Image
Reflections on PwC chat and expanding your comfort zone
Throughout all of my roles at the University of Virginia, I have been able to meet many people and continue to move myself outside of my comfort zone. Specifically, as president of the Data Science and Analytics Club (DSAC), I had a quick introduction on putting myself out there to promote the club — meeting Reggie Leonard, associate director of career connections and community engagement at the School of Data Science.
I met Reggie through a club ambassador role at the UVA Career Center in Fall 2024. I had no clue how quickly he would take on an advisor role for me. He is someone I always enjoy checking in with and updating him as I navigate the professional world. I frequently talked to him about the corporate events DSAC holds, and we began planning an event with PwC that could benefit both DSAC members and those in the School of Data Science as part of its "Modeling Your Future" series.
As we tossed around ideas for event possibilities, the overarching goal was to have something that would allow the most attendees possible to learn from a PwC representative. Once we decided on a fireside chat format, I was asked by PwC recruiter Thomas Sumner if I would be comfortable asking the questions of our guest speaker, Kane Geyer, principal, deputy global chief data officer at PwC. Kane is a UVA alumnus and graduated with a B.A. in Environmental Science (’98). Without a doubt, I was excited to push myself further out of my comfort zone and lead the discussion. This experience, however, was something different from the rest: I was not concerned about the number of people that would be in front of me, but to whom I was speaking.
On April 17, the day of the fireside chat, I was filled with emotions of excitement and gratitude. Kane discussed many topics, including how there is never a clear path to follow in your career. He focused on how data science is constantly changing, and with the production of new technology, it is important to stay up-to-date and know what resources are available. Overall, data science is a field that requires adaptation and resilience, Kane summarized.
Additionally, this was a day of reflection on how far I had come, from being a routine member of DSAC in my first year at UVA and now on the executive board for the past three years. I could see the potential growth we had in store at the activities fair before courses began in Fall 2024.
So many students are eager to learn about data science here, and I could see how we would be able to grow this club exponentially. That is exactly what my board accomplished in the 2024-25 academic year by increasing our events, workshops for building your resume, expanding our corporate-sponsored events, and offering more than 50 students mini-internship experiences through our partnerships. I am eager to continue this excitement in my final year as DSAC president and offer experiences that set students up for success.
Image
Guest author Catherine Young is a rising fourth-year student majoring in applied statistics and minoring in data science, with a concentration in finance and business.
