CO-OPS + CAREERS Neurodiversity in the Workplace Recap

By: Kristen Eckman

Neurodiversity in the Workplace

Workshop and Panel Discussion

January 22, 2019

10:00 – 12:00pm

On Tuesday, January 22nd, Wentworth Institute of Technology CO-OPS + CAREERS partnered with the Massachusetts General Hospital Aspire Program to host the inaugural Neurodiversity in the Workplace Summit.

Speaker

Most organizations have started to recognize the importance of diversity in the workplace. In 2018, neurodiversity gained the attention of employers who understand that neurodiverse candidates are a rich, untapped pool of highly qualified individuals who can be sourced for traditionally hard-to-fill roles.  People who are neurodiverse often have Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).  While many with ASD are highly competent, loyal, trustworthy, and demonstrate strong attention to detail, sometimes they struggle through interviews due to their challenges with social interactions and communication skills.

‘Neurodiversity’ means valuing the differences in how people think and work. A diagnosis of ADHD, autism/Asperger’s syndrome, or a learning disability may indicate a different set of strengths than someone considered ‘neurotypical.’ What makes these individuals different, may be the very characteristics that add value to a team. Since 10% of adults are either on the autism spectrum or have Asperger’s, ADHD, or a learning disability, most workforces are already neurodiverse. Companies like Microsoft, SAP, EY, HP and Dell EMC have recognized and highlighted the benefit of a neurodiverse workforce.

Panel discussion

Wentworth Institute of Technology and the Massachusetts General Hospital have created a partnership, ASPIRE@Wentworth to support Wentworth’s neurodiverse co-op students and their employers. The Summit allowed Wentworth to share our unique program and helped employers learn how to access and support neurodiverse talent in their workplace.  Our employer partners, Turner Construction Company and National Grid, spoke about their successes and challenges on-boarding neurodiverse candidates and two Wentworth neurodiverse students told their stories about succeeding in the workplace.

Student speakers

To learn more about autism in the workplace, please read: https://trainingindustry.com/articles/workforce-development/autism-at-work-hiring-and-training-employees-on-the-spectrum/

https://hbr.org/2017/05/neurodiversity-as-a-competitive-advantage

And to see how top organizations are embracing neurodiverse hiring, spend two minutes watching this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8SELIzv8Vc

To learn more about the co-op program and hiring Wentworth students please visit our website or email coopsandcareers@wit.edu.

CO-OPS + CAREERS Annual Appreciation Breakfast Recap

By: Abbey Pober

Our annual Appreciation Breakfast was held on Tuesday, January 22nd from 7:30am – 9:30am in Watson Auditorium, recognizing partners of Wentworth’s co-op program. Each year, approximately 1800 students complete a mandatory co-op as part of their graduation requirements. Without the support of employers and internal partners this program would not be possible.

appreciation breakfast photo

Throughout the morning employers and campus partners were recognized for engaging with Wentworth students beyond posting a job on our campus job board, WITworks. We celebrated organizations who:

  • Hired our students for co-ops
  • Hired members of the Class of 2017 for post-graduation professional employment
  • Hosted on-campus interviews
  • Were an Employer-in-Residence
  • Were interviewed on WITworks Radio
  • Attended one or both CO-OP + CAREER Fairs
  • Attended Mock Interview Day
  • Sponsored CO-OP + CAREER Fair
  • Hosted Wentworth-on-the-Road

This year, over 60 employers were nominated by Wentworth students as Co-op Employer of the Year. The staff reviewed each nomination and determined which employers would be recognized with a trophy based upon the nomination and the organization’s level of engagement with Wentworth for employment.  We looked at the number of events the employer attended, the number of jobs and co-ops posted, and the number of students hired for co-op and the number of members from the class of 2017 hired as full-time professionals.

award winners

 

The following organizations were awarded for their dedication to hiring Wentworth students.

Best CO-OP + CAREER Employer
Commodore Builders

Gilbane Building Co.

Harvard University

Integration Partners

McDonald Electrical Corp.

MIT Lincoln Laboratory

Abbott

Bond Brothers

Eversource

GE Aviation

J.C. Cannistraro

Lee Kennedy Co.

Lytron

Best Internal Partner
Santiago Umaschi, Wentworth Institute of Technology

Best External Partner
Fred Raymond, National Grid

Supervisor of the Year
Eric Thompson, Harvard University

Jeff Stoltz, Raytheon

Joshua Larson, Wentworth Institute of Technology

Michelle Brockney, Integration Partners

Syed Ali, Vapotherm

Best New Employer
Bright Horizons

Best New Supervisor
Chris Carr, MIT

James Therien, Bright Horizons

We thank you and appreciate all the organizations who support Wentworth Institute of Technology, the co-op program, and our students. We look forward to another year of successful hiring!

To learn more about the co-op program and hiring Wentworth students please visit our website or email coopsandcareers@wit.edu.