Kicking Off the Trek Season in New York Style
Last week, the Career Center/GAMP office kicked off the Trek season with the New York Trek from Sept. 21-23. This year, nine students participated in the NYC Trek who were selected through application and interview process. For two days, the students were immersed in the world of finance and investment banking through select visits from the NYSE to Morgan Stanley.
We invited one participant, Senior Kaiser Londo (and current Career Center Representative) to write about his experience during the NYC Trek.
“The New York Trek, the crème de la crème of the Career Center & GAMP experiences. I was fortunate enough to participate in the even last week learning about specific financial institutions and New York itself. Starting Thursday morning we viewed the trading floor of the NYSE and although I was separated from the group, we learned a lot about how the trading floor has changed in the last twenty years due to advances in technology. From there we toured a series of firms dealing with hedge funds and MnA respectively. The group then headed towards the 21 Club, where we proceeded to mingle with alumni and learn more about their experiences in the Big Apple.
Friday we took off for another series of institutions ranging from asset management to MnA to Gonzaga University’s teacher retirement fund. All had a different perspective and recommended something I didn’t expect. As a whole, it is necessary to have another resume on the East Coast than compared to the West Coast. In the East-they prefer no objective and an Interests section. Later in the evening we had an alumni social at the Cornell club. It was very welcoming to see all of the support we had form the East Coast and the New York chapter went all out to make us feel at home.
Saturday we were encouraged to explore the city, whether visiting museums, Central Park, China Town or Little Italy, we covered lots of ground and thoroughly enjoyed an extra day in the city. That being said, the New York Trek is unlike any other. I have been on all of the Treks now and I believe this to be the best. Perhaps because of the narrow selection of students allowed on the Trek or the companies we went to, it truly was a cut above. I highly recommend the San Francisco Trek as well. Although I believe the Portland/Seattle Treks are very beneficially as well, I myself needed to touch the stove and experience companies away from home. Fortunately, the Career Center prepared me for the excursions and enabled me to participate and I hope everyone gets a chance to take advantage of everything they have to offer.”
Kaiser Londo, Class of 2012, Hometown Medina, Washington
BBA in Finance, Operations and MIS
Frequently Asked Questions of the Trek Program:
What are the Treks?
The Treks are a professional development program designed with multiple training components: networking socials, corporate excursions and career fairs. The Treks connect students to alumni chapter members in our host cities, for “on the ground” networking which is critical for students to navigate the internship/career search.
Where and when are the other Treks held?
We currently have Treks to Spokane (Nov. 17) , Portland (Jan 10), Seattle (Jan 11 & 12), Silicon Valley (March 15) and San Francisco (March 16)
Who can participate in the Trek?
Other than the NYC Treks (which is focused to finance/accounting fields) the Treks are open to all majors and years. We encourage students of all academic disciplines to join us for the Trek program as the professional development can be applied to any industry or field.
How can my son or daughter find out more information about the program?
Simple! Encourage your son/daughter to visit the Career Center/GAMP office. We are located on the 2nd Floor of Crosby from 8-5 daily. We are available to answer questions about the program along with logistics of making it happen.
When are applications available for the New York City Trek?
Applications are made available for the New York Trek beginning mid-March. Your son or daughter can express their interest in attending fall of 2010 by emailing gamp@gonzaga.edu .
How can I participate in the Trek program?
If you are interested in joining us for the Trek, we would LOVE to hear from you! The Trek planning team is constantly looking for new partners who can provide excursion sites, career fair participation or joining us for the networking social. To get started, simply e-mail Belinda Bobko (Manager of Employer & Alumni Relations) at bobko@gonzaga.edu to get started.