Budgeting and Personal Finance 

Students learned how to create a budget, manage their money, and think about the financial aspects of life after college. This workshop was presented by Sam Abrahamson ’11, founder of onomy.co, a website with free, bite-sized video lessons that teach about personal finance, career readiness, and more.

How to Invest with Sam & Sam from Onomy

401k or 403b? Ethereum or Bitcoin? And who is IRA Roth, anyway? This Investing 101 workshop was offered by Sam Abrahamson ’11, the co-founder of onomy.co.

Credit Cards & Debt

Good and bad debt, good, better and best credit cards, and how to stay (or climb) out of debt with Lauren Thomas of the Credit Abuse Resistance Education network. Here’s what onomy has to say about credit cards!

Dan Willsey ‘18, El Khansaa Khaddiou ‘20, and Topher Castenada ‘20 talked about how they’ve created a budget to fit their lifestyles in the cities of Lewiston, Portland, and NYC.

How to use credit wisely and avoid the debt debacle

Featured speakers from the Credit Abuse Resistance Education program:
Rich Goldman ’76, P’16, JD, Bankruptcy Attorney
Randy Creswell, JD, Shareholder, Perkins Thompson, P.A.

Taxes How-To

Deadlines, deductions, and student loan credits? No reason to dread tax day any longer! Senior auditor Andrew Murry, CPA/MBA, spoke about who, how, and when to file your taxes.

Financing your 20s: Budgeting and Saving

Featured experts included: 

Helen Andreoli, Bates ’92, VP of Wealth Management, UBS
George Carr, Bates ’07, VP and Portfolio Manager, RM Davis
Kelsey Gillespie, Community Marketing Manager, Casco Bay FCU
Nate Hull, Associate, Verill Dana and speaker, Credit Abuse Resistance Education

Roommates and Renting 

Wondering what to expect or ask while looking for an apartment? How do you decide whether you will have roommates or not? Students joined a conversation on planning and brainstorming strategies for renting and living with roommates.

Renting in NYC and Beyond

Moving to a city after graduation? Learn about apartment shopping! This presentation offered great advice for thinking about working with landlords, finding an apartment, and affording what you find – using New York as the example for what to consider with any large city. Featuring NYC Realtor Lauren Carter from Cooper and Cooper Real Estate.  Topics included: Neighborhoods & Subways, The Application Process, Paperwork Requirements, Income & Credit Guidelines and more. See slides here.

How to Apartment

All you need to know about leases and contracts, rental insurance, finding the right place, communicating with landlords, getting your deposit back.

Guest speakers included:
Vince Ciampi, Bates ’12, Broker, CBRE The Boulos Company
Hawley Strait, Bates ’00, Real Estate Attorney, Bernstein Shur

First Generation Cat’ Chat

First-gen Bates alumni shared their first-generation stories, Bates experiences, and offered advice for entering the workforce. This discussion was moderated by Charlene Holmes, Assistant Dean for First Generation Student Support and included the following guest alumni:

Afroz Baig ’11, Associate Attorney at McGillivary Steele Elkin LLP

Mike Hogan ’85, Vice President, Chief Compliance Officer CSIM at Charles Schwab

Chris Barbin ’93, Venture Partner at GGV Capital, Entrepreneur & Advisor

Identity in the Workplace

Larry Handerhan ’05, President of the Alumni Association, and fellow panelists Kim Trauceniek (Student Life), Roy Montgomery (OIE) and Carolyn Starks (Admission), led a discussion about how, when, if… to be yourself in the workplace. Larry is the Chief of Staff for the D.C. Department of Human Services, previously worked at HUD for several years, and holds an MPA from the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University.

Friends and Fun: Finding Community After Bates

We know, we know. You don’t want to think about it. But you’ve told us loud and clear that when it gets real, your biggest fear is how to make and keep friends after Bates. How does it work when you’re not 24/7 living and eating with hundreds of your peers and your best friends?

Life After Bates: How to Survive and Thrive

A frank talk with recent Bates grads about how they transitioned from life after Bates and share tips and tricks for students who will soon be in their shoes! Topics include: friendships, wellness, apartment living, work-life balance, and more!