UVM Career Center Blog

October 24, 2013

Is the Job Fair for YOU?

Yes!

Most people know that a Job Fair is for people seeking jobs, internships, and volunteer opportunities. Did you know it is also for those who want to get ideas, explore options and gather information? You don’t have to be actively searching for specific job to attend.

A key part of the career journey is having conversations, exploring what is out there and practicing presenting yourself and your interests. You can do all of that at the Job Fair. You can also learn about companies, industries, jobs, and opportunities.

No matter what your reason for attending, you should come prepared. Dress professionally. Bring a resume and an impressive handshake. Why? Because 100 employers are coming to meet you!

Put the date in your calendar:
Job Fair
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
2:00pm – 5:00pm
Davis Center 4^th Floor

Still feeling nervous about attending?

Review the Career Center FAQs and Preparation and Tips. If you want more support, talk to a Career Center staff member. Quick (10 minute) consults, resume reviews, and questions can be explored during Drop-ins at the Career + Experience Hub, M-Th: 1-4pm and Fr: 1-3pm.

Do more than just wonder about your future. Explore options. Talk to employers.

~Jill

October 22, 2013

World of Work: Allie Schwartz ’11, LinkedIn

By career

Allie Schwartz ‘11
Relationship Management Specialist
LinkedIn
New York, NY
Major: Community Entrepreneurship
www.linkedin.com/in/allieschwartz

How would you describe what you do on a typical day?

I build and maintain relationships with our clients. I help ensure our clients see success from our tools and I am constantly in contact with them. I support a team of six relationship managers and all of their accounts. We collaborate to create a strategic plan for their accounts.

Tell us about your path to this position.

If you told me during senior year of college that I would be working at LinkedIn a year after graduation, I would have called you crazy. I spent every summer in college interning to find out what I was interested in. I learned a lot about the corporate world and myself. Through that experience I started to figure out what I liked and didn’t like and what skills came naturally and the ones I needed to work on.

During my senior year, I really started to think about what I wanted to do and who I wanted to be. I knew I wanted to be in the marketing/sales industry, but that was vague. After graduation, I spent three months networking with everyone and anyone to pinpoint what I wanted. In September of 2011, I landed a job at a small digital video branding agency. Because it was so small, I took on a lot of responsibilities and learned a lot.

After nine months, I was recruited by someone at LinkedIn. I never expected to be recruited for a role, I only knew myself as an active candidate. Since starting at LinkedIn, I haven’t stopped learning. Every day there is something new to discover. For me, the learning curve hasn’t stopped. I continuously try to find new ways to learn.

What advice do you have for students searching for jobs or internships in your field?

Three words: network, network, network. That word was said more times in my house than any other word, both throughout my college years and to this day. From the beginning of my college career, my dad encouraged me to connect with different people in all different roles. After meeting with just one person, I would have a list of 3-5 other people to connect with. Each of those people would have a list of people for me to connect with. It was a domino effect. Just because someone isn’t at the company you want to be at, doesn’t mean they don’t know someone who is. You never know who you’re going to meet and who they happen to know. Networking isn’t just about getting a job; networking can help you with becoming a member of a board, getting a new client, a recommendation, grad school and much more.

How did your time at UVM, both in and out of the classroom, prepare you for your position?

My time at UVM prepared me for this position in more ways than I can imagine. In the classroom, a lot of my classes required group projects. In my current role, while I make my own calls, we all collaborate together on tips and strategies, emails that work and that don’t work, we even help each other make calls. Outside of the classroom, it was meeting so many different people. The majority of my friends are from the New England area and all come from different backgrounds. They all have taught me different things and honestly, made my four years at UVM amazing. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t reference someone from UVM in some sort of way.

October 10, 2013

8 Reasons To Pursue an Internship

By career

Wondering if you should go to the Internship Hop (I-Hop)? Here are eight reasons to check out the internship possibilities!

1.) Gain experience

Not only is an internship a great experience to list on your resume, but it’s also a great opportunity to learn more about your chosen field.

2.) Test out a career field

One of the most valuable parts of an internship is deciding what you like (and don’t like) about a particular job or field. An internship is a short-term opportunity that gives you a chance to test drive career areas. One of my own best career experiences was having a short-term position as an EMT — because I realized that it was a job that did not suit me. I was so relieved to learn that it wasn’t a good fit early on, rather than after I spent time, energy, and money on more training!

3.) Earn credit

UVM has multiple ways that students can earn credit for internships. Check out our website to learn more: http://www.uvm.edu/~career/?Page=internships.html

4.) Develop professional skills

Having on-the-job experience means that you get to use the tools, technology, and protocols of that company or industry. These skills can help you as you begin your job search.

5.) Create contacts for your network

You never know who will be your future employer — or who might introduce you to your future employer down the line. The contacts you make during your internship can be invaluable for breaking into that particular field.

6.) Build confidence

The truth is, once you’ve done something, you will have the confidence to know that you can do it again. When you sit down for an interview as a recent grad, you will be able to look the interviewer in the eye and say, “Yes, I DO have experience doing this kind of work — and I’ve gotten good at it.”

7.) Apply your knowledge in a hands-on way

You may have learned the theory and frameworks of a certain subject, and an internship gives the opportunity to actually put that theoretical knowledge into practice.

8.) Make an impact

You may think of interns being assigned routine entry level work, but often interns tackle challenging projects that require an extra set of hands (or an additional head) to complete. Interns can even have a true, meaningful impact on the world around them. As an example, check out Gabe the Intern, who helped save a gay couple from being separated by deportation minutes after the DOMA decision was issued. Meaningful internships in Vermont can include work with any number of change-making organizations. The United Way currently lists over 300 opportunities in Chittenden County: volunteer.truist.com/chittenden/volunteer/

Need some resources to get started? Come to the Internship Hop on October 16^th from 1:30-4:00 p.m. in the Career Center, Living & Learning E Building, and check out these 6 Strategies to Find Your Summer Internship. At the I-Hop, you can browse our resources, connect with career counselors for a personalized internship search, check out listings, and see where other UVM students have done internships. The Job Fair on October 30th will be another great opportunity to find an internship by talking to employers.

Make this the year you get career experience by doing an internship!

~Amanda

October 3, 2013

Savvy Seniors: Resume Writing- Some Things to Consider

By career

Drafting a resume can be daunting, but if you’re not going to take the time to do it well, don’t bother at all. Competition is tough out there, so get it right.

Here are a few things to consider:

Limit the experience you include

Only include the most relevant work experience, the stuff that pertains to job your trying to get. Each application you write should be tailored specifically to that position.

Make an impression with your verb selection

When describing work experience, choose verbs that pack a punch. Such phrases as “worked on,” or “contributed to,” won’t impress. Lead with something that allows your work to stand out like “ designed,” or “implemented.”

Typos are your worst enemy

Granted we all make mistakes, but no hiring manager is going to be impressed if your resume is ridden with spelling errors. It pins you as careless, even lazy. Take the time to check, double check and triple check your work. And it never hurt to get a second pair of eyes to go over your stuff.

Formatting is imperative

Are your margins even? Bullets lined up? Have you included dates and headings in a consistent way? Is it easy to read and visually appealing? Be mindful of all these point. Your sloppiness will be noted.

Join us for the next Senior Workshop with special guest the HowardCenter to learn more about how to make your resume shine!

SENIORS LUNCH + LEARN: RESUMES 2.0

Thursday Oct. 10 12 – 1 PM, Career + Experience Hub

~Alexa Mucklow, Social Media Associate
Kelliher Samets Volk

September 26, 2013September 17, 2015

Taking the Grad School Search Offline

By career

When students come to the Career Center to discuss their graduate school search, we find that the conversation frequently starts from one of two places. Either students are looking for tools to begin their online search or have researched some programs online and are not sure what’s next.

There is undoubtedly an important role for the Internet in any graduate school search, but there’s an equally important place for conversations with admissions representatives that can help to illuminate information that will not soon be found on a school or program’s website.

It can be scary to consider talking to someone who may ultimately be evaluating your application, but you also want to equip yourself with as much information as you can get before making the all too important decisions about which schools to apply to and which school to attend.

Also, there are real advantages to having a phone or in-person conversation with an admissions representative. You can use such a conversation to express your interest in their program, which may give your application a boost. And by preparing ahead of time and demonstrating high levels of professionalism, you can further impress your schools of interest.

Unsure what type of questions to ask as you continue your graduate school search process? Here are a few ideas to get you started. Continue the conversation by speaking with a Career Counselor during our Drop-In Hours at the Career + Experience Hub in the Davis Center.

~Ashley Michelle

UVM Career Center Blog

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