being able to articulate her previous experience in a way that directly translated to the role she was interviewing for helped her stand out. 

Informal mentorship - what it is, why it's important and how to find it! 

Recognizing when a job isn't a fit, applying in a less competitive market and navigating a tough economy with Jake Flood, a 2011 graduate of the University of Vermont who is currently a Civil Engineer. Jake started his career in Vermont but eventually relocated to Hartford, CT where he worked on the Laguardia Airport and is currently an Aviation Project Engineer. 

On this show, we talk about the following topics: 

How to recognize when a job isn't a fit, and what to do about it 

What you can do every single day to build better relationships with your co-workers

How applying in a less competitive market can make you stand out more and lead to bigger opportunities 

Why it's important to do good work and how it led to Jake's most recent job 

We also talk about navigating a tough economy and things you can do every day to build relationships with your co-workers and clients. 

Enjoy! 

Building Social Proof, Moving to a new city, Getting the President of UVM as a mentor with Sean Breen. Sean graduated from UVM just 2 or so years ago, but he has a lot to share on today's episode. 

We talk about how a double major in economics and environmental chemistry got into a sales career. 

We talk about what social proof is and why it matters. 

We deconstruct LinkedIn networking, and talk about handling high-stakes conversations. 

We talk about what it's like to move to a new city and how Sean handled being laid off 2 1/2 months into his first job after school! 

Sean shares the story of how the UVM president at the time became his mentor. 

This episode is a great one, I hope you enjoy! 

Practicing Active Listening, How to Get Promoted and How to Become a Mentor with Jason Parker, a 2011 graduate of the University of Vermont from Auburn, Maine. 

Jason was a business major with a concentration in marketing with a penchant for Ultimate Frisbee. 

We talk about a really unique and cool adventure Jason went on immediately after graduation and dive into really useful topics that include: 

How to best position yourself for a promotion or a role you really want 

We describe Active Listening and how it can be a gamechanger for your relationships and career 

We discuss the importance of finding a mentor but also mentoring others, and how you can specifically find others to mentor no matter what your skill level or experience. 

Enjoy! 

Embracing a career transition, taking time off from college, using self-awareness to step back then grow with Harrison Wolf, a 2014 graduate of the University of Vermont with a degree in computer science. Harrison was also Rally Cat for a few years while in school! 

Harrison spent 6 years working for Dealer.com, a large technology company servicing the automotive industry, before moving over to a start-up selling high-end bicycles, until the company no longer had funds to pay his salary. 

He is currently in a career transition, which the bulk of this episode discusses. We talk about his self-awareness and how it started while in college as he moved through different interests to finally land on what he wanted to do for the future. 

We specifically break down how to be more effective at networking, with tangible advice and discuss how critical it is to be honest with yourself and take a break or step away from a situation or opportunity when it is needed. 

If you're stuck, or in a career transition, give this one a listen! 

Landing a role that you don't know exists, using professor's advice and networking with Meaghan winter, a fairly recent graduate of the University of Vermont, who's already landed a role as a Product Manager at a well-known company based in Boston, Massachusetts. 

In this episode we talk about a few really great topics that will benefit both students and alumni: 

How one professor’s quick advice launched Meghan’s career

How Meghan landed a role for a position she didn’t know existed while she was in school

How networking helped her overcome a stalled application

How walking by faith, not by sight, works out

One simple activity to do that less than half her peers have done

Details matter

Advice for Introverted Students

Starting small and growing from there

Doing things that scare you