6 Alumni Lessons To Kick Off The Semester Right
2025 block party in the books, it’s time to start the semester strong.
Here are 6 pieces of career advice straight from Hoos across AI, sports, tech, finance, and media.
JARED TEWODROS, SOFTWARE ENGINEER, META
On Exploring Early
“Making a concerted effort to explore early on helps you avoid drifting later. The sooner you start experimenting, the sooner you’ll find that overlap between what you enjoy, what you’re good at, and where you can really excel.”
MELANIE SEIDNER, VP OF DIGITAL STOREFRONTS, WARNER BROS
On Playing To Your Strengths
“Don’t expect to turn into a zebra if you’re a leopard. If you’re really good at running fast, don't spend all your time figuring out how to go with the flow. Find a role or industry that needs fast runners. Just make sure you don’t trample the people you’ll need along the way.”
SAM SPELSBERG, CO-FOUNDER, DELPHI
On Breaking In
“If you want to work at a company, find the people who are important decision makers, find out what they need, teach yourself those skills, and start emailing them. Anything you want is possible.”
KEMP WHITE, ASSOCIATE, AMITY SEARCH PARTNERS
On Following Up
“Follow up with people who can’t get you the job. This is really the key to building genuine relationships. It’s a good practice, and down the line they may end up having something you never thought you wanted when you met them.”
RYAN ODOM, MENS BASKETBALL HEAD COACH, UVA
On Asking For Help
“You have to understand that none of us can do this alone. Every successful person, regardless of their line of work, has had people help them along the way. We have to be accepting of that help and humble enough to understand that we don't have all the answers.”
PAUL VANN, CO-FOUNDER, VALIDIA
On Burnout
“Know when to take a break. I used to think this was funny when people talked about burnout, but it’s real, and it's happened to me multiple times. I wish I was a lot better at taking breaks because it would save me a lot of time and I'd feel better, honestly.”
