Growing up on the outskirts of Chicago, I was always inspired by the city’s skyline. After our family visits downtown, I would immediately run into my room to play with my Legos to create the next supertall skyscraper. As a result, combined with my passion for math and science, my ultimate career goal has been to pursue a successful career in civil engineering. More specifically, to work on a high-rise building project in Chicago. However, coming into Northwestern, I did not know whether I wanted to focus my studies and talents on building design or construction. Four years later, after completing three internships and meeting with Northwestern Career Advancement, I now know that construction management is where I belong in order to make my dream a reality.

I remember the day of my first career fair: Walking into the Hilton Hotel downtown Evanston, my knees felt numb and my throat felt dry; I had never attended a career fair before. In this moment, honestly, I was worried about how I would stack up compared to my peers. Yet, I relied on the information I learned from speaking with a career adviser a few weeks earlier.  At the Career Advancement office, my adviser not only helped polish my resume, but discussed different networking strategies and gave me tips on my elevator speech. After that first career fair, I received my first internship and worked on a highway expansion project in northern Illinois. The following year, I spent the summer in Denver and worked on a light-rail train expansion which connected the downtown to the eastern suburbs. And lastly, this past summer, I worked on a 70-story high-rise building in Chicago’s Steeterville Neighborhood designed by renowned architect Robert Stern. All of my work experience resulted in signing with the largest residential builder in Chicago this past fall for a full-time position upon graduation.

From my experiences with Northwestern Career Advancement, I learned how to effectively research companies, prepare for interviews, and interact in the professional world. We live in a dynamic, changing world where communication is of the most important force shaping the workplace and Northwestern Career Advancement prepared me for that experience. All in all, without the skills I had learned from my career adviser, I would have never been able to attain my dream job. 

–Daniel San Gabino