You Want How Many Canapes?

Conference Center Sales Rep

When I graduated from Dartmouth a year ago, I was hoping to find work that was different something other than a typical 9-5 office job and something that had some responsibility. Well, I certainly found what I was looking for! I don't know of any other job where one can gain experience in sales, marketing, and conference planning and . can meet people from such a wide variety of corporate backgrounds, all at the same time.

The people I have met have given me an insider's view to the business world. My job, however, entails more than social activities. Among other things, I have to oversee the organization and the implementation of conferences.

Coordinating a conference means that you must pay attention to every detail, from the meal and how it is served, to the set-up of the meeting room and such minutiae as the number of extension cords available for the overhead projector. It's similar to setting a stage for a production; the props must be correctly placed and the lighting and scenery must be perfect. One of the first conferences I managed at Dartmouth was the Ivy League Editors, held last fall. I was apprehensive at first and that can be a healthy thing you try to imagine all the little things that could go wrong. But the conference was, from all reports, a huge success. Working with the participants was great. They were some of the friendliest, most interesting people I've met on the job.

When I tell people that 1 am a sales representative for the Dartmouth College Conference Center, they usually raise their eyebrows in surprise and exclaim, "I didn't know that Dartmouth had a conference center!" 1 smile when I was a student at the College, I wasn't aware of the Conference Center, either. And that is part of my job, too, letting people know what unique facilities exist in Hanover. I think we offer the most personalized attention to conference groups. After all, not many places would go out of their way to organize special events such as a broom ice hockey game on Occom Pond or a greased watermelon race in canoes on the Connecticut River. I know this will sound like I'm bragging just because I'm an alumna, but I can safely say that it is different at Dartmouth.

On behalf of the Ivy League Editors, we can vouchfor Ms. Bravar and the Conference Center. We gotraves all the way from Providence to Princeton. Ed.