Interview with Alumna Rebecca Shea Irvine

 Our MI Gamma sisters are located all over the world doing wonderful things.  Our next Alumna interview comes all the way from Northern Ireland with the recently married Rebecca Shea Irvine!

 

Initiation Year: 1998
Office(s) Held: Secretary & Historian

Did you live in the house? How many years? Yes - 1st semester junior year & 2^nd semester senior year

What did you enjoy about living in? I loved living in. I especially liked getting to know some of the girls that I hadn’t known very well before living together.

Favorite Pi Phi memory? I liked my own pledge term, but I think my favourite was the time between big sis hunt and my little’s initiation. There are so many wonderful memories that it would be difficult to narrow down beyond that.

What are you up to now? I moved to Northern Ireland in 2003 and am currently working on a PhD at Queen’s University Belfast in Social Policy (the title of my thesis is The Other Minority: Disability Policy in the Post-Civil Conflict Environment). I also work as a disability rights campaigner and will be married on Christmas morning to a wonderful man from Belfast.

How has Pi Phi influenced/affected your post-college life? I learned a lot about managing relationships from my Pi Phi experience. I found the diversity of the girls to be both challenging and rewarding and often formed friendships that at first seemed unlikely. Living in the house was particularly valuable in learning how to deal with different personalities in a shared environment on a daily basis – not unlike many work environments.

Are you involved officially as alumnae (Alum Club, AAC, House Corp)? What chapter? I’m not involved but I do miss it.

What are your thoughts on your involvement as an alumnae in the group you participate in? If I ever move somewhere where there is an alumnae club, I would like to be involved. I graduate in 2013 so we’ll see where that takes me.

What do you wish you had known when you were in college? I worried way too much. I wish I would’ve known how little my academic knowledge would impact on my life but how important connections can be. I should’ve tried to make more friends (and stay in touch) with more people in my field.

Giving what you know now, what advice would you give to your college-age self? Spend more time with people that you find interesting and ask lots of questions.

Do you have any resume pointers or interview skills to share? Apart from the obvious homework about the position and company that you are applying with, make sure that you know why you want the job and what it will take to be successful at it. Also, don’t send out standard resumes, always tailor each one to address the criteria that the post requires (don’t lie, just focus on the most relevant parts and use the same language as the advertisement if possible to show how you meet what they are looking for). It is time consuming but will ultimately be a better use of your time than sending out lots of generic resumes.

What is something you wish you were better at? Time management. I always seem to underestimate how long things will actually take and am frequently burning the midnight oil in order to finish things on time.

Do you have a personal motto? “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever”. - Ghandi

Do you have a favorite quote? “The great man is he who does not lose his child’s heart” - Mencius

Favorite TV Show and or Movie? My favourite movie is Miracle on 34^th Street and TV show is Gilmore Girls.

What is something on your bucket list? I would like to spend some time living in a developing country.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years? I hope to be happily enjoying whatever life has thrown my way. I don’t have a set plan, but my soon-to-be husband is very supportive of my work and we’ll have to wait and see where it takes us.

What is something people may not know about you? I recently received British citizenship and am now eligible to vote in both US and UK elections (something important to any political geek).

Congratulations Rebecca on your recent Christmas morning wedding!  Thank you for sharing your Pi Phi memories and advice with us!