Most Carleton alums are friendly, helpful, and eager to answer questions you might have about different professions, industries, cities, or what it's like to be a Carleton graduate in the world outside of Northfield. Here's how alums can help you:

• Helpful Advice - Have questions about a particular job or career field? Talk to an alum about their job to see if it's right for you! Feel free to ask questions about employers, cities, their job, and how Carleton helped prepare them for it.
• Career Explorations - Many alums have offered to host Carleton students at their place of work. Students can "shadow" an alum for a day or even five days to learn about the daily tasks that accompany different professions. Our alumni are very willing to answer questions, and the Career Center can help get you connected.
• Jobs and Internships - Alumni are great resources for researching and finding job or internship opportunities. They can offer information, ideas, advice, and maybe even names of other people to contact. However — and this is the cardinal rule — Don't Ask Alums For A Job! It puts them in an awkward spot if they can't deliver and, furthermore, if they get inundated they are less likely to help other students. If you do get to know an alumni through a Career Center program, or informational interview, though, don't be surprised if they offer you a job. Another possibility, and a much more likely one, is that an alum may recommend another contact who has a job opening. (That's called networking, and it really does work!)

Want to get in touch with an alum in a field you're interested in? The Carleton Alumni Directory is available for your use. Log into the directory with your student username and password. It is searchable, and makes it easy to locate classmates living in your city, see who else is in the same profession, find alums who can provide professional services, and much more.