A Message from UConn President Thomas Katsouleas

Dear Huskies,

I hope that this finds you well and that you and your families are staying safe. As you are probably aware, UConn held its first virtual commencement ceremonies this past weekend. We conferred over 9,000 degrees and had more than 36,000 viewers worldwide. While this was far from tradition, we were happy to welcome many members of UConn Nation who typically would not have been able to travel to Storrs to participate in the celebration and share in the success of our newest alumni.

Our successful migration to remote instruction and the connectedness we’ve built with our students is only the beginning of our journey. We are constantly seeing reminders that the world, and specifically the world of work, has dramatically changed for all of us. Unfortunately, for many of our students, this includes news of rescinded full-time job offers and internships. This, coupled with the worst job market in recent memory, prompts me to reach out for your assistance.

We know that some industries are thriving and need full-time talent, while others may welcome short-term assistance on projects. It is our hope that you will consider one of the following ways to help us identify opportunities for your fellow Huskies.

• If you have full-time jobs or summer internship opportunities available, please consider posting it on Handshake, UConn’s job and internship posting platform.
• If your company has a short-term project need, please forward pertinent details to [email protected] and one of our Career Services professionals will reach out to you directly.
• Consider signing up to be a mentor on HuskyMentorNetwork, our proprietary professional networking platform that gives students the opportunity to connect with alumni for career advice and virtual job shadowing.
• Interested in writing a guest blog, serving as a subject matter expert on a virtual panel, or hosting a virtual technical skills training session? Access a brief survey here to let us know about your background and interests.

The saying, “Students Today, Huskies Forever” has a deeper meaning today than ever before in our history. UConn alumni have always played a vital role in the lives of our students, who are eager to showcase their knowledge and skills while making a positive contribution to your organization. If you have any questions or need additional information please email [email protected].

As we move forward in this together, I want to take this opportunity to thank you in advance for your active engagement and support.

Stay safe and go Huskies,

Tom