On February 22^nd, Captain Richard Phillips visited Nichols College to speak to students, staff and community members. His inspiring tale of survival is well known across the world.

March 31, 2009 began as any normal day would, but little did Captain Phillips know that it would be the first day of the longest voyage of his life.  As soon as he stepped on the Maersk Alabama, he realized that the security was not up to the standards he was used to and that this ship was unlike any ship he had been Captain of before.

Captain Phillips decided he should do an emergency drill to see if his crew was prepared for an attack. Throughout his speech, Phillips kept repeating, “We were expecting the worst,” due to the many recent pirate attacks in the waters that he and his crew would be traveling through. The drill lasted 15 minutes, and it was not the best exercise; many doors were unlocked among other issues, proving his crew was not prepared. He decided to have a discussion with his crew to go over what had gone wrong and the code words they would use for looming pirate attacks.

Captain Phillips continued to fascinate us with his compelling story. He and his crew heard “Somali Pirates are coming to get you,” over the radio on the morning of April 8, 2009. The crew did exactly what they learned during the drill a couple days earlier. The entire ship was secured, as the pirates approached just 50 yards away. Everyone on board, except for the captain, was hidden in a safe room. A couple of minutes later, Captain Phillips was face-to-face with the Somali pirates’ leader.

The pirates forced Captain Phillips to talk over the loud speaker.  He announced, “All crew to the bridge, all crew to the bridge.” Little did the pirates know that this was a secret code word and the crew knew not to emerge from the safe room, but one member forgot and showed up to the bridge. The pirates were not convinced that there were no other crewmembers on board, so they toured the ship with Captain Philips and then with the sailor. When the pirates’ leader and the sailor went around searching the boat, the crew knew and took the leader as their hostage.

Soon the three pirates that had remained in the helm with the captain grew worried because their leader had been gone a long time. Captain Phillips said the pirates could take one of the lifeboats along with their leader, but only if they got off the ship. The pirates agreed, but they wanted a hostage, so Captain Phillips volunteered to be the hostage.

The pirates held Captain Phillips until Easter Sunday when the navy surrounded the pirates’ lifeboat. During a very intense period of time, the navy shot and killed all four of the pirates who were holding Captain Phillips hostage. At that point, one of the rescuers made his way to the lifeboat and brought the captain to safety.

I thought Captain Phillips was one of the most captivating speakers we have had on campus so far this year. Throughout his entire speech, I could truly feel what he was feeling during his hours of captivity. Phillips even displayed pictures of his ship, the map, and of the Somali Pirates. Captain Phillips also kept telling us that we are stronger than we think, and listening to his story and what he went through makes me believe this. I really enjoyed that Captain Phillips began with how he always wanted to become a captain and the journey he went through to make it happen.

Ellie Zeitlin came to speak at Nichols College on Tuesday February 10^th. She is one of a number of speakers who have been invited to speak as part of the Learning to Lead class, a course that all freshman are required to take. This event was also a cultural event hosted by the Fisher Institute. After Ellie graduated from Columbia University as an Economics major, she immediately became involved in a non-profit organization called DoSomething.

The organization works with young people to take action on the social changes that are happening all around them. After leaving DoSomething, she co-founded a new non-profit called Change Better, which helps other non-profits get started. Change Better provides them with the following services: an organizational diagnostic, an individualized impart-evaluation strategy, a core advisor from their team, pro bono consultants, and conferences and workshops.

In the last four years Ellie has worked with social entrepreneurs to help build important strategic and impactful endeavors.  Since co-founding Change Better, her organization has awarded more than $1.4 million to the country’s best change makers.

I enjoyed listening to her speech. She really gave us insight into the inspirations that have made her the person she is today. However, I wish she had talked more about herself; she only briefly touched upon her family life growing up and how she became interested in non-profits. It was amazing to see that even though she went through tough times, she has become a successful woman and still makes a positive impact on society.  All around, she had a compelling presentation. The impact she has had makes me want to go out and do something to make a difference.

On February 24^th, Nichols College Career Services will host its annual Career and Internship Fair. This event starts at 1p.m. and goes until 3:30p.m. in the Athletic Center. Professional attire is not required, but strongly preferred.

There are 73 businesses that will be in attendance at the 2015 Nichols College Annual Career & Internship Fair.  Some employers that will be in attendance include Nordstrom, New England Revolution, State Street Corporation, Monster, Mohegan Sun, Lowes, Ford, Fidelity Investments and Federal Bureau of Investigation – Boston. These employers are offering a variety of potential opportunities for students, alumni and community members. These opportunities include roughly 105 full-time positions, 40 internships, a variety of part-time work and so much more! Not to mention, there will be over 25 alumni who have made their way back to campus seeking to hire members from the Nichols community.

There will be tables set up all around the Athletic Center so make sure to grab a map to find where the companies’ tables are located.  Countless people have told me how grateful they are for the Career & Internship Fair because it is where they found current and past internships and also made many connections.

Are you in need of a professional headshot for LinkedIn? There will be a booth set up in the main entrance of the Athletic Center to have your LinkedIn profile pictures taken. Make sure to take advantage of this opportunity! Keeping your profile picture current and professional will allow employers to recognize you more easily and give them the ability to imagine you working with them.

Networking is an integral part of the Career Fair and business world alike. Going to this event means you can connect with more people, IF you make a genuine effort to talk with them. This is a great chance for you to step out of your comfort zone and have conversations with people you have never met. To be successful in the business world you have to be willing to approach anyone without being afraid. This comes with much practice, but the earlier you start the better off you will be. This event is mandatory for juniors and seniors; however, it is strongly recommended for freshman and sophomores to attend for the experience. The more you expose yourself to new people and professional situations, the stronger networking skills you will possess.