Happy New Year to all.  It is great to be back at Duke for my final semester.  Though I am a bit sad knowing many of us will head to different parts of the world after graduation in May,  I was feeling better after speaking with professionals at a number of prominent organizations this past week.  It was an exciting look into potential careers.

The event was sponsored by the Social Impact Club at Fuqua in order to help Fuqua, Nicholas, and Sanford students learn about opportunities in the social and environmental sector.  We visited the top leaders in each field for roundtable presentations, discussions, and recruiting information for internships and full time positions.  We also received great insight into the skill-sets top organizations are looking for.   Organizations included those that focus on social venture capital, international development, microfinance, education, environment, and corporate social responsibility.

Ashoka, Intl Finance Corp (IFC), Accion, Microvest, FiNCA, Environmental Defense, SustainAbility Conslting, Milleniukm Challenge Corporation, Inter-American Development Bank, Booz Allen Hamilton, Chemonics, The SEED Foundation, KIPP DC, and Teach for America each offered tremendous insight into their mission, vision, and strategies on how they hope to achieve them.

Overall, it is a trip I encourage everyone to make that has even the slightest interest in this field.  These organizations are performing some amazing work and to learn how one might be a part of their work is tremendously helpful as one charts their career course.