Conference Highlights & Resources

The key term for this panel was definitely “grit”. Lauren Silvers kicked off the discussion by explaining that she did not have any personal or family connections to introduce her to the world of consulting and, later, global program management. Instead, she launched her new career outside academia by setting up informational interviews and eventually finding a mentor. Key takeaways from her talk were to remember when applying for jobs that “companies are looking for the following: evidence of passion, initiative, and resourcefulness.” Her advice is to avoid putting people on the defensive by “coming on too strong” about yourself and instead to talk about the impact of what you can create. Nervous about networking? Lauren recommends “seeing networking as exchange” – an exchange of stories and a new relationship built on reciprocity. She also recommends upskilling through Grow with Google certifications as well as LinkedIn Learning

Devin Ackles followed up with an account of his own amazing personal journey. After completing his degree at a community college, he went on to study anthropology and Russian. He volunteered as an EFL instructor and made his way to the Peace Corps in Kazakhstan. He later became an AmeriCorps volunteer working in urban schools in the Bronx. As his studies advanced, he applied for a Fulbright which took him to Ukraine where he eventually found work at a startup media company doing think-tank style analytical work. From there, he began his tenure at EY overseeing a team of researchers. More recently, he stepped into his new role as a Design Researcher for Field Form in New York. He, too, advocated for adding to your skillset through online courses like Coursera. Rather than followed a clearly defined life plan, Devin confirmed that he started out without a specific career goal in mind and no solid connections. He recommends thinking strategically about how to make the connections that you would like to have to reach specific goals. Above all, Devin emphasized the importance of resilience and following your passion. 

Mark Keller started out with a BA in European History and no specific career plans. His degree helped him to secure a position as a Research Analyst for the Americas Society/Council of the Americas. This led to a more senior position as a Researcher for Freedom House and then later as a Lead Analyst for the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). At this point in his career, he decided to supplement his education with an MSc in Latin American studies and to shore up his quantitative skills with coursework in economics and applied statistics. These latest additions helped him to advance to Assistant Vice President at EMEA Country Risk. Similar to Lauren and Devin, Mark’s path is a journey built not only on persistence, but on incremental, strategic career moves.

Laura Briggs started out as a seventh grade teacher who taught herself a variety of new skills to become a full-time freelancer and, eventually, a solopreneur. She recommends asking yourself: “what can I pull from my academic life and make it a win?” In her own life, she chose to draw on her research skills and ability to break down complex ideas for others. The most accessible venues for this as a freelancer are writing website copy, ad copy, and copywriting in the legal industry. When asked how she first established a client base, she says that she started out as a freelancer on Upwork where she made connections that eventually became clients. She recommends Udemy for learning more about running a business as well as content writing. Beyond this, she also recommends cold pitching companies on LinkedIn. Although this came with many rejections at first, Laura was able to find work with companies that were in need of a content writer for marketing materials, internal/external emails, and content on their website. Her advice is to write samples for different types of writing that can be repurposed as much as possible. These will be pieces that showcase skills in blog writing, emails, and web copy. When deciding which companies to cold contact, she recommends limiting your search to companies that have at least $1 million to $5 million in revenue.

Finally, we heard from Risha Lee whose fascinating journey took her from a PhD in art history to a research fellowship in Singapore and then to the role of Assistant Curator of South and Southeastern Asian art at the Minneapolis Institute of the Arts. A few years later, this led to her advancement as Curator of Exhibitions at the Rubin Museum of Art. In the end, however, she decided to explore careers beyond academia and museums to see how else her background in aesthetics and design could be applied. She set up informational interviews and drew on her network before finding a position as a research manager at American Express where she has since advanced to Senior UX Researcher. She explains that this role depends on an approach to design that serves the needs of the users. She works alongside designers to create an experience that is easy, simple, and enjoyable. “The first job is always the hardest,” she explains, particularly for academics who may very well be told by their advisors that they are “not equipped” to extend outside academia. Her advice is to start out by looking for contract positions which often are not announced on the company website. Much like Laura, she also advises “cold calling” people on LinkedIn who have jobs or work for companies that are of interest to you. Finally, she observed that you never know when inspiration will strike and put your training and life experience into a new context.