Earlier this month, nearly 400 UCF College of Business Administration (#UCFBusiness) students gathered at the FAIRWINDS Alumni Center for Careerfest, a series of alumni speaker panels designed to give students insight into life after graduation.

The 30 alumni panelists spoke on a variety of topics ranging from major-specific career opportunities to shattering the “glass ceiling.” The breakout sessions were as follows:

  • Accounting: Career Path Possibilities
  • Marketing, Sales & Entrepreneurship
  • Integrated Business: Connecting the Dots
  • Finance & Real Estate
  • Management & Human Resources
  • Tips for Success

Students were also given the opportunity to participate in mock interviews.

Panelists included:

  • Drew Belani, ’05 (Keller Williams Realty)
  • Randi Brooks, ’76 & ’92 (L’Oreal Cosmetics)
  • Dean Caravelis, ’02 & ’03 (Blezoo Promotional Products)
  • Marissa Caravelis, ’02 (Lockheed Martin)
  • Deedy Dagot, ’77 (Wyndham Vacation Ownership)
  • John Field, ’02 & ’05 (Lockheed Martin Corporation)
  • Bert Francis, CPA, ’05 & ’09 (University of Central Florida)
  • Alexandra Gramatikas, ’12 (ALTR)
  • Philip Grant, ’13 (UBS Financial Services, Inc.)
  • Jason Greene, ’00 (SmartWealth, LLC)
  • Lance Johnson, ’83 (Sequent Software)
  • Jennifer Kearney, ’07 (Target)
  • Erin Melinda Koski, CPA, CGMA, ’99 (McDirmit Davis and Company, LLC)
  • Sara Montuori, ’04 (Artegon Marketplace)
  • Tim O’Reilly, ’10 & ’14 (Verizon)
  • Joseph Regenstein, ’03 (Verizon)
  • Roy Reid, ’88, APR, CPRC (UCF College of Business Administration)
  • Jason M. Reilly, CFA, ’95 & ’98 (U.S. Trust)
  • Joanne Stake (FAIRWINDS Credit Union)
  • Josh Strzalko, ’02 (Eleet Technologies)
  • Chris Thomas, ’93 & ’96 (CohnReznick, LLP)
  • Woody Walker, ’92 & ’94 (Convergence Consulting)

In addition to attending the panels, students were encouraged to connect with alumni one-on-one.

“One alumnus, Jason Greene, seemed to be speaking straight to me,” said #UCFBusiness student Bo Godfrey after the Finance & Real Estate panel. “I will definitely be reaching out to him. He mixed both talents – smarts and personality. That’s true intelligence!”