Middlesex Community College: MCC Helps Students Find Career Paths And Enter Workforce

Press release from the Middlesex Community College:

Ronald Campbell

11/9/2021

Hoping to one day find a job helping others, Brian Vieira was looking for guidance as to how he could turn his Liberal Arts and Sciences major into a future career. Middlesex Community College is helping him find his path through a series of events focused on job searching and networking.

At MCC’s recent Career Exploration Virtual Employer Panel, Vieira – who expects to graduate in 2022 – gained more insight into how to build his future, an “experience I didn’t realize one could get going to college.”

“When this panel ended, I was left feeling enlightened and a bit inspired,” he said. “I would never have thought that being curious would consider someone a stronger applicant or employer.”

A Liberal Arts and Science student and the 2020-2021 MCC Student Trustee, Daniella Dankwa believes opportunities such as the career panel help students explore career paths. While students may change majors or interests, talking to professionals allows them to better figure out what they want to do long-term. “Creating a network is very important in the job industry,” she said. “This enables one to get opportunities.”

The event – which was open to all Middlesex students – featured a diverse panel of employers from local organizations. Sharing their experiences with students, panelists talked about their own career journeys, current positions, and the skills they needed to gain in order to succeed.

Panelists included MCC alumna Victoria Makumbi of The Kraft Group, Anthony Nganga from Studio 26, Ashton McLemore of Flour Bakery, Kecia Boyd from DFCI, Christina Gonzalez of Dell Technologies, and Christopher Crosby from iRobot.

Makumbi – who studied Business at Middlesex – appreciated having the opportunity to be a positive example to fellow MCC students. As she too took advantage of the moment to listen as other panelists share their stories, Makumbi believes this is how people can grow both personally and professionally.

“As a minority, sharing my personal stories and career challenges gives other minority students hope that with education, they can also go far in their endeavors,” Makumbi said. “My hope is that as I share my stories and tools needed for success in the work world, students can make connections between what is being learned in the classroom.”

Gonzalez, who is a Diversity Campus Manager for Dell Technologies, found the panel to be informative for herself and for the students.

“I especially enjoyed hearing the types of questions on students’ minds around their career paths, Gonzalez said. “I believe it is important to participate in events such as this because it's helpful to hear real-world tips about how to navigate the competitive career search landscape, and how to stand out amongst others applying for the same position."

Earlier in the summer, Wayne Epps, also a Diversity Campus Manager for Dell Technologies, spoke about the companies’ commitment to working with community colleges. The hope is to build up skills in students from colleges serving diverse populations.

"Specifically in response to longstanding impacts of racial injustice on the Black community, we rolled out an initial set of actions and commitments to hold ourselves accountable for the immediate progress we need to make,” Epps said. “Since our last update, we've extended our first job offers – ahead of schedule! – as part of our new effort to recruit from nearly two dozen U.S. community colleges. This will open up career opportunities and pathways to success for all. We're looking forward to sharing more exciting updates like this in the coming months."

Visit www.middlesex.mass.edu/careerservices/ for more information on how MCC helps students find their career paths and enter the workforce with internship and job experiences.

Registration for MCC’s Wintersession and Spring 2022 semester – starting on Monday, January 3 and Monday, January 24 – are now open. Visit www.middlesex.mass.edu/registration/ or call 1-800-818-3434 for more information and to register for classes.

Discover your path at Middlesex Community College. As one of the largest, most comprehensive community colleges in Massachusetts, MCC has been a proven leader in education for more than 50 years. Middlesex puts the student first. Meeting each learner where they are, MCC provides them with a safe, welcoming and engaging place to learn. Offering more than 80 degree and certificate programs – plus hundreds of noncredit courses – Middlesex features flexible course formats and a variety of award-winning student support services and resources. Student success starts at MCC!

This press release was produced by the Middlesex Community College. The views expressed here are the author’s own.