SOC Alumni Mentoring Program
Current Students >> SOC Alumni Mentoring Program
SOC’s unique mentoring program is bridging the gap between the classroom and the professional world as students prepare for future careers in communication. In 2008, 84 upper-level and graduate students were paired for career advice with 84 SOC alumni who are thriving in their fields. Whether it is counseling mentees on their future career goals, sharing tips to improve resumes and portfolios or helping students land internships and job opportunities, professional mentors are an invaluable source of knowledge and experience for students. To become a mentor, contact Alex Salama at asalama@american.edu.
Read about mentor and mentee experiences here.
Read a mentee's blog here.
Want to learn from some great alumni? See where some of SOC's alumni mentors work here.
Meet the 2007 Alumni Mentors and Their Student Mentees:
Be an alumni mentor and work one-on-one with an SOC student. They did:
JIM BRADY BA '89, vp & exec. editor, washingtonpost.com; DESSON THOMSON BA '80, former film critic, The Washington Post; BETSY FISCHER MA '96, executive producer, NBC News Meet the Press; ALISYN CAMEROTA BA '88, anchor & correspondent, Fox News Channel; BILL REIHL BA '94, evp, strategy & planning, Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide.
Be a student mentee and join SOC's network of success. These '07 grads did:
ASHLEY BLEIMES mentored with Jim Brady; NICHOLE SCHWAB mentored with Desson Thomson; BRENDAN McGARRY mentored with Betsy Fischer; BRITTANY KEIL mentored with Alisyn Camerota; TINA MUSOKE mentored with Bill Reihl.
Want to know what past mentors and mentees are saying about SOC’s mentoring program?
Mentees
"[My mentor] was helpful to me because she was extremely honest--she pointed out my strengths and weaknesses and offered solutions for improvement."
"...the Alumni-Student Mentoring Program was one of the greatest experiences I had at American University."
"For the past several years, [my mentor] has been the greatest resource for me because she truly is an expert in the PR industry and has been through everything I am going through now."
"...the SOC mentoring program was an incredibly rewarding experience for me."
Denise Lew, Public Communication MA '08 and her mentor, alumnus William Torrey, MA '78, Office of Marketing and Program Placement for the U.S. International Broadcasting Bureau With the combination of a great mentor, my hard work, and a little bit of luck, I was offered the opportunity to work at one of my top choices in PR agencies this summer. - Denise Lew, Student Mentee
Mentors
"[Being a mentor is] a grounding experience that brings you back to AU in the best possible way: through the eyes of a student."
"Every year, I find the mentees are brighter, more capable and more experienced than I thought possible."
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