Carolina Closet and the Career Center held the Career Catwalk to educate business-oriented students on how to dress for success at any interview, social event or professional gathering.
The Career Catwalk was an energetic event that kept the entire ballroom’s attention for the duration of the program. During the catwalk, the ballroom was alive with cheers as the models strutted along the runaway.
At one point the catwalk hosts brought several members of the audience up on stage and gave them a makeover to show how a simple wardrobe change can alter an entire room’s opinion on a person. The models were transformed from average people to sophisticated professionals.
The Career Catwalk sought to educate students on the fashion of the professional world while still keeping an engaging and fun atmosphere. The various fashion tips that speakers gave the crowd created a lasting impact in some audience members. Third-year retail management student Tyrecia Jones thought that she learned useful information from the show.
“I just recently went on a big interview ... and I did use some of the tips that I saw today,” Jones said."Having them tell you what you need to do to get the job is really big ... they're looking out for you"
Carolina Closet and the Career Center worked closely with Student Government and the USC Fashion Board to put together the event. Carolina Closet is a professional attire rental program available to all University of South Carolina students that aims to give students who cannot afford professional attire an opportunity to rent clothing for professional interviews and other professional situations.
"It's been a collaboration throughout the past month ... we would not have been able to do it as well without the resources like Carolina Closet, the [Career] Center and Kohl's," third-year engineering student and Fashion Board Member Anthony Matrejek said.
The Career Center gave a brief overview about the many programs and opportunities available to students trying to land a job after graduation. The Career Center offers assistance with cover letters, resumes, internships and practice interviews and has many more resources that aim to help students become professionals.
Katie Landmesser, second-year fashion merchandising student and a member of Fashion Board, hopes that the event will spread the word about Carolina Closet and similar programs.
“I hope [the event] just brings awareness for how great the project is and that people know that there's those resources available,” she said.