WASHINGTON, PA (September 12, 2022)—W&J junior and women’s basketball guard Alyssa Pollice knows what it takes to play on a team, but just recently learned how to build one.
A business administration major with an emphasis in marketing, Pollice spent the last several months serving as the technical recruiter and marketing intern at FTSi.Tech, a Pittsburgh-based recruitment company, and learning a new side of team building.
In the role, Pollice identified potential candidates to fill job openings, developed recruitment messaging, created social media advertisements and posts, reviewed social media analytics, and even helped re-structure the FTSi.Tech website.
Mastering those tasks took a bit of finesse.
“Candidates probably get messages from a couple recruiters each day, so you kind of have to formulate a message that will stand out,” Pollice said. “You have to ask yourself, ‘What’s going to stand out on yours compared to someone else’s?’”
To help find the ever-changing answer, Pollice looked to FTSi.Tech teammates.
“I worked with someone that was a little bit older,” Pollice said, noting that audience greatly effects content creation, “and something that was so many words looked good to him, but to me—people my age don’t really want to read a lot. We just want to see, ‘Apply here,’ or something like that. So, we worked together to formulate things that we both liked.”
Doing so proved incredibly meaningful.
“Honestly, this was one of the best experiences,” Pollice said of the internship. “I literally cried on my last day because it was like leaving family.”
A small, but growing company, FTSi.Tech gave Pollice the opportunity to interface and connect with all levels of staff and leadership.
“Every morning, we would have a ‘stand up’ meeting, and the CEO of the company would talk to us,” Pollice said. “I saw the CEO every day and we all worked together. It was just a great environment. I really wish everyone could have the same experience I did. What they had there was so special in the culture.”
But perhaps also unsurprising.
Pollice learned about the internship from Jina DeRubbo, the assistant director of athletics and head coach of the women’s basketball team at W&J, when she encouraged her team to meet company leaders at a networking event the Center for Professional Pathways hosted last year. Having created a close-knit culture of her own, DeRubbo must have recognized something similar at FTSi.Tech.
“With the basketball team here—we’re literally all best friends,” Pollice said. “And that’s how it felt at work.”
Of course, success requires a bit more than camaraderie—passion and preparation also play a role, and Pollice pointed to W&J for making Pollice professionally ready.
“I still don’t know what I want to do,” Pollice said, “but the Center for Professional Pathways has really helped me…and the whole faculty and staff—we really do have something special at W&J.”
About Washington & Jefferson College
Washington & Jefferson College, proudly located in Washington, Pa., is a historic liberal arts college founded in 1781 that values ethical leadership, professional readiness, and inclusive communities. Our highly customized and intellectually engaging student experience develops professionals of uncommon integrity to lead in an ever-changing world. For more information about W&J, visit washjeff.dev or call 888-W-AND-J.
