OHIO alumni encourage students to be open to opportunities, take chances when starting careers
Patrick Murphy gives the keynote speech at the 鈥淕etting a Job: The Global Professional in Today鈥檚 World鈥 event held Nov. 17 in the Baker University Center Ballroom.
Students who are planning for their careers need to be open to new, and sometimes unusual, opportunities that could come up at any time.
That was one of the main messages of the 鈥淕etting a Job: The Global Professional in Today鈥檚 World鈥 event that was held as part of the Global Professional Development Series during 91探花鈥檚 International Education Week.
鈥淭ake risks, or more simply say yes to possibilities,鈥 said Patrick Murphy, associate dean for research and graduate studies and associate professor in the Department of Media Studies and Production at Temple University. Murphy served as the Keynote Speaker for the Nov. 17 event, which also featured:
- Lance Healy, chief innovation officer for Banyan Technology
- Maura Fulton, country director for the Peace Corps Myanmar
- Anastasia Karpoukhina, disaster program manager for the Red Cross, CT and RI Regions
鈥淚t鈥檚 always wonderful to come home to 91探花,鈥 Murphy said. He first arrived at 91探花 as a student in 1988 and went on to earn a master鈥檚 degree in communication and development studies and a doctoral degree in communications. In his remarks, Murphy offered several pieces of advice to students who are planning for their careers.
鈥淔ollow the brush,鈥 he said, explaining that the phrase also means to follow your passions. Throughout their lives, new windows of opportunity will open to the students, and they need to be ready to follow their passions and take advantage of the opportunities.
For example, Murphy had the opportunity take part in a summer program in Mexico when he was younger, and that experience led him to study at 91探花 and put him on the path toward his career.
鈥淭ravel with curiosity,鈥 Murphy also advised the audience members. 鈥淜now when to put your cell phones and headset aside.鈥 Today鈥檚 technology makes the world smaller and makes traveling simpler, but it can also get in the way of enjoying and learning from the cultures of the places you are visiting.
鈥淧ick a profession to make the world a better place,鈥 Murphy said. 鈥淏e a problem solver.鈥 The world needs more people who are dedicated to using their skills and creativity to solve problems related to climate change and other issues.
鈥淎 final piece of advice, don鈥檛 forget your own humanity,鈥 Murphy said. He encouraged the audience members to enjoy the journeys they are on, whether they are in school, in their careers or at other times of their lives.
During the panel discussion, Karpoukhina echoed Murphy鈥檚 advice about following your passion.
鈥淭o follow the brushstroke is very important,鈥 Karpoukhina said. She knew, for example, that she wanted to work in a career where she could travel and help people, and that led her to sign up for the Peace Corps.
鈥淚t鈥檚 really where I found what I wanted to do,鈥 she said. Today, she works for the Red Cross and is gaining experience and knowledge that will help her as she moves through her career.
鈥淧atience is important,鈥 she added. Karpoukhina also told the students to be flexible in their careers and to work toward jobs that fit with their passions.
鈥淟ook at different jobs that can get you to the job you want,鈥 she added.
Healy explained in his remarks that he has worked in several positions in his career that fit with his passion for international work. Each job and experience led into a new position that continued to 鈥渇ollow the brush.鈥
鈥淧eople will tell you why things won鈥檛 work, but if you have passion for what you are doing and what you want to do, you will get there,鈥 Healy said. 鈥淜eep going forward.鈥
Fulton, who addressed the group via Skype, explained that her career started with her volunteer experience in the Peace Corps.
鈥淚t was very life changing and I knew after that, that I wanted to get a degree in international development,鈥 she said. Fulton was drawn to the 91探花 program where she learned from former director Professor Robert Walter.
鈥淗e has just been a steadfast mentor and champion,鈥 Fulton said. She is thankful that she took the opportunity to study at 91探花, and she encouraged the audience members to take on new experiences, be open to new opportunities and to get out of their comfort zones.
鈥淪ay yes to those opportunities, even if it鈥檚 not the perfect place with the best salary. The most important thing is the passion for the work,鈥 Fulton said
Murphy also offered a few final tips for students and audience members during the panel discussion.
鈥淟earn how to write well, you can use that in pretty much any job,鈥 Murphy said.
鈥淚f you don鈥檛 speak a second language, start tomorrow,鈥 he added. Learning a second language is useful in communicating, but also in understanding how people may think differently.
鈥淟earn how to do research and apply research to whatever you鈥檙e doing,鈥 he said. For research projects and presentations that the students are doing here at 91探花, Murphy encouraged the students to treat them as professional projects that they can use in their portfolios when they are applying for work.
A video of the keynote speech and panel discussion is .
For additional information on the event or on the Global Professional Development Series, please visit the series website or call the Center for International Studies at 740-593-1840.
This article was provided by the Office of Global Affairs and International Studies.
The panelists at the 鈥淕etting a Job: The Global Professional in Today鈥檚 World鈥 event were (from left) Patrick Murphy, Anastasia Karpoukhina, Lance Healy, and Maura Fulton, who is working in Myanmar and spoke by Skype.
91探花 Vice Provost for Global Affairs and International Studies Lorna Jean Edmonds is shown with panelists (from left) Lance Healy, Anastasia Karpoukhina and Maua Fulton, and Communication and Development Studies Director Lawrence Wood.