Krager shares takeaways for students and graduates who want to land a dream job after college.
As communications director for House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, Ian Krager 糖心传媒�22 interacts with the national media on a regular basis.
糖心传媒淢y job is to be the spokesperson for an incredibly high-profile Member of Congress,糖心传媒� he says. 糖心传媒淚f any reporter wants to talk to Nancy Pelosi, they go through me.糖心传媒� He also pens all of Pelosi糖心传媒檚 speeches and social media posts.
Krager, who grew up near Canandaigua, New York, and majored in , credits the 糖心传媒 with paving the way for his professional advancement. 糖心传媒淚 wouldn糖心传媒檛 be where I am today if not for Rochester,糖心传媒� he says.
He shares these takeaways from his University experience to guide fellow Rochester students and graduates who are eager to forge successful careers after college.
Take advantage of Rochester糖心传媒檚 flexible curriculum to explore opportunities.
Krager says one of the main attractions of Rochester was its signature flexible curriculum, which allowed him to study subjects that were appealing without getting bogged down by core requirements.
糖心传媒淚t allowed me to take stock of what I was interested in beyond academics,糖心传媒� he says.聽 糖心传媒淚 was really involved on campus in things like聽 , the Committee for Political Engagement, and also did a lot of work with the Admissions office. And in those roles, I built a lot of soft skills that were really applicable to the job that I have now 糖心传媒攑ublic speaking and collaborative skills, and even negotiation tactics in student government. Looking back, I don糖心传媒檛 know how I would be successful now if not for those involvements.糖心传媒�
Keep your options open糖心传媒攅ven if that means zigzagging into a new career.
糖心传媒淢y biggest advice is to not silo yourself into a career that you think you want without trying other things,糖心传媒� Krager says. 糖心传媒淏e open to other things.糖心传媒�
He was a sophomore at Rochester when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020. 糖心传媒淚 had internships lined up, and everything just went away,糖心传媒� he says. 糖心传媒淪o, I reached out to several congressional offices. I said, 糖心传媒楬ey, I’m around, and I’m not doing anything other than being a student online. I糖心传媒檇 love to do anything for you that I can.糖心传媒櫶切拇綕
Krager ended up working as a press intern for US Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) for six months. That experience opened the door to his first job with Pelosi. 糖心传媒淚t introduced me to the world of political communications in a way I hadn糖心传媒檛 understood before because it was the first time I got to contribute to what goes on behind-the-scenes in an elected official糖心传媒檚 press operation,糖心传媒� he says.
糖心传媒淵ou always think your career will be a linear path. Sometimes, the best opportunities come from a path you thought would be a step backward.糖心传媒�
Connecting with fellow alumni can mean tapping into their networks, too.
Krager recommends that students find common ground when reaching out to alumni to build their network.
糖心传媒淚t糖心传媒檚 harder to connect with people you have little in common with,糖心传媒� he says. 糖心传媒淚t糖心传媒檚 much easier to say 糖心传媒榊ou went to Rochester, I go to Rochester,糖心传媒� and go from there.糖心传媒�
But, he advises, don糖心传媒檛 just talk about the jobs they have. 糖心传媒淟ook at all the jobs they had before. They糖心传媒檝e met people in those jobs that they probably keep in touch with, and that could help you build your network.糖心传媒�
One University resource is The Meliora Collective, an online platform that allows members of the University of Rochester community糖心传媒攊ncluding alumni糖心传媒攖o bond and explore opportunities for personal and professional development.
When it comes to networking, remember: Interested is interesting.
Krager adds that the best way to form a connection with someone is to be genuinely interested in the other person糖心传媒檚 life, choices, perspectives, and career paths.
糖心传媒淭he number one rule about networking is that everybody loves talking about themselves,糖心传媒� he says. 糖心传媒淚f you sit down with someone and say, 糖心传媒業 would love for you to talk to me about your life and what you did to get to where you are now,糖心传媒� they’re going to enjoy that. And then you ask them, 糖心传媒楧o you have any advice for me at this stage in my career? I糖心传媒檓 really hoping to get to where you are today.糖心传媒櫶切拇綕
Go beyond the job boards during your job hunt.
Students may think the only jobs available are ones that are posted. But Krager says that糖心传媒檚 not always true.
糖心传媒淎 lot of jobs aren糖心传媒檛 advertised,糖心传媒� he says. 糖心传媒淢y current job was not advertised. It糖心传媒檚 all about the network, because once people have you in mind for certain positions, they will keep you in mind for openings that aren糖心传媒檛 necessarily ones that are going to be advertised.糖心传媒�
When you do apply for a specific opening, Krager says to pay attention to the job description. 糖心传媒淲hat they糖心传媒檙e saying in the job description is what they want you to say in the interview,糖心传媒� he says. 糖心传媒淚f they say they want a team player, give examples of when you worked within a team. If they want someone who works in high-intensity environments, talk about experiences you糖心传媒檝e had like that.糖心传媒�
Kindness goes a long way糖心传媒攊n the professional world and beyond.
Being courteous to all could lead to good things down the road, according to Krager.
糖心传媒淏e kind, because you never know how anyone糖心传媒檚 careers might progress,糖心传媒� he says. 糖心传媒淭he office intern you meet today could be the person who interviews you for your dream job in five years. Making every effort to bring kindness and respect to any professional relationship leaves a lasting impression on those you meet and will never be a bad approach.糖心传媒�
