Communiqué
WOUB Alumni Network launches new career and networking page on the Bobcat Network
< < Back toATHENS, OH – The WOUB Alumni Network has created a new group page on the Bobcat Network to support former WOUB students all the way through their careers. The #WOUBProud Career Boost group page was the brainchild of WOUB Alumni Engagement Group Member Brian Unger ’87. Unger works in television as a producer, commentator, actor, host and comedian. His credits include: It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Yellowstone, Some Assembly Required, and the History Channel’s How the States Got Their Shapes.
“During one of our WOUB Alumni Engagement Group Zoom meetings in May, we were talking about all of the ways the group was helping to support current students at WOUB with professional development and providing industry connections to help them to land their first jobs,” said WOUB Community Engagement and Membership Manager Cheri Russo. “But Brian pointed out that while we are doing amazing things for current students, recent grads also need support and mentorship during their young careers. So, the idea for this group page was born out of that conversation.”
The goal of the #WOUBProud Career Boost group page is to connect recent graduates with seasoned alumni who worked at WOUB when they were students at Ohio University. It’s a place for WOUBers to post jobs so other WOUBers can apply and offer career advice while supporting one another.
“We hope this page will create an opportunity for those who are further along in their career to help lift up a recent graduate by being a connection to a new job or by responding to questions and situations that those young in their career might need help with,” said Russo. “Many WOUBers have already joined the Bobcat Network and become a part of the WOUB Alumni Network #WOUBproud Career Boost group. They are posting jobs and are excited to connect with each other to strengthen the WOUB family.”
The WOUB Alumni Network was created in July. But for the last three years, alumni who worked at WOUB have been supporting the current student experience at WOUB by planning and hosting engagement activities and events to connect alumni and current students. The group has created opportunities for alumni who worked at WOUB to connect and reconnect with one another while providing career support to current students. The group has developed a bi-weekly Zoom speaker series with Alumni called WOUB Wednesdays, the WOUB Mentoring Program, which pairs students with alumni for one-to-one mentoring, and the WOUB Job Connection Program, where media recruiters come to campus to interview WOUB students for jobs and internships. Over the last two years, 90% of graduating seniors who worked at WOUB and were looking for a full-time job in media accepted a position before they graduated. The WOUB Alumni Network also hosts a reception at the WOUB studios in Athens during Homecoming each year.
“WOUBers are a special group of people. Even if former students worked at WOUB in different time periods, there is an instant connection because they all know that the WOUB experience provided them with essential skills and a solid foundation to succeed in their careers,” said Russo. “We think the new WOUB Alumni Network #WOUBProud Career Boost group page on the Bobcat Network is the next step in connecting more WOUBers to one another and providing a space for networking that will elevate more careers.”
If you want to join the #WOUBProud Career Boost group page, visit https://bobcatnetwork.ohio.edu and create an account. Once you do, you can either search for the WOUB Alumni Network in the Groups tab or click this link and hit “Join.”