By ABBY BRAVO
Editor-in-Chief
Saint Rose communications alumni Paige DeSorbo came back to campus for the first time since her graduation in 2015 to talk to students about her career post-college.
Since her graduation, DeSorbo has moved to New York City, starred on multiple Bravo reality shows including “Summer House,” “Winter House,” and “Southern Charm,” as well as hosting her own Amazon Live hour titled “The Paige DeSorbo Show.” In addition, she hosts a podcast, “Giggly Squad,” with one of her friends and co-stars from “Summer House” among other business endeavors.
She was accompanied by Therese Stillman, senior director for institutional advancement at the College. “It was an absolute delight to be Paige’s host for her recent campus visit… She was warm, funny, and genuinely interested in changes at the College,” wrote Stillman in an email.
DeSorbo’s return to campus brought a lot of excitement, and students were welcomed into Studio G3 in Hearst where she gave a talk accompanied by communications professor Shawn McIntosh. She also was able to sit down with members of Saint Rose Television for a similar interview.
Students asked her questions during the talk with McIntosh about her and her experiences as a reality TV show personality.
Students enjoyed the time they had listening to Paige, and they got to see more than her TV show personality. “I thought she was super put together and really professional, I feel like I really learned a lot from her,” said communications student Emma Cicchetti.
Students also asked how she used her degree from Saint Rose to propel her social media presence, and her advice about college ranging from if someone is a freshman to about to graduate. DeSorbo also discussed the importance of self-branding and the importance of social media.
Throughout her time at Saint Rose, DeSorbo lived at her parents’ home about ten minutes away from campus. Her parents were always a very supportive presence in her life and encouraged her to try new things. She said they never doubted her and told her to follow her dreams, even if they were scary.
“I truly, especially as I get older, can’t believe how supportive they really are. Even just like moving to New York after college. When your 21 year old daughter says ‘I’m moving to New York, like see ya’ I’m sure that’s terrifying,” DeSorbo said in her interview with Saint Rose Television. In regards to “Summer House” she credits them for the encouragement. “It was really them that were like, ‘why don’t you just try it? Who cares?… You only have things to gain, and if you hate it, you never have to do it again,’” she said.
She was very honest about her career shifts and what her first jobs out of college were like for her before she joined “Summer House.” “She reassured our students that you don’t have to know exactly what your grand plan is… hard work, persistence, networking and self-knowledge were the key ingredients she referred back to repeatedly when she told her story,” wrote Stillman.
DeSorbo also told anecdotes about her years in college and the plans she had for graduation in her interviews.
“When I graduated college, I wrote on a piece of paper five to ten things I wanted to accomplish before I was 25 and I completely forgot about that piece of paper. When I went to move apartments at 26 I found it and had done everything on the list and hadn’t even realized it,” said Desorbo.
DeSorbo’s message to the campus gave hope and reassurance to students that everything will come together for them and they will find where they belong, just like she did.
