Bewildered, beleaguered seniors and on-the-ball underclassmen alike gathered in Griffith Film Theater Saturday for Career Week’s keynote address and wrap-up, in hopes of gaining deeper insight into the question that was on everyone’s mind all week: What will I do after I graduate?
Mountain climber and all-around success story Alison Levine, Fuqua ’00, lightened the mood by trashing UNC basketball as she advised students how to overcome obstacles.
Levine began mountain climbing in 1998, only a year and a half after undergoing major heart surgery, and has summited the highest peaks on six continents. She has also skied across the Arctic Circle to reach the North Pole. Through it all, Levine has remembered her Duke roots, carrying Duke banners or signs to each peak and even proudly holding a sign reading “Go to Hell Carolina” on the top of Mt. McKinley.
“I think I’m the best admissions mistake Fuqua ever made,” Levine joked about her enthusiasm for the University.
Levine’s diverse background includes 10 years in the health care sector, a career on Wall Street and work as deputy finance director for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s gubernatorial campaign. She encouraged students to constantly re-evaluate their goals and not be afraid to depart from a career track that may not make them happy in the long run.
“You have to know when to walk away,” Levine said. As team captain for the American Women’s Everest Expedition in 2002, Levine had to make the difficult decision to turn back just 260 feet from the summit when bad weather threatened, despite the pressure that was on the team to reach the top.
Levine also advised students to be firm in pursuing their goals and not give in to fear. She joked that the scariest part of getting to Everest for her was asking for two months off from her new job at banking firm Goldman Sachs. “If you don’t ask, you will not get,” Levine said. “You always have to ask for these things or they will haunt you.”
Senior Kristin Holbeck said she found Levine’s address encouraging. “The entire speech was really relevant and motivational,” she said. “I can’t say that I remember who spoke last year, but I will definitely remember this speech.”
Attendees also noted Levine’s passion for Duke.
“Alison is one of the most inspiring people we could ever find,” said Sheila Curran, the Fannie Mitchell executive director of the Career Center and Career Week co-director. “[She combined] her inspiration with her love of Duke [and it] was just a magical combination.”
Curran said the week’s activities were a success. “It has been a wonderful turnout… a substantial increase over last year. There was a huge buzz on campus about Career Week,” she said. More than 2,000 students pre-registered for Career Week activities, and more than 500 went to mentoring dinners.
“Students have just loved it. The energy level is really what surprises me. People early in the week [had positive experiences and] have come to more activities,” Curran said. “We are the only school in the country that does a career week as broad and comprehensive as this.”
In his remarks to students before the keynote address, President Richard Brodhead praised Duke’s Career Week as one of the best he had seen. While stressing the importance of the week’s activities, Brodhead also cautioned students against worrying excessively about their immediate post-graduation plans. “It is neither necessary nor likely that what you do the year after you graduate will be what you do for the rest of your life,” Brodhead said. “Write the story of your life on an ongoing basis.”
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