This fall, Columbia’s Center for Career Education (CCE) launched Ask an Alum, a new event series designed to connect students with alumni for candid conversations about career paths, industry insights, and the transition from college to professional life. The Fall 2025 semester featured the series’ first two events: Ask an Alum: Law & Government on October 23 and Ask an Alum: Startups & Entrepreneurship on November 6.
A defining feature of Ask an Alum is its structured design, which sets it apart from traditional networking events that often rely on open mingling and place the burden of initiating conversation entirely on students. Instead, the series emphasizes guided, accessible formats that ensure every student has meaningful touchpoints with alumni and peers.
The Law & Government event used a roundtable rotation model, where alumni first introduced themselves to the full room before sitting with small groups of students for timed conversations. Students rotated through every table, guaranteeing interaction with each alum, while two additional peer-to-peer tables encouraged students to practice career conversations and make connections with one another. The event concluded with an open networking period for follow-up questions and deeper discussion.
The Startups & Entrepreneurship event adopted a more flexible format of station-based open networking, reflecting the fast-paced, choose-your-own-path nature of startup careers. Students could seek out the types of professionals most relevant to their interests—engineers, founders, or investors—while still benefiting from structured rounds and a designated peer-to-peer area.
Through intentional formats, these Ask an Alum events aimed to reduce the stress often associated with networking and create environments where conversations felt genuine, informative, and approachable for students of all experience levels.
Event Highlights
Ask an Alum: Law & Government (October 23)
The Law & Government event welcomed Alan Chen (CC ’25), NYC Urban Fellow at the NYC Independent Budget Office; Josie Dikkers (CC ’15, LAW ’20), Associate at Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler; Megha Kalbag (CC ’08, LAW ’14), Partner at Dechert LLP; and Zoe Shea (CC ’07, LAW ’11), Assistant District Attorney at the New York County District Attorney’s Office.
Alumni emphasized that there is no single pathway into law. Some went straight to law school; others took gap years to work in government offices, non-profits, or policy roles, crediting these experiences with strengthening their applications and clarifying their goals.. Students also learned the importance of research when applying to legal roles and leveraging Columbia’s extensive alumni network by approaching with curiosity rather than transactional expectations.
Overall, conversations—both alumni- and peer-led—were encouraging and grounded in real experience.
In the post-event survey one student mentioned they “really loved the variety of experiences/career trajectories” represented at the event..” Another said the most meaningful part of the night was “just talking to people who are in the fields I am considering, and hearing the details of their work.”
Ask an Alum: Startups & Entrepreneurship (November 6)
The central focus of the Startup & Entrepreneurship event was the skills and approach needed to build or join early-stage companies. We were joined by Lewis Clements (SEAS/CBS ’25), Founder & CEO of nMonica; Marisol Estrella Vives (GS ’24), Insights & Analytics Manager at cafeteria; Edward Kim (CC ’24), Software Engineer at Doppel; Nicole Kerson (SEAS ’14), Partner at Collected Company; Alex Randall Kittredge (CC ’16), Board Member at Oxford Entrepreneurs Network; Tanay Murdia (SEAS ’22), Founding Engineer at Garden; Victor Xiao (CBS ’25), Co-Founder of Astra Indes; Matt Zinman (CC ’22), Software Engineer at Doppel; and Helen Zhang (SPS ’24), Founder of Coffee Elf Inc.
Alumni offered practical advice for getting involved in startups, noting that many early companies hire informally and value initiative. Students were encouraged to search VC platforms like Y Combinator, reach out directly to founders, and take on simple, real-world projects that demonstrate problem-solving skills.
Alumni also explained how startup work differs from corporate roles: problems are ambiguous, responsibilities are fluid, and learning happens fast. When it comes to founding a company, they stressed the importance of choosing committed co-founders, participating in hackathons, and developing core technical skills. With AI dominating today’s early-stage landscape, familiarity with ML fundamentals, as well as tools like Python, Typescript, LangChain, and LlamaIndex is increasingly essential.
Students with startup ideas were urged to understand the mechanics behind them, test their viability (with questions like “Would your idea survive if GPT-10 existed?”), and practice communicating them clearly to technical and nontechnical audiences alike.
One surveyed student mentioned that the most meaningful part of the event for them was, “talking to the founders and realizing how different everyone’s journey was!” Another student said that they “learned a lot about how to network, like which events to go to.”
Shared Themes Across the Series
Across both events, certain messages emerged consistently:
- Career paths are rarely linear: Exploration and detours are normal.
- Initiative matters: Opportunities often come from reaching out, building projects, and asking questions.
- Preparation stands out: Specificity and depth can transform an application or pitch.
- Community is essential: Peers, alumni, and mentors all play a role in career development.
- Skills and self-awareness go hand in hand: Technical ability and understanding your own values both shape long-term success.
Looking Forward
The first two Ask an Alum events demonstrated what happens when students and alumni meet in a space designed for genuine connection. The series’ most successful elements—its engaged alumni, structured-yet-comfortable conversation formats, and incorporation of peer-to-peer networking—proved especially effective in helping students build confidence, deepen their understanding of career paths, and form meaningful professional relationships.
As the series continues, CCE plans to strengthen the guided components that help students initiate conversations and continue to tailor event formats to the unique norms of each industry. In Spring 2026 CCE will host two new Ask an Alum events: Ask an Alum: Tech on February 10, focused on software engineering, data analytics, Product Development, AI/ML, and other technical roles; and Ask an Alum: Consulting & Strategy on March 3, designed for students exploring problem-solving–oriented career paths across sectors. Students can register for these events now on LionSHARE!
With these additions, CCE aims to broaden the industries represented, deepen student–alumni engagement, and ensure that Columbia students continue to leave these events feeling supported, energized, and better equipped to navigate their next steps—while alumni leave knowing their experiences made a real and lasting difference.
“Ask an Alum” is a reminder that the Columbia community extends far beyond campus, and that every conversation can help shape a future.