The future is now

Nine o’clock on a Saturday morning isn’t exactly prime time for student activities. But the first-year students, sophomores, and juniors who attended The Future is Now: Graduate School Preparation Conference and Resource Fair in October got a leg up on the future for their efforts (along with an excellent breakfast and lunch).

Sponsored by the Office of Multi-Cultural Student Affairs, with support from the Gilpatrick House and Career Services, the event was all about connecting those in-the-know with those who want to know.

Attendees were able to talk with Denison alumni who have won major awards, like a Fulbright, or have attended grad school. They were also able to speak with with current students who already have participated in important programs like McNair and study abroad. The idea was to help the younger students learn the inside scoop behind everything from law school and med school to Teach for America and AmeriCorps.

The conference also focused on, well, focus. The students filled out goal sheets and set appointments with Career Services and the Writing Center to help them articulate their interests and set priorities. Junior attendees prepared for application essays and got some tips about asking professors for letters of recommendation.

Ana Victoria Morales ’14 said she was glad she went to the conference. She’s interested in government, and her inward sigh of relief was apparent when she learned that she doesn’t “have to go to law school to work in political science”.

And Franklin Grace ’04 dished on the nitty-gritty of grad school: try five hour nights of sleep, he said, sometimes for weeks. But what’s important is doing what you love because “then it’s not a job.”