The Seton Hall Department of Athletics hosted the first ever student athlete leadership forum on March 22 in Walsh Gymnasium to discuss life after college for junior and senior student atheletes.
Athletic Director Pat Lyons invited New Jersey's top executives in the sports world to speak with student.
"It was a great event," senior baseball player Will Walsh said. "There was a lot of information by insightful people. I've heard these things in class before but we needed to hear from somewhere else."
The keynote speakers for the forum were Mike Tannenbaum, general manager of the New York Jets, Al Kelly, CEO of the 2014 Super Bowl committee; John Sample, Vice President of the National Basketball Association's entertainment division and Mary Beth Childs, owner of MBC Marketing, LLC.
Led by moderator Glenn Horine, of H&H Consulting, the executives gave insight into their college experiences and advice on how to be successful in the "real world."
Sample, who graduated from Syracuse University with a degree in journalism, said he looks for two things when interviewing potential employees: "Do they want to do the job and are you going to want to hang out with this person?"
Sample said that research about prospective employers is vital to a successful interview.
"You have to know everything about the company you want to work for," Sample said. "If you're up for a job, show it the respect it deserves; know what the job is about."
Tannenbaum discussed the importance of internships, because they can lead to long term success.
"At the Jets, we treat the roster, coaching staff and front office the same," he said. "We believe in internships. We hire seasonal interns to long term internships. Every day is an interview."
Childs, who graduated from Seton Hall in 1978, told the student athletes not to worry about not having internship experience because being a college athlete is just as good.
"As student athletes, the best thing is the competitive nature," Childs said. "My business is competitive. I would look at being a student athlete as being a plus."
Walsh, who has spent four years as a standout outfielder, has never had an internship but is relieved that playing baseball is going to help in searching for a career.
"It made me nervous when they started talking about internships," Walsh said. "But it made me feel good that (employers) will take (being an athlete) into effect."
Tim LeCras can be reached at Timothy.LeCras@student.shu.edu.
