Ashley Dotson ’18 on Management and Leadership

One of the goals of the Rockefeller Center’s Management and Leadership Development Program (MLDP) is to prepare students to succeed in their leadership roles on campus and beyond. A participant in Spring 2016’s MLDP program, Ashley Dotson ’18 looks back on her experience as one that helped shape her confidence in networking and working in a team environment.

“One of the biggest skills I learned came from networking-focused sessions, such as one on how to negotiate. I learned how to carry a conversation and how to invest in a mutual connection,” says Ashley. Because of these sessions, Ashley has found it to easier to navigate the process of applying for graduate school and making connections with faculty and professors.

As a student studying architecture, Ashley participated in a summer program at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Architecture where she met a variety of Harvard faculty and Dartmouth alumni.

“I was able to apply the skills I learned on following-up, specifically with the lead faculty instructor who happened to be a Dartmouth alum. Using that knowledge to establish a connection helped me feel confident in asking for advice and reaching out other Dartmouth alumni,” says Ashley.

Ashley credits these skills from MLDP as preparing her to succeed as a senior with developing contacts for future jobs and graduate school opportunities.

Additionally, Ashley also finds that she uses what she took away from MLDP’s session on team-building towards her job at the Hood Museum where the scope of her work involves team projects.

“Right now we are working on curating an exhibit for the museum’s opening, and it can be challenging to work with people from different backgrounds to come up with one final product,” explains Ashley. “It is important to make sure everyone’s voice is heard and to talk through everyone’s opinions and ideas while also listening.”

After participating in MLDP her sophomore spring, Ashley felt more confident and prepared to continue staying involved with the Rockefeller Center and to develop professional connections with Rockefeller staff. Ashley worked as a Student Program Assistant for MLDP her junior year and is grateful for all the opportunities she had through the Rockefeller Center to practice and hone her leadership skills and to apply them to her experience at and beyond Dartmouth.

- Written by Bethany Malzman '19, Rockefeller Center Student Program Assistant for Communications