Alumni Home > Career Services > ICAN > Testimonials

Testimonials from Participants and Career Advisors

"I wanted to contribute back to the MIT community to help others in their career path. As an undergrad, I used ICAN to find a senior internship that led to a job offer after graduation (which I ended up not accepting). But anyway, I learned a lot during the internship, so as a result, I was inspired to become an ICAN mentor to other MIT students and alum."

Genevieve Owyang '97
ICAN Career Advisor

"ICAN is a stupendous networking platform for the MIT community and I had some amazing response from the alums. People are more than willing to help than you really think."

Atul Agarwal '05
ICAN Student User

"I have found the ICAN program to be a wonderful reference source as I've attempted to navigate through the "what kind of career do I want to pursue and how do I go about starting" process. The people who I've contacted have been very friendly and willing to help, often providing honest and valuable information and insight into their professions within a few days after I contacted them. It's great to get an insider's opinion who has been there, done that. I plan to sign up when I'm in a position to do so. Thanks!"

Karen Cheng '02 CM
ICAN Alumni User

"The best thing about ICAN I feel is that it allows potential applicants and potential employers to connect without having to go through recruiters. It often takes effort to solicit resumes from your own recruiting department, since they are supporting the entire company. Getting a resume directly from a student cuts out the "middle man" and allows us to start a dialogue. If there's a potential match, I then go to my HR department to start the official interview process."

Rahul Saha '94 AA
ICAN Career Advisor

"Ultimately, I ended up in my current job through a lead originating in an informational interview I had with an ICAN member. Using the ICAN database, I was able to contact a number of people in the aerospace/defense industry who were willing to talk to me about potential jobs and careers. One such person referred me to the person who referred me to the person who referred me to his company's recruiter who called me in for the interview that landed me my new job."

Blake Gottlieb '03 AA
ICAN Alumni User

"As an ICAN advisor, I am pleased to have the opportunity to offer career advice to recent grads and alumni users. Today's job market is tougher than it was in the 80's and 90's because employers are trying to fill specialized needs rather than simply go after generally talented people. I hope that I am able to impart to advisees enough of my experience from the business world that they will be able to successfully present their considerable skills to get the type of position they want."

Ira Gershkoff EE '73
ICAN Career Advisor

"ICAN has been an invaluable source of career transition contacts. I have been amazed at the willingness of the ICAN advisors to provide insight, advice, and additional networking assistance. ICAN is a great place to start for anyone building a career transition network."

Gary Brown '85 CE
ICAN Alumni User

"I was able to assist a young alum with information about the semiconductor industry and interest him in my company. As a result, he had an excellent job interview and has now accepted a position with us. I think it's great that MIT alums have an informal channel for communication on professional concerns."

Mat Waltrip NU '89
ICAN Career Advisor

"My goal when contacting an ICAN member is to learn more about what its like to work for a company before I apply or to get tips for my interview. I really trust the opinions of MIT grads on evaluating their work environment. Often the results of using ICAN exceeded my expectations. Mainly looking for informational interviews, I was often asked to send my resume immediately. Also, ICAN members invited me to call them at home to be able to talk more freely and for more time."

Diana Buttz '98 ME
ICAN Alumni User

"Getting a full-time faculty position in Japan at high-level institutes is very competitive. After working as a post-doctoral researcher for 1.5 years, I got an excellent one. I would like to help those who seek faculty positions in Japan. Getting a degree is not enough. I would like to see more MIT alumni/ae getting good jobs. I will support ICAN."

Dr. Mizuki Kawabata CP '02
ICAN Career Advisor

"My goal when using ICAN for the first time was to contact alumni who work for companies that I am interested in working for and find out from them the best way to pursue employment with their companies. One alumnus I contacted was very helpful and honest and he wanted to know which positions I had applied for within his company. Some time after contacting this alumnus, I was invited for an interview for the position with his company that I was most interested in. I told the alumnus about the interview and we agreed to keep in touch as I progressed through the interviewing process. I've now been invited for a second interview. If I am extended an offer from this position, it will be nice to have an insider opinion on the company from someone who has a similar background as me. Plus, since he's not the one recruiting me, I feel that his advice will be relatively unbiased as compared to the actual recruiters."

Amy Watson CE '02
ICAN Alumni User

"This January I accessed the ICAN database in hopes of finding contacts from my home state of Wisconsin. I am planning on returning home this summer and wondered if there were MIT graduates who could offer me information about internships or summer opportunities available in Wisconsin. I heard back from everyone who I contacted. Their MIT stories were intriguing and varied. I also was offered two contacts for internships, which I am currently pursuing. The MIT Club of Wisconsin has meetings a few times a year, and I am hoping to meet some of these contacts at future meetings. Since the ICAN network is a group of MIT alumni who want to help students, I found my contacts to be friendly and helpful."

Katherine A. Vater '07
ICAN Student User

"The ICAN database is an extremely valuable tool for MIT alumni and students. It is a painless and simple way to network and stay in touch with campus activities. I have been extremely impressed with the caliber and quality of the students and alumni with whom I have corresponded. As a full-time engineer at General Electric, I find that I can offer a unique perspective in working for a large, multi-national company. However, as the lead recruiter for General Electric at MIT, I can bring an insight into the vagaries of the hiring process: the importance of an informational interview, the value of networking, and even knowing how electronic resume submissions work. Ah, little insights that I wish had been so easily available (through ICAN) when I graduated!"

Jennifer Pinson '98 ML
ICAN Career Advisor

"I had to conduct an informational interview for an assignment and expected it to be just any regular obligation for a class. However, the interview surpassed my expectations and I found it extremely useful and enjoyable. It is a very convenient and a very helpful tool, especially if you are confused about what to major in or what you want to do with the rest of your life, like I was. My advice on how to make the connection productive is to really prepare some questions and to think about how the interview will go before you go ahead and meet (or make the call). I highly recommend taking advantage of this free service because it is definitely full of people with very valuable experiences and a wealth of information."

Y Grace Lin '07
ICAN Student User

"I get a great deal of satisfaction talking with students and recent alumni about career topics. Having navigated the choppy waters of our economy myself, I've internalized the lessons of continual networking and evangelize those lessons every chance I get. The MIT community is very supportive--people will go out of their way to help you just because you share a common educational bond. I've spoken with graduates in many different courses besides my own (Management) and have always found people who took a personal interest in me and were willing to help in any way possible. ICAN is just one element of a very powerful MIT community, and I encourage everyone to get involved."

Daniel Callahan GM '87
ICAN Career Advisor

"My name is Debbie Koker, Course 3, class of 1989. I'm embarking on a career change after being an engineer and stay-home mother. When I discovered the ICAN website, I had already started at law school, so I wasn't looking for advice on whether or not to go to law school. I wanted to find out about the different kinds of careers available in the patent law area and the pros and cons of different kinds of law firms as well as corporate counsel positions. I also wanted to see how my background might be perceived at different kinds of firms. Using the ICAN database, I was able to find two alumni who were also course 3 and had gone on to practice patent law. They were both very open and honest about what a career in patent law would be like and what skills are required for success. I plan to keep in touch with both advisors as my law career progresses. I also plan on signing up as an advisor when I'm in a position to do so."

Debbie Koker '89 ML
ICAN Alumni User

"I used the ICAN database in order to learn more about what investment bankers do and what a first-year analyst should expect. Because so many alumni participate in the ICAN, I was able to speak with bankers in sales & trade, research, and corporate finance, from first-year analysts to senior level managers, across many of the top ranked companies.  In fact, one alum who works in California was kind enough to put me in touch with her company's NYC office so that I could arrange a visit. All of this information was extremly useful during interviews, and I am very grateful for the alum who afterwards followed through with me and then my interviewers to find out things went. In addition to all of the knowledge and support that I gained from ICAN, I am very appreciative of the alum who recognized my interest in economics and informed of divisions that she thought best suit me, even though such divisions do not commonly recruit on-campus." 

Jeffrey Greenbaum '04 EC
ICAN Alumni User

"I value my role as an MIT ICAN advisor, and find unique rewards in advising each student that contacts me. Being an ICAN advisor has provided me with a wonderful opportunity to help people make very important, life-affecting decisions based on my own experience. These individuals are bright and motivated, but often lack the "real world" knowledge that is so crucial to planning their future. I'm able to provide them with honest, unbiased, and often frank advice that enables them to take a hard look at what lies ahead and helps them decide in what direction to head."

Rick Roos '92 ML
ICAN Career Advisor