Dan D’Alberto came to USC from upstate New York and he continues to live and work in South Carolina as a managing director at an investment banking company. Dan graduated in 1997 with a degree in Political Science, and his overall experience at the university gave him every opportunity that he could imagine. “I really got a holistic college experience through Arts & Sciences and it made a difference for me. The academics were top notch, the student living experiences were amazing and there was the potential to be involved from day one in everything that I wanted to do. Add to that the resources of such a large state university, the different types of classes, and of course, SEC sports, and I had everything right there in front of me.”

Dan was a member of the Honors College and took several philosophy classes that especially shaped his time at USC. “I took a couple of classes with my thesis advisor and it was extraordinary. It was the first time I remember really feeling challenged. With a class like philosophy, I actually learned a different way to think as opposed to learning a different skill set. It really changed how I approach relationships, and the way I engage in critical thinking. Acquiring that kind of knowledge applies to every decision you’ll ever make in life.”

Yes, I learned skills, but more importantly I learned to think.

Upon graduation, Dan attended Florida State University and earned his Masters in Higher Education, and then came back to South Carolina to earn his Juris Doctor from the university’s School of Law. He continues to be very connected to the university, serving on the Alumni Council for the College of Arts and Sciences, and a year ago he was honored to received the college’s Distinguished Young Alumnus Award.

Recently, Dan and his wife, who also is a USC alumna, got together with old college roommates and their families for a reunion in Columbia.  We don’t know for sure, but we suspect Dan may have had the shortest trip to the reunion since the Horseshoe is only a couple of blocks from his firm’s office on Gervais Street.