BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Illinois Wesleyan students interested in fields of STEM spent their spring break in Chicago engaging with alumni in related occupations during the annual Career Immersion Excursion hosted by IWU’s Hart Career Center.
Since 2016, the Career Immersion Excursion has helped IWU students make connections in their field of interest through site visits and alumni speakers. Every trip focuses on a different career path, with past trips revolving around healthcare, business and politics in various cities across the country such as New York City, Dallas and Washington, D.C. The annual program is made possible through a gift by Cathy Carswell '65.
The program is led by Hart Career Center Director Warren Kistner '83 and Associate Director Patrick Zajac '18. This year, 19 students attended the three-day trip to Chicago during spring break, along with Professor and Chair of Physics Narendra Jaggi and B. Charles and Joyce Eichhorn Ames Professor of Physics Gabe Spalding.
Students heard from a panel of young alumni who work in Science, Technology, Engineering or Math, including Nico Lopez '20, Seth Borrowman '19 and Robert Reichert '21 during the visit.
“Career Immersion Exclusion is designed to provide an opportunity for students to explore careers in various fields and connect with successful IWU alumni,” said Kistner. “It’s wonderful to introduce students to our IWU alumni.”
Kistner said the opportunity for students to gain first-hand exposure to the workforce has “tremendous value.”
“We can try to educate students about these options but engaging with individuals who are doing this work provides valuable experiences for students,” noted Kistner.
The group also toured the Argonne National Laboratory, Fermilab and mHUB in the Chicagoland area. Students witnessed the SuperComputer Aurora at Argonne — one of the world’s first exascale supercomputers, able to perform over a quintillion calculations per second. While visiting Fermilab, students learned the history of the property and the people who carry out research. At mHUB, Titans learned of the nearly 300 startup companies on site, most of which design products for the medical and consumer electronic industries.
Physics and computer science major Jaclyn McMillan ‘28 said she gained insights into workplace dynamics and interviewing skills from the trip.
“I sat at a table with Nico Lopez, who works at Meta, and he provided very valuable advice,” said McMilan. “I found this especially helpful and important, since interviews in the tech space can be particularly stressful. I was extremely grateful for the opportunity to learn from his experiences within the tech world.”
Biology major Swetha Veluvolu ‘25 was most impacted by the small group dinners where students were able to network with alumni.
“I was able to ask meaningful questions about doubts and concerns I had about future careers that these alumni have experienced firsthand,” Veuvolu said.
For physics and math major William Wisniewski ‘27, the trip was an “action-packed” experience, where students were able to “compare and contrast the startup world and the research world which really broadened [their] horizons.”
Visit www.iwu.edu/career-center for more information about upcoming career fairs and events, internships and additional career guidance.