By: Carson Hamilton
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (UATV) – The Graduate School and International Education Program hosted the Conference Playbook. This event was aimed at all undergraduate and graduate students on the U of A campus to aid in the development of their networking skills. Located at Kimpel Hall room 301, this free event focused on discovering who students’ professional network should be and how to connect with them. Attendees could RSVP on HogSync to secure their spot for the event.
The Association Director for Graduate Student Support, Umer Rahman, said, “A lot of students have missed the mark, so we are creating a playbook for them to use Pre-Conference that gives them an understanding of the people to target around them for future projects.” The event had over 10 graduate students attend to hear the professional playbook workshop, which was designed to help them when engaging with others at professional events.
Rahman is experienced in this field as he obtained his degree in International Studies, which allowed him to connect with professionals all across the world. Now he demonstrates his history of working with higher education by leading project developments, working on project management, research design, lecturing, academic writing, educational research, and being involved in community engagement.
“Every semester we hold five professional development workshops as well as other workshops directed for professional development pathways,” said Rahman. There is a divide between leaving undergraduate programs and entering the graduate program when using their professional skills in the workplace. The maturity students gain due to the rigorous graduate programs aims to grow their professionalism and workplace skills inside of the office and when engaging with others.
Rahman said, “It is very important to have these types of workshops because, for all of our career and professional development workshops, we have embedded industry career partners… it is not just about professoriate but also about being in the industry itself.”
The students in attendance were able to use the playbook designed for them in a relaxed setting. By using in-person conversational skills, the graduates engaged in the workshop by practicing what they had just learned.
The workshop was from 3 to 4 p.m. and had multiple staff members speak on their experiences, the benefits of using the skills they learned, and how to apply them elsewhere. The goal of this workshop was to not only use their skills at conferences but to also use their playbook in the classroom and in other professional settings.