by Phillip D. Falconer, CCM
One year ago, NCIM Member, Jim Block, solicited my interest in participating in a new mentorship program that had been created by the AMS Board of Private Sector Meteorologists. At its core, the program was designed to foster one-on-one personal interactions between private sector mentors and selected undergraduate and graduate students interested in working in the private sector.
Successful mentoring was envisioned to be a shared responsibility for learning, based on clearly defined learning objectives. The duration of the mentor-mentee relationship was suggested to run from January 2007, commencing with the AMS Annual Meeting, to at least the end of the student’s academic year.
My mentee, Zack Byko, was a graduate student at Penn State University. During our initial meeting, we got to know one another and discussed our expectations and initial goals for the program, including an agreement that we would correspond mostly by e-mail on an occasional basis, and by phone as necessary.
Over the next few months, we discussed potential employment opportunities. But the surprising highlight of our long-distance relationship was that Zack invited fellow mentor and NCIM member, Dick Westergard and I down to the Penn State campus to give a talk about the mentorship program to the Penn State Chapter of the American Meteorological Society. We talked about our careers and our thoughts about what it takes to make a successful transition from student to employee. Along the way, we brought up the value of a good resume, the need for flexibility in choosing which employment announcements to respond to, the need to recognize and nurture professional networking opportunities, and the role that serendipity often plays in one’s professional career. It was a fitting way to have capped off a very successful mentoring experience.
P.S. I ran into Zack at this year’s AMS Annual Meeting in New Orleans, and found that he is happily employed at Mars Snackfoods USA as an applied climatologist.
And A Student’s Perspective:
by Zack Byko, Commodity Research Manager, Mars Snackfood USIn the fall of 2006, I was immersed in my master’s research at Penn State University, while at the same time beginning to identify career paths that would be both challenging and rewarding. One afternoon, I came across an email promoting a trial run of a new mentorship program sponsored by the AMS Board of Private Sector Meteorologists. As someone who as always identified with the challenges, dedication, hard-work, and freedom associated with private sector meteorology, I felt it natural to apply to this program. Little did I know it would be one of the best decisions I made during my final year as a student.
I first met my mentors, Phil Falconer and Dick Westergard, at the 2007 AMS Annual Meeting in San Antonio, TX. Both talked about the roads they traveled during their careers and let me know that it is okay to take risks and try a job I may never have imagined myself in the first day I stepped into a meteorology classroom as an undergraduate. Most importantly, they made it clear how they wanted to run our discussions; openly and honestly.
After our initial meeting, we corresponded via email. Along the way, Phil and I realized we both had close ties to the Talcott Mountain Science Center in Avon, CT. We brought stories about Talcott from two different time periods and sharing them helped in developing our mentor/mentee relationship.
Our discussions often were career-oriented. Phil came across to me as being quite satisfied with a long career as a consulting meteorologist and Dick expressed happiness in his recent private sector endeavors. Not surprisingly, most of the job applications I submitted were to private companies.
During the summer, I accepted a position providing weather and climate forecasts with Mars Snackfood US. When I sent Phil and Dick an email informing them of my decision, both were excited and surprised, as I had discovered a private sector opportunity that was new even to them! Being with Mars for almost 8 months now, I can say I am very satisfied with my decision. It is my hope that Phil and Dick take satisfaction knowing that their guidance has helped launch my career to a great start. Hopefully, this mentorship program continues to provide career guidance to many more students like me.
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