DREAM Industry Mentorship Speaker series connects students with experienced professionals from a variety of tech and destination companies who help them create a vision for their futures, align their careers around purpose, and build character in the context of growth, reinvention, and constant change. Industry mentors discuss how professional challenges present opportunities for character and leadership development.

Speakers offer mentorship based on real life and deep professional experience. They are vivid moral exemplars who are accessible and authentic. As mentors, they are willing to connect directly with students, engage with them, and expand their professional networks.

DREAM was founded in 2014 as a series of distinguished guest speakers in Prof. Weiss’s WRIT 340 class, and presented alongside the Dream Pitch, an original assignment that sets students on a journey of self-discovery where they create a vision for their future, identify their purpose, and develop an actionable road map to realizing their greatest professional aspirations. Many students regard the Dream Pitch as a life transformative experience, impacting them long after graduation.

DREAM events are open to the entire USC community, including faculty, staff, and alumni. Events are produced at Viterbi and frequently co-sponsored with other schools, departments, and organizations across USC. This series advances the professional development and practice of emerging engineers and other professionals.