College to Career: Al Schwartz
L&S editorial intern Bailey Nachreiner-Mackesey asks alumni for career advice for liberal arts students.
“What’s your major?” It’s a question that students like me get asked all the time. Answering that question and actually picking a college major can be a daunting process. With 65 undergraduate majors and 39 certificates in the College of Letters & Science, the options can seem endless and the paths after the major permanent. In College to Career, I catch up with L&S alumni working in different fields and professions and ask them for their advice, tips and tricks for choosing a major, finding a job and developing as a professional.
Al Schwartz
B.S. Communication Arts, 1953 Producer Hollywood, Calf.
Al never planned on studying television production when he arrived at UW-Madison. But after getting involved with several performance organizations, he launched a club for freelance performers. Al’s liberal arts degree has taken him from early days of WKOW radio in Madison to live performance scheduling for the United States military in Tokyo, to television and film production in Chicago and then to Hollywood.
3Qs with Al Schwartz
If a student or a parent is worried that a liberal arts degree isn’t going to prepare them for a career, what would you say?
Everything I learned and did at UW-Madison became the basis for what I was able to do later in my life. It was a series of baby steps that got me a job at WKOW, and from WKOW to walking into CBS in Chicago, and then in an unimaginable world of people in Hollywood. To me, Wisconsin was the most important thing that ever happened in my life — it led me here.
What skills are necessary for success in your job? And did having a background in the liberal arts help you develop these skills?
Absolutely. The whole reason for an education is to learn as much as you can. Often I’m asked, “What does a producer do?” And I say, “A producer is a lot like the manager of a baseball team. He gets the best players he can, puts them together and hopes that the product comes out as a winner.” My career has been putting those pieces together. The other thing I learned early in my education is that I can’t do it by myself. Everything in this world is collaboration. So, you’ve got to get yourself around the people who do things and do things with them.
If you could give young professionals looking to find a fulfilling career one piece of advice, what would it be?
Years ago I hosted a talk-show called “At Random” and, one night, somebody asked Jimmy Durante (television actor and friend of Schwartz) about his definition of success. He said, “Success is doing what you like to do and getting paid for it.” That stuck with me and I really tried to impress that upon my kids. I always told them, “Keep doing what you like to do, don’t let anyone tell you what you should be doing.”
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After speaking with Al, my two biggest takeaways as a student are:
1. No job or task is too small, and each one is an opportunity to learn new skills that will get you closer to where you ultimately want to be. 2. Seek out opportunities that interest you and do things you are passionate about and you will find fulfillment in whatever career you end up in.
Behind the Blog: Hello! My name is Bailey Nachreiner-Mackesey and I am a junior majoring in journalism and political science. College to Career is a series of interviews with alumni featuring advice on achieving career goals and how to best market and utilize your liberal arts skills.