c.kowalczuk – Freshman Seminar Fall 17 CFB

Career – SCDC Workshop

I went to a Starr Career Development Center workshop that covered the professional social network LinkedIn. It was basically an introduction to the platform and discussed creating a profile and how to use it. I’m somewhat familiar with LinkedIn and have seen different profiles, but I never really explored it in the past because it didn’t seem to be something that could be of real use to me as a teenage high school student. However, now that I’m in college and thinking more and more about my future prospects, it is much more relevant.

I learned about the myriad of benefits that LinkedIn provides, such as the ability to make business connections, research businesses, and being exposed to recruiters and opportunities. In today’s world, professionals are expected to have LinkedIn profiles and the lack of one might raise eyebrows and make potential employers skeptical of you. LinkedIn is free to use and it allows you to share your qualifications and capabilities such as higher education, employment history, and skills. Having a good profile can only increase your chances of landing a job, and so it is in everyone’s best interest to be on LinkedIn. I am happy to have had the chance to attend this workshop and I will certainly create a profile before completing my education.

Academic – MOMA

I chose to visit the Museum of Modern Art in order to satisfy the academic requirement. I’d been to other famous museums in New York City like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the American Museum of Natural History multiple times in recent years, but never to MOMA, and I’d been meaning to go for quite some time. I was able to kill two birds with one stone with this assignment.

Normally when I think of art works, ancient Greek sculptures and Renaissance art are the first things that pop into my head. Modern art is the furthest thing from traditional art. It’s certainly not for everybody. Certain works are indeed worthy of admiration, but many are just head-scratchingly ridiculous to the point that you start to question life. I can’t say that I’m qualified to speak about visual art and everyone has different tastes, but I struggle to make sense of some pieces.

That being said, it was still an overall great experience. I got there shortly after the opening time and there weren’t many visitors yet. I was able to see a lot and my journey throughout the museum was a calm escape in the midst of a busy semester.

Student Life – BAS

I attended the Baruch Accounting Society’s first General Interest Meeting. As of now, I don’t intend to major in accounting (finance), but many of my friends do and so I decided to tag along. Given that accounting happens to be a related field, I figured that it couldn’t hurt. Besides, there’d probably be food there at the very least. The members began their presentation with a description of the club and its history. Right off the bat, I was surprised to hear that the Society has been around since 1968, making it one of Baruch’s oldest clubs. That kind of longevity is very impressive seeing as how it is the result of the efforts of many generations of Baruch students and because it is a testament to the club’s value. They then discussed membership requirements, which include attending a certain amount of meetings and events, and volunteering a few times from what I recall. That seems to be the standard for many of Baruch’s clubs. A membership fee, however, was not one of them, which was relieving to hear. The members went on to discuss in further detail the opportunities that membership provides. For myself, their most attractive talking point was their massive amount of events, ranging from meetings to informational sessions, many of which involve speakers, recruiters, and other professionals coming in to interact with students. Such individuals certainly have a lot of knowledge and insight from their experiences in their respective fields that they can offer us. The Society also organizes a Semi-Annual Networking Luncheon for the purpose of networking and forging relationships with other students and professionals alike. I honestly came for the food, but that was before I knew a single tidbit about the Accounting Society. I left very impressed and satisfied for having been there. I am now strongly considering joining.