LEDA successfully executed its third annual Career Institute from August 10 to August 14 at New York University School of Law. Nearly 180 LEDA Career Fellows representing 59 top U.S. colleges and universities participated in the central component of the LEDA Career Network. Over the course of five days, Fellows explored career paths in a variety of industries and cultivated the skills needed to begin and thrive as leaders within a broad range of careers.
During the Institute, employer partners and panelists shared their insights about their various career paths. One LEDA-led panel, “Entrepreneurship: Turning Your Ideas Into Capital” (pictured right) was moderated by LEDA Board member and Career Institute sponsor Andy Fisher, Founder and CEO of Myriad360 and included panelist Samir Goel, Co-Founder of Esusu, who shared some key pointers for Fellows:
- In college, start thinking about ways you can improve different things around you.
- Reframe networking as relationship building – do not be afraid to have a personality.
- Refine your ability to communicate and articulate your thoughts and vision. This will not only cause others to gravitate toward you, but will serve you well in securing clients, employees, and investors.
“What I found to be the most surprising was learning that professional success doesn’t necessarily require traditional pathways. I was exposed to quite a few things that demonstrated there is more than one way I can get to where I want to be.”
– LEDA Career Fellow Ximena, Harvard ’22
LEDA thanks the Heckscher Foundation for Children and Strada Education Network for its support of LEDA’s Career Institute and Career Network, as well as our premier corporate partners, including Bloomberg Philanthropies, Myriad360, NBA, PIMCO, Ropes & Gray, and Spectrum. Our full list of partners for this year is below.
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Our premier and leading employer partners provided Career Fellows with information on potential career options as well as varied professional development topics such as interviewing techniques, personal branding, best practices for navigating recruitment processes, and building an all-star profile on LinkedIn.
Fellows received one-on-one career coaching from seasoned industry professionals and guidance on how to address the challenges faced by under-resourced and first-generation college students as they embark upon their career journeys. Fellows were also assigned a LEDA Career Mentor who provided ongoing advising and support throughout the duration of the five-day event.
The Institute featured three speakers: Angelina Darrisaw Cheeks, Founder and CEO of C-Suite Coach; Stephen D’Antonio, former Global Chief Operating Officer of the Fixed Income Division at Morgan Stanley; and Seth Pearson (pictured right), Associate Attorney at Cooley LLP and graduate of the prestigious TRIALS Program.
Many thanks to all of our partners, as well as our outstanding Career Institute staff for welcoming our newest Career Fellows into the LEDA Community with such a fantastic event!