Kevin Fallon gives key tips for student success post graduation

By Evan Giguere

A handful of students and recent alumni gathered in Daly’s Mercer Room on  Feb. 26, to discuss what to expect once they’ve secured that first post-graduation career at “You’ve Landed the Job, Now What?”

In what was less like a speech, and more like a conversation, Director of Career Services Kevin Fallon talked to students and alumni about self-branding, performance evaluations and the importance of the online service LinkedIn, among other things.

“If you meet a very successful person, ask what they attribute their success to,” Fallon said. “Start to piece together your strategic plan.”
Students should think of themselves as products and work on their professional brand, Fallon said.
“If you don’t know yourself, if you don’t believe in yourself, you’re not in the right spot,” Fallon said. “How are you going to sell yourself?”
Part of that personal branding is having an online presence, which is heavily influenced by LinkedIn, according to Fallon. He recommends that a LinkedIn profile should be an extension of someone’s résumé and to “use LinkedIn to elaborate” on what cannot fit on one page.

This advice proved helpful to freshman accounting major Edward Rebmann who didn’t realize how useful LinkedIn can be when trying to make connections.

“I had no idea LinkedIn was such a powerful tool,” Rebmann said. “I guess I should make a profile soon, maybe I can make some connections early.”

Once someone has a job, he or she can make the most out of performance reviews. Fallon described the “Nine Box Performance Assessment” as the way most companies perform their annual performance reviews. This method judges performance based on current quality of work versus the potential for future improvement.

“Own your performance review,” Fallon said. “You can never be too eager to manage your performance.”

David Campbell, a freshman accounting major, was eager to attend the discussion, even though he still has some time before he begins looking for a full-time job.
“I’m actually trying to get a summer internship,” Campbell said. “I figured it would be a good idea to get more information on what to expect in the future.”
According to Fallon, seminars and workshops like this one are available through Career Services every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and can be found on the Rider website.

“Students need to learn how to become proactive, to make a strategic plan,” Fallon said. “To get ahead, they shouldn’t sit back and wait.”