Category Archives: Career Advice
Wrap Up Your Internship Like a Boss
Itâs party time because youâve almost made it through your summer internship! Youâve learned new things and grown professionally. Youâve become a significant part of the team. Whether you are sad to skedaddle or ready to roll, how you leave is just as important as how you arrived. Here are some tips for wrapping up your internship in a professional manner! What will they do without you?
Reflect
Internships are like swimming in the kiddie pool. Itâs the same water the professional swimmers use, only itâs specifically constructed for learning. In other words, internships are the time to test the waters and even pick up some new strokes. After âsplashing around,â perhaps you know that you are in the right area, or maybe you need to explore another career path.
Make a list and reflect on things you liked about your experience and things you didnât. What did the …
Intern-to-Hire Calls Indy âHomeâ
The journey Alex Eaton embarked on after his sophomore year has come full circle.
A recent Indiana University graduate, Eaton, utilized Indiana INTERNnet to apply for an internship position at Pete the Planner, a small financial wellness company based in Indianapolis founded by Peter Dunn. Dunn is an author, radio personality and financial expert.
Now, Eaton has transitioned into his new full-time role as the Director of eLearning at Pete the Planner.
While his job involves marketing Pete the Plannerâs online platforms, he wears many hats during the day.
âIâm reaching out to a perspective client and starting the sales process, Iâm running the actual product demos all the way to helping sign them on as clients, and Iâm working with them once they are clients to make sure everything is working,â Eaton explains.
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âIf you can find more situations where you donât know what …
Paige Prather: Making an IMPACT
Indiana INTERNnet celebrated internship excellence on Feb. 4, 2015, at the 9th Annual IMPACT Awards luncheon. Though the event is over and the winners have been announced, we are continuing to celebrate the nomineesâ successes.
These are their stories.
Indiana INTERNnet: You were a long-time intern with Angieâs List and worked your way up to a full-time position. How did your internship help you get to this point?
Paige Prather: I started interning with Angieâs List the summer after my freshman year of college (May 2012). As an intern, one of the areas I assisted with frequently was Talent Acquisition. When I graduated in December 2014 from Marian University, there was an opening in the Talent Acquisition department. I still went through the process like an external candidate. My internship helped me to be offered a full-time role because of my depth of knowledge about the company, great working relationships with managers in …
Matthew Uhls: Making an IMPACT
Indiana INTERNnet celebrated internship excellence on Feb. 4, 2015, at the 9th Annual IMPACT Awards luncheon. Though the event is over and the winners have been announced, we are continuing to celebrate the nomineesâ successes.
These are their stories.
IIN: Tell me about your academic path and how some of your other internships supplemented that.
MU: I majored in Classical Studies with the intention of being a foreign language teacher. But, as college set in and I started thinking about career paths, I realized how competitive Classical Studies can be. So, I thought about other opportunities that would be impactful on people lives.
I realized financial services is something almost everyone needs guidance with. I was hired for the Northwestern Mutual summer program selling life, property and casualty insurance. I utterly failed at this; I’m not a very good salesman.
After graduating from IU Bloomington, I struggled with what to …
The New Era of Marketing
Clayton Maddox is a content marketing intern with National Trade Supply, LLC in Greenwood, IN. He assists with social media accounts, creating content, graphic design, and PPC advertising.
The 60s are often called the Golden Age of Advertising.
âMad Menâ like Donald Draper were the pioneers, with beautifully crafted stories and ideas rolling off the tongue one after the other. The interns only dreamed that they could ever be as witty and cool as them. All ideas were destined for TV, print, billboard or radio.
That was 50 years ago though, and the marketing and advertising industry has changed immensely. Fedoras, plaid suits, smoking and drinking at work are all gone. Even though change is rapid, itâs time marketing classes incorporate modern aspects of marketing.
Creatives like Donald Draper are still essential for marketing agencies, but thereâs a whole new side to marketing that wasnât covered in any of …
Evan Langbehn: Making an IMPACT
Indiana INTERNnet celebrated internship excellence on Feb. 4, 2015, at the 9th Annual IMPACT Awards luncheon. Though the event is over and the winners have been announced, we are continuing to celebrate the nomineesâ successes.
These are their stories.
IIN: You were the first junior to serve as the Career Center for Opportunities (CCO) Ambassador Coordinator Intern. Tell us about your responsibilities in that role and what it meant to be trusted with that as a junior?
EL: As the Ambassador Coordinator Intern, I helped manage 12 student ambassadors to ensure proper training, growth and performance while they supported the Purdue student body with professional development. This included the planning of a two-day onboarding session, bi-weekly training sessions, schedule creation and monitoring, evaluations and goal setting, as well as project management.
Having all these responsibilities as a junior really grew my leadership abilities and taught me time management and …
Lucas Hill: Making an IMPACT
Indiana INTERNnet celebrated internship excellence on Feb. 4, 2015, at the 9th Annual IMPACT Awards luncheon. Though the event is over and the winners have been announced, we are continuing to celebrate the nomineesâ successes.
These are their stories.
IIN: You were a long-time intern with Modern Woodmen of America and worked your way up to a full-time position. Can you tell me more about your career path so far and how the internship helped you get to this point?
LH: I interned with Modern Woodmen in Greenwood during the spring of my junior year in 2013. Then, I interned in a Modern Woodmen branch in the Chicago area during the summer of 2013. My senior year, I worked at a local bank. Then, I decided to go back to Modern Woodmen full-time after graduation.
I studied finance and always knew that I wanted to get into a career …
Use emails as a valuable internship search tool
Many job and internship searches today begin at a computer. Whether it is following up with a recruiter from a career fair or sending a blind email after seeing a posting on a job board, chances are youâll send your resume and cover letter via email.
Great Resumes Fast recently compiled a list of errors people make when sending their application information online. Be sure to avoid these costly mistakes to keep your email out of the trash folder.
Donât get attached: While it makes sense to attach both your resume and cover letter to an email, itâs likely that the recruiter will ignore your cover letter entirely. Theyâll opt to view your resume only. Instead, copy and paste it to the body of your email below your message, where itâs much more accessible. Keep it short and sweet: Recruitersâ time is precious. Donât waste it on unnecessary details. Include …
Don’t let experience keep you from a job
Nothing should stop you from going after your dream internship or job.
That being said, professional experience does not always match job requirements, especially for new graduates. Even if you have little to no relevant experience or are applying for your first internship, you can make your resume stand out to potential employers. The Muse offers these tips to impress when looking for a position in a brand new industry:
Focus on transferable skills: Let your past jobs and academic work speak for themselves. Skills like communication and collaboration are universal, and should be a focal point of your resume. If you are proficient in certain types of software, this is the place to tell employers. Once they know your capabilities, they can integrate them into the position to build on your strengths. Donât disregard the classroom: Long-term projects and academic work are particularly important resume points for new …
College seniors: utilize career services
Rising seniors headed back to school face a year of important decisions. Between going out as often as possible and procuring a class schedule that begins at noon, the concept of applying for full-time jobs is an overwhelming task.
Career development professionals and college/university career centers are great resources for students looking for jobs, and a new National Association of for Colleges and Employers (NACE) study of more than 43,000 college seniors (http://bit.ly/1slNS9Z) demonstrates that more students are flocking to these offices than ever before.
The 2014 Student Survey, which NACE will release in its entirety this fall, shows a 7% increase from 2013 in the number of students visiting their schoolsâ career centers more than once, representing an all-time high.
Tellingly, students who reported using these career centers were more likely to have a job upon graduation. These offices are a great way to attain job leads and career …
The easiest (and best) ways to stand out
Organizations, large and small alike, are frequently spread thin. Especially as an intern, it can even be tempting to fly under the radar. Come in, do your assigned tasks and make as few ripples as possible before the end of the day.
Getting noticed for the right reasons, however, can dramatically improve your career trajectory. As Brazen Careerist explains, small actions elicit big rewards.
One of the easiest ways to draw all the right kinds of attention is to start each day on time. Very few people (Iâd argue no sane people) enjoy waking up before the sun to head to a job, no matter how fulfilling their careers are. That being said, arriving on time shows dedication and boosts your efficiencyâmake an effort to be prompt.
The minor details that send impressive messages donât stop with your morning routine. Make eye contact with your boss and other coworkers; it …
Internship reveals new career path
This is a guest blog by Melinda Frazee, a student at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College (SMWC). She is finishing a major in Psychology and a minor in Sociology. She recently completed an internship with Crawfordsville High School.
Like many interns, I went into my internship questioning my qualifications. I was not sure what I would be able to take away from the program as I am only an undergrad in psychology. But I learned so much about the job, and even about myself!
During my internship with Crawfordsville High School, I was able to take charge of four groups of teenagers and hold discussion hours where we would discuss topics focused on diversity. Through this experience, I learned that I am flexible and a fast learner, as this was a completely new and somewhat uncomfortable situation. Iâm proud that I was able to make it work. The ability to roll …
The 3 R’s of motivation
By now, the shine has worn off of many summer internships. The first week butterflies are gone, and the faces in the office are more familiar than fresh. As the days grow longer and warmer, it is prime time for motivation to wane. However, there are some easy ways to keep enthusiasm and productivity high when dragging yourself out of bed and into the office seems like a chore.
Review your goals: Chances are, you came into your internship with a list of skills you wanted to improve or tasks you wanted to accomplish. Assess how many of those goals youâve reached and what you still need to do to finish the others. This will give you a sense of accomplishment in what youâve done so far while inspiring you to reach for your remaining goals. Mid-internship reviews with your supervisor and mentor can also be a good time to …
Answering the hardest question
Interviews are notoriously stressful. From your resume to your clothes and posture, it is no wonder interviewees often get little sleep before the big day. Augmenting this stress is the fact that one of the hardest questions always comes at the end.
âWhat questions do you have for us?â
Every job candidate expects it, but it still presents a challenge, especially if the recruiter already covered some of the ones you had prepared. While saying that all of your questions have been answered is clearly not the right response, many find it difficult to think on their feet. Luckily, there are some tried and true themes that can help guide your questions and show the recruiter that you want to know more about the position and organization.
Any place where you spend the majority of your days should share your values, so it helps to ask the recruiter what values …
‘I had the opportunity to not just observe, but participate’
‘IThis is a guest blog by Aleah Wieland, a student at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College (SMWC). She recently completed an internship with the Criminal Investigations Division of the Terre Haute Police Department.
In the spring of 2014, while attending Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, I had the opportunity to intern for the Terre Haute Police Department. I specifically interned with the Criminal Investigations Division (CID). I learned what detectives do on a daily basis, and I was given the opportunity to not just observe, but participate in a variety of day-to-day tasks.
The detectives of the Terre Haute Police Department CID are given many cases and tasks to keep them busy throughout the day. Each day, the detectives are assigned a case. These cases are assigned according to crime allegedly committed and the specialization of the detective (property crimes, violent crimes, white-collar crime, etc.). The steps necessary to either suspend or close …