Gain access. Build a professional network. Get job experience.
We engage alumni networks and provide vital resources to help our alumni succeed both in college and after—in the early stages of their professional careers. Our year-round program connects students and alumni to mentorships and internships at leading media and technology companies, and helps them build essential skills to succeed in job interviews, resume writing, and networking.
Research confirms that quality mentoring relationships have powerful, positive effects on young people in a variety of personal, academic, and professional situations. Mentoring connects a young person to personal growth and development, and to social and economic opportunity.
For more information, please contact our Director of Post-Secondary Success Joelle Blackstock at joelle@urbanarts.org.
IN ACTION
Sarah and I connected over being the kids of first-gen immigrants and the expectations of our parents as well as what it’s like being a girl in a largely male-dominated industry. We discussed some of Sarah’s goals and her struggle between a career path as a designer or a producer. We also shared photos of our dogs!
I wanted to grow my own mentoring skills while also hoping to share some of my experiences that may help someone who is starting out in their college selection and eventual career. I always look for ways to help grow the members of our team who may be earlier in their career and hoped that I could do the same for a mentee.
IN ACTION
Amadou Diallo
Congratulations to another college grad! Amadou collects languages fluently—French, Fulani, English, C+. A skilled programmer and debugger, he describes game design as “a tool for expression.”
An immigrant from Guinea-Conakry, he was a senior at Bronx International High School at 15. He graduated in June 2022 from New York University’s Tandon School of Engineering (Go, Bobcats!) on a full scholarship.
In Guinea, he used to wait for electricity every other day to watch his favorite shows. Plugged in at Urban Arts, he built Blind Runner, which draws from his experiences as an immigrant to the U.S. “The game represents the immigrant trying to avoid problems while trying to get as many opportunities as he can. Even if you make it to the end, you might miss opportunities and still fail.”
Now Amadou is moving to Seattle to begin his career with a major first job in tech. “I am excited about the ownership part of my first job. I get to be responsible for a service, end-to-end, from development to management. And I get to grow into a software engineer. The leadership and management skills required to be an end-to-end owner of a technology service is what I am most looking forward to learning in this job.“
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