For my networking event, I attended HomeCOMing on October 5th. The Communication Department at Canisius College hosted this event in Science Hall Commons and was open to all majors within the department.

I attended this event last year and had a very positive, successful experience so I was very eager to go! HomeCOMing is an event that helps connect current Canisius students to alumni that have careers in the areas of Communication, Digital Media Arts, Journalism, and Marketing Communication. Here, current students have the ability to network for future internships or jobs. Additionally, students can ask the alumni questions about their careers and how they have gotten to where they are today. This is important as aspiring professionals to learn about how students can reach their career goals.

Overall, I really enjoyed the event. I met with a variety of professionals in game and graphic design – two fields that I have knowledge and interest in. I found this event to be a mix of both fun and stress. It was fun as I got to catch up with students and professors in my field as well as meeting new people! I love chatting with professionals who have similar passions as me and learning about how they got to where they are in their careers. On the other hand, it can be very stressful! Sometimes it can be very intimidating to approach someone and carry on a conversation. It can also be stressful in the sense that you may not know who to talk to or what talking points to address. I feel that it takes a couple of networking events or situations to begin feeling comfortable with this.

Through this, I feel prepared to tackle my next networking event! I will definitely be attending HomeCOMing event next year and will take advantage of any other opportunities that come my way.