the Informer

[caption id="attachment_3860434" align="alignright" width="800" caption="Graduate student Madison Rieger was recently hired in the Career Services department as the Director of Student Retention. | Brian Izzo"][/caption] Succeeding in college is not just about academics, it’s also being happy enough to stay. Madison Rieger is the newest member of Career Services as the new assistant director of student retention programs. A graduate student, Rieger is working on her Master’s degree in Education and Psychology at Springfield College in Massachusetts. She has had the opportunity to work with several different age groups in the educational setting. In the process, Rieger found her niche working with college students. “I work a lot with first and second-year students now and I feel like I can really relate to them because I went into college undecided and I really had no idea what I wanted to do and I kind of fell into psychology,” said Rieger, “I just happened to take an introduction course to fill a requirement and that’s part of why I’m so passionate about what I do because I don’t think students should have to just kind of find their way.” This emphasis on helping students feel at home and comfortable no matter where they are in their college journey is an important part of keeping students at the University. After two internships and now a job in Career Services, Rieger has also found her place at the University. Along with her passion for what she does, Rieger also had personal reasons for choosing to intern in the state of Connecticut. “What brought me to Connecticut is that I have family in the area and I heard of the University of Hartford and the diversity on campus,” said Rieger. Rieger’s first internship was in 2010 with the University’s Health and Wellness Center. The second internship was with Career Services, the following year where she eventually got a job in Dec. “When a position [in Career Services] opened up, I applied because I really love it here,” said Rieger. Despite the short amount of time she has spent in her job position, Rieger emphasizes the professors as a helpful resource that will enable her to successfully work with students. “I think faculty does a great job of leading students and I think when we partner with faculty, it’s the best result for students because then they have the career side where we can help them do internships and find internships and [especially] faculty has contacts,” said Rieger. Rieger can relate to many students. She had originally planned to major in business, but instead got her Bachelor’s in Social Work from Skidmore College. “I went in completely blank and not knowing what my options were so I think I can definitely relate to going into college and just having no idea what you want to do,” said Rieger.