Find and Recruit Alumni Speakers Using UCSF Connect

As the official networking platform for the UCSF community, UCSF Connect helps students obtain support from alums as they explore different career paths and build their professional networks! This support can take many different forms, from informational interviews to connecting with potential mentors. The following interview with UCSF student pharmacist Adriana Gardner illustrates how effective UCSF Connect can be for finding and recruiting alumni speakers for an event.

"I am thankful for UCSF Connect as it allowed us to connect with alumni who were happy to help!"

Adriana Gardner, Class of 2022 PharmD Candidate

UCSF School of Pharmacy

 

Office of Career and Professional Development (OCPD): What motivated you to join UCSF Connect?

Adriana Gardner (AG): I was motivated to join UCSF Connect to connect with alumni around the world to find speakers for an event I organized. I was pleasantly surprised with how easy it was to refine my search to alumni based on degree and used the map to find individuals based on their current location. Additionally, it was useful that alumni had the option to select that they are "Willing to help," which made it easy to identify individuals who are eager to work with students.

 

OCPD: As a member of the UCSF chapter of the American Pharmacists Association-Academy of Student Pharmacists (APhA-ASP), you recently hosted a Global Pharmacy Night. Tell us about the event, and how you used UCSF Connect to help you with it?

AG: APhA-ASP hosted Global Pharmacy Night, which was an event where we invited UCSF PharmD alumni who work abroad to speak about pharmacy practice in their respective countries. UCSF Connect was an incredibly useful resource that allowed us to connect with three different PharmD alumni that now work in Japan, Spain, and Singapore. Using the UCSF Connect platform, I messaged the different alumni and they all replied almost immediately saying they would be happy to speak at the event. I am thankful for UCSF Connect as it allowed us to connect with alumni who were happy to help!

 

OCPD: What are your tips for students interested in reaching out to alumni on UCSF Connect?

AG: I would encourage students to utilize the resource as much as they can while at UCSF. Especially since we are currently all remote, this is a great platform that can allow you to connect with individuals in your field who are happy to help students. This can be a great way to explore different career paths and get advice. Also, don't hesitate to message individuals who you are interested in connecting with!

 

Interview conducted by Sara Ayazi, career counselor and program manager at OCPD.

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