a.tong – First-Year Seminar FMA

Career

Attending the On Campus Recruitment Workshop, I went in not really having an idea of what it was, but came out of it knowing there is a great option for me in a few years from now. On campus Recruitment is a process of getting an internship, or even a job, during junior, or senior year (although some companies do recruit freshman and sophomore). The process is multi-stepped, involving an info session, applying, and interviews.

The first step of the process is attending a company’s info session. This involves meeting the representatives, or recruiters, and learning more about them. The presenter of the workshop told us to learn more about the company, and prepare questions to ask when meeting the representative.

After the info session, we have the option of requesting an interview on Starr search. The status after requesting will be pending until the company either accepts, declines, or “wait-lists” you. The presenter gave us some obvious interview tips, such as arriving early, and being confident, but not arrogant, but there was one thing that stood out. It was that at the interview, there was a greeter, which basically meant that not only were you tested during the interview, but also before it. The presenter also made it clear that an interview should NEVER be missed.

The presenter also went over tips for the resume, and cover letter. When it comes to cover letters (not all companies require a cover letter), she told us not to write a generic letter, and that we should sell ourselves by connecting our strengths to the position we are applying to. She also told us to be careful about what we put on the resume. Anything on the resume, we have to be prepared to talk about it. In addition, we should be careful about putting “excel proficient” on it. Overall, I felt I learned a lot from the workshop, and it is a great option to have on campus.

Student Life

A club I attended was Alpha Phi Omega. I went to their general interest meeting, and the leadership and service meeting as well. At the general interest meeting, I got to meet some of the members of the club. Everyone seemed really outgoing, friendly, and helpful. We were presented with the values of the club. which is leadership, friendship, and service. The first meeting gave me a general gist of the club. At the second meeting, we watched a Ted talk video on YouTube about lollipop moments. The video itself was inspiring because it was about how everyone is a leader at some point their life because they impacted someone for the better whether it was an action or something they said. However, most people do not consider themselves a leader because they do not know they have such an impact on others because no one tells others that they changed their life. But if everyone told someone who impacted their life, then people would know. And these are the lollipop moments that should define leadership- not the kind of leadership we define as where we place leadership on a high pedestal that only a select few can achieve. I found this to be inspiring because it is a different way of living life. The world would be a better place if everyone was told how, whether it was something they did or said, that made someone else’s life better. At the second part of the second meeting, we made paracords bracelet to show support for the troops. We watched a video on how to make it. It was really confusing at first, but they I got the hang of it afterwards. Overall, based on these meetings, I found the atmosphere to be friendly, inspiring, and a tight knitted group.

Academic

With my Baruch ID, I choose to visit the MOMA with a friend. Although this was not the first time I went to the MOMA, it was definitely the first time I saw art in a different light. Before this trip, I initially thought some of the art at the MOMA was ridiculous. I mean, how could a blank piece of canvas be art? After this trip, I learned that things have multiple perspectives. For example, how I see the art is different from how another person sees the art, and it might even be different from the artist’s intention. Each piece of art work has a purpose… even the blank canvas. Each shape’s position, each stroke, the types of stroke, the intended form of presentation, all have a purpose even if I do not know what it is. The most notable exhibit I walked into was Robert Rauschenberg’s Among Friends. One of the more memorable piece consisted of multiple art pieces of Rauschenberg’s friends placed together. The art piece was like a “collage”. This was memorable because of the story behind it. The story was that there was an art exhibit, and Rauschenberg’s friends were denied entry, except Rauschenberg was given entrance to display is work. So he takes his friend’s pieces of art and joins them together, and he submitted it to be displayed. Another piece that he had displayed was a row of blank canvases, and he also had a black canvas hanging. Others were more thought provocative in making me question what this piece is, the story behind it, and the reasons for the color and placement of objects. A couple were created in the 1960s, and displayed cold war objects, which really goes to show how events of a time period affect art. Some of these 1960s pieces contained a large image of John F. Kennedy, the space shuttle, and a dark cloud (of what I assume to be the mushroom cloud created by the atomic bomb), and Martin Luther King Jr. These images show some of the era’s most important events. this trip has taught me a new way to understand art. A lasting impression that I can take in the academic aspect is, perhaps, how to be more analytical, and try to understand from multiple perspectives.