Get to Know Dale Austin

Meet Dale Austin!

Many of you have met with Dale Austin throughout your college career, whether it was a mock interview, job search appointment, or getting help with graduate school. He has been working with Hope College students at the Career Development Center for 37 years, and will continue to engage with students as our office transitions to the Boerigter Center for Calling and Career.

Dale has answered 10 questions to let us get to know a little more about him:

      1. What is your role at the new Boerigter Center for Calling and Career?
    1. My role in the BCCC centers around working with students in the transition to work or grad school with advice and a range of resources. I will provide coaching on preparing for interviews, conduct mock interviews and provide feedback on personal statements. I will continue my work with employers, recruiting fairs, and on campus interviews. I will also be working with over 15 classes addressing a variety of issues with seniors who are preparing to transition after Hope. 

      2. What is your favorite part about Holland?

    2. One thing that struck me about Holland was the diversity of companies and organizations from manufacturing, to services like banking and other financial services, to the nonprofit. The Holland area is blessed with exceptional business and community leaders who are committed to Holland and its citizens.

    3. 3. What do you like the most about working with students and alumni? 
    4. Students and alumni at Hope are simply delightful people to work with. They are positive, hard working, have a great outlook, and are eager to do what they can to prepare for the future and serve their communities. The beauty about what we do is we have amazing opportunities to make working at Hope a great experience.

    5. 4. What do you like to do in your free time? 
    6. I enjoy spending time with my family (my wife, 3 grown children and their spouses, 93-year-old father, and golden retriever, Sammy.) When I’m not with family, I enjoy reading nonfiction and listening to classical music.

    7. 5. Where is the most interesting place you have traveled to?
    8. I traveled to Iceland last summer. Their natural resources, geography, and giant waterfalls are amazingly beautiful. I look forward to going back.

    9. 6. What is something you wish you knew more about? 
    10. I wish I could have a real-life crystal ball to know with confidence the new opportunities and the new career fields that would be developing within the next 10 years. Additionally, I wish I knew more clearly the impact of artificial intelligence on the workplace and the implications for preparing our students.

    11. 7. If you could meet one famous person, dead or alive, who would it be?
    12. Barack Obama, for whom I have great admiration.

    13. 8. What is the most memorable gift you have ever received? 
    14. Over my time at Hope College, I have received a range of gifts from grateful students, plants, hand carved wooden boxes, a colorful brass plate, to framed pictures, among others.  These are the most memorable!

    15. 9. Who inspires you the most? 
    16. That is a hard question. As I reflect on it, I have been fortunate to have a number of mentors over my life, from my college academic advisor, Stan Walters, to family members, like my 93 year old dad, Vern Austin, to other figures during my time working at Hope College. At the deepest level, it would be my faith in, and relationship to, Jesus Christ, who provides the challenge and the grace for both life and work.

    17. 10. What is the number one piece of advice you can give to Hope College students about entering into a new career/grad school?
    18. Accurately promise and over deliver”: whether in work or graduate school, you will have significant demands on your time, energy and attention. The following steps would facilitate a smooth initial transition: understanding key priorities from your supervisor or graduate school advisor, keeping communication lines open and initiating conversation when needed and protecting your time in ensure that high payoff work/projects get done.

    19. Here at the Boerigter Center for Calling and Career, we want to get to know our students personally and assist them in their career paths. We hope this insight into our career staff members allows students to feel comfortable coming into our office at any stage of their college career.

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