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February 17, 2005

Sophomores, Alumni and Employers Engage in Skill-Building Exercises at UPOP "Mocktail" Party

When the Undergraduate Practice Opportunities Program (UPOP) offered its MIT sophomores the chance to learn and practice networking skills in a special session last year, students almost unanimously cited it as a not-to-be-missed highlight of the program. This year, another 215 students mingled at a “mocktail party” on February 16th at the Stata Center with 50 alumni and others affiliated with MIT, including employers of UPOP interns. Geared to simulate the social situations in which networking and other business interactions occur, the event followed an interactive presentation as part of the UPOP workshop led by Ms. Jodi R. R. Smith of Mannersmith, an etiquette consulting firm.

“The strong technical and problem-solving skills our students gain through an MIT education are a significant asset they bring to future employment; however, more is needed to assure their success in the real world and as future leaders,” said Associate Dean of Engineering Dick K.P. Yue. Ms. Devon Biondi, UPOP Program Manager for Student Services and Alumni Relations, added, “Experience gives people confidence but if you’re a sophomore and don’t have work experience in your intended field, how do you get it? We bring Jodi Smith, an extremely magnetic speaker, to UPOP to teach skills in handling a variety of situations.”

The alumni and friends of MIT who attended represented a variety of industries: finance, software engineering, law, biotechnology, and mechanical and civil engineering, as well as non-profit and government organizations. Over half had participated in the event last year. “It’s valuable for engineers and business people to be able to handle a range of business networking situations successfully,” said MIT alumnus Paul Edelman (’78 PH), Managing Director of Edelman & Associates, an executive search firm. “I really enjoyed interacting with the students and also tuned up professional skills that will be useful the next time I am at a conference, a professional meeting, or even a party.”

In her “Painless Networking” seminar, Ms. Smith helped prepare participants for the “mocktail” with several dynamic exercises that included instruction in creating a “tagline” (a quick introductory summary about yourself to initiate conversation), shaking hands effectively, and entering and exiting discussions gracefully. Ms. Biondi pointed out that, although often overlooked, “the skills practiced at the event are essential not only to students preparing to find internships for the summer but also for everyone involved in day-to-day business.”

The UPOP networking event is part of the program’s Spring Professional Development Seminar Series, in which employers and MIT alumni volunteer to coach students through the recruiting process and along their paths of professional development. Other seminars focus on topics such as interviewing, how to make the most of an internship, and how to manage one’s manager.

The Spring Seminar Series follows UPOP’s annual January Introduction to Engineering Practice Workshop. In two intensive, week-long sessions, MIT sophomores engaged in interactive role-play and case study training modules led by faculty from the MIT School of Engineering and Sloan School of Management. The students worked in teams of eight to ten and were facilitated by industry professionals, many of whom are MIT alumni. The Workshop included topics such as audience-specific communication, process design, system dynamics, product specifications, and leadership.

The Undergraduate Practice Opportunities Program (UPOP) exposes students to the multi-faceted nature of professional engineering practice and prepares them to make a smooth transition from academe to the workplace. Administered from the office of the Dean of the School of Engineering, UPOP has been funded as an initial five-year pilot and is currently in its fourth year.