Last week the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs brought current students and alumni together from all three of its departments – Public Policy, Social Welfare and Urban Planning – for its first-ever Career Networking Night.

The purpose of the event was to connect current students with successful Luskin alums as a way to set up networks in the immediate future, and of course, post-graduation. Outside of Luskin's own online network – Luskin Online – this was the next best thing to bring fellow Luskin members together.

The inaugural event was a tremendous success. Following are a handful of testimonials from some current and former UCLA Luskin students. For more information on alumni and career services events, please visit our "Beyond Luskin" section of the website.

Sheela Bhongir, Los Angeles, CA; Urban Planning, 2014: It was a great event to get to meet alumni. I met someone who graduated 10 years ago and got to see what they’re doing and get advice on things about what they're working on. I also was able to get advice from their experience of what they liked here at UCLA, what classes to take and share experiences of similar professors we had, like professor (Donald) Shoup and professor (Robin) Liggett.

Chloe Green, Kittery Point, ME; Urban Planning, 2013: Jonathan Pacheco Bell inspires me. Everardo Alvizo inspires me. I want to be their kind of alumni – one who recognizes our interconnectedness and is committed to linking our fellows with each other, with ideas, with resources and opportunities. When I heard Jonathan say, "whenever a Luskin student calls, I will stop what I'm doing," I thought to myself how much of this generosity and commitment I have experienced from my fellows throughout my time here at Luskin: from students taking time out of their day to meet and talk with me during April open house, to second year students reaching out to support me when I was a first year going through my first set of finals. I am reminded that when a door is opened for me, I must walk through, then hold it open for the folks coming in after me!

Gordon Hamilton, Pasadena, CA; Urban Planning, 1981: I enjoyed this event very much and thank you for organizing it. Speaking to students in a relaxed setting is the perfect way for me to reconnect with the UCLA Luskin School and I can only imagine that it is a helpful for the students to meet the alumni and gain a sense of the opportunities in the field of planning. I also enjoyed the chance to get to know the faculty and staff better.

Anne Brown, Pittsburg, CA; Urban Planning, 2014: The night was great. It was wonderful to talk to people in Social Welfare and Public Policy and socialize with the other students in this school.

Lucia Fischer, Petaluma, CA; Urban Planning, 2014: I had a really lovely time. Not only did I get to know some alumni but I also got to know some second year students, which is more valuable to me than alumni because I’m not currently looking for a job, but next year I will be.

Skye Allmang, Rockville, MD; Social Welfare; Ph.D. Social Welfare: One thing that was helpful for me was talking to people because it helped me refine my elevator speech about me and what I want

Betsy Estudillo, Los Angeles, CA; Social Welfare, 2013: I really enjoyed this event and how it brought all three departments together. I met a lot of alumni from different departments and branched out in other possible fields of work. It was exciting to be here.

Available exclusively to UCLA Luskin grads and students, Luskin Online is the best resource for current students and alumni to connect in a Luskin-only setting. Click here to be a part of it!