Category Archives: Young Professionals
Graduation in GIFs
May is the month of graduation! Students will proudly don their caps and gowns while hoping they donât trip on the stage. Hereâs a collection of GIFs to help prepare you for that special day.
The pride of completing your degree
The satisfaction of completing your degree is hard to beat. Youâve spent years attending classes, studying, working on projects and stressing over exams. Now, youâre hard work is being rewarded by a diploma. You should feel proud of yourself, graduating is a major accomplishment. As Kelly from The Office would say, âYouâre, like, really smart now.â
Thinking about continuing your education?
This is a question youâre going to hear a lot when you graduate. âWhat is your next step?â âAre you considering graduate school?â It can be a difficult decision. You should weigh your options and decide what is best for you. If youâre like …
The End of Spring Semester According to âNew Girlâ
Each April brings a lot of stress to college students. It signifies the approaching end of the spring semester. The characters of New Girl seem to understand the stress of college at this time of year.
Letâs be honest, a college student is usually stretched for time anyways. As finals are approaching, time becomes more strained. Trying to find a few minutes to eat can seem impossible. Just remember, food and water are essential to human life.
The spring semester brings prospective students to campus to tour the grounds and crowd the line at the coffee shop. If youâre in the thick of finals week, these fresh-faced young people may seem foreign to you. Just remember, you were once in the same position they are in, and one day they will be in yours.
At some point, youâre going to realize what …
Meet Chelsea DuKate, Central Indiana Regional Coordinator
In 2015, Indiana INTERNnet launched regional initiatives to increase the number of experiential learning opportunities available to Indiana students. Chelsea DuKate, founder and president of Red Envelope Consulting, is working with employers in Central Indiana at every stage of internship management from development to recruiting to evaluation.
Indiana INTERNnet: Why are internships more important than ever for employers?
Chelsea DuKate: Besides the general benefits of enhanced productivity and gaining a potential new diverse perspective, employers also have an opportunity to better engage with the early career community. Internship programs can serve as a âselection methodâ of sorts for full-time positions within their organization.
Studies have shown that interns hired full-time tend to be more loyal to that organization, which directly impacts labor and turnover costs. Other benefits include the company marketing that goes along with having interns and the increased name recognition and employment branding opportunities.
IIN: How are you helping …
Write a Compelling Internship Posting, Part I
Summer internship season is quickly approaching. This is Part I of a three-part series on crafting internship postings that will attract qualified candidates on Indiana INTERNnet and elsewhere.
Writing an internship description can be a challenge. Human psychology plays a major role in whether or not candidates will be interested in the position or skip to the next. The description has to catch their attention, but not overwhelm them with information. Here are some tips to help perfect your posting.
Position Title
Be descriptive â never use “Intern” for the title of a position. Thatâs like saying âStaff Memberâ for the position of Executive Director of Financial Services. What kind of intern are you looking for? Use the job description as a guide. If the intern will be performing legal services, use “Legal Intern” or âLaw Student Intern.â
Organization Biography
There should be a short description of your …
Employer Feature: Dunes Learning Center
Northwest Indiana is brimming with opportunity for young professionals. One organization that truly exhibits internship excellence is Dunes Learning Center. Located in Chesterton, the organization offers internships as camp counselor and interpretive naturalist. We spoke with the Education Director, Erin Crofton, about their program.
Indiana INTERNnet: What exactly is the Dunes Learning Center and what role do you play in the organization?
Erin Crofton: Dunes Learning Center is a national model for place-based residential environmental education. Operating in partnership with the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, Dunes Learning Center educators provide year-round curriculum and standards-based learning experiences in nature. Our trained education staff and 63-acre campus located inside Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore are truly unique and valuable resources.
As the Education Director, I lead education staff and programs. This includes program development, implementation, education staff recruitment, training, supervision and evaluation.
IIN: Why is the Dunes Learning Center …
The Frustration of Not Knowing
Geneva Heerschap is currently enrolled at Butler University where she is studying Marketing. In 2015, she spent a semester abroad in the Netherlands. Heerschap is the spring marketing and public relations intern at Crossroads of America Council, Boy Scouts of America.Â
As person that likes to be the one who knows it all, it can be rather frustrating to come into an internship and realize you know less than you thought. The purpose of an internship is to grow and become more knowledgeable about a chosen field of interest. Facing the reality that you know less than what you thought can be hard to grasp.
For one my first projects, I had to write a press release. Once completed, I felt confident in my work, but when I got it back I realized I still had more to learn. It was a bit shocking at first since I hadnât met this …
March Madness: Internship Style
March is here! Flowers are blooming, students are relaxing during their spring breaks and the NCAA basketball tournament is in full swing. If you arenât a basketball fanatic, March Madness may not be important to you. We will take a different approach to March Madness by relating it to searching for internships.
Selection Sunday
In basketball, this is the day the NCAA Division I Menâs Basketball Committee reveals which teams have been selected to compete. In searching for internships, this is when you select the industry youâre interested in. If youâre searching for a marketing internship, determine if youâd rather intern at a marketing agency, non-profit organization, etc. There are many options out there, so do your research!
Sweet 16
This is the round of 16 basketball teams that have made it this far in the tournament. Once you have selected the industry, you can search for organizations. …
Make the Most of Spring Break
Spring breaks are this month for many high schools, colleges and universities. You may be planning to kick back and relax for a week, but hereâs a list of productive activities you could do instead.
1 . Catch up on homework
This may sound boring, but the end of the semester brings deadlines for projects youâve been putting off. You donât have to spend every day at the library studying for those final exams coming up in May. Use this time to catch up, so you donât fall behind later. Dedicate a few hours throughout the week to work on assignments.
2 . Get organized
Students have busy lives, which can leave little time for organization. Use this free time to clean out your backpack and organize your notes. If you have the momentum, clean and organize your room/apartment/house. Spring is almost here, you can get a head start …
How to Rock a Career Fair
Last week I had the opportunity to attend the Collegiate Career Expo. I experienced both sides of the table; employer and student/job seeker. This yearâs event was held in the Marriott hotel in downtown Indianapolis. Itâs a great venue, with delicious coffee and tea!
After registering as a student, I was given a self-adhesive name tag and a map of the different employer booths. The self-adhesive tag would eventually become my enemy. It would constantly pull my hair out and at one point it relocated itself to the back of my arm. My advice is to purchase a plastic sleeve for name badges. This way you can insert the one they give you and clip it into place.
My next piece of advice for students is to find a spot before entering the fair, if possible, and study the map of employers. In this case, there were …
7 Ways “The Office” Relates to College Life
1 . Struggling through another PowerPoint presentation.
All professors have a different style of teaching. Some will write material on the dry-erase board, provide printed materials for you to follow along with, or utilize the magical PowerPoint presentation. PowerPoint is a great tool for classroom lectures, but you might only get half of your notes if youâre a slow writer. Professors may post these presentations for the class on Blackboard or Canvas. If not, students have resorted to taking photographs of the slides using their phones and later copying the information into their notes.
2 . Spending hours writing a paper and forgetting to click save.
This might have been the worst moment in Kevinâs life, spending all that time cooking the chili, bringing it to work, carrying it up the stairs only to spill it before anyone has a chance to taste it. The …
Making an IMPACT: Sara Jones
The IMPACT Awards Employer of the Year is netlogx! We had a chance to interview one of the employees of netlogx, Sara Jones. Sara started as an intern with the organization and made her way to becoming a full-time consultant. She is a true story of a successful internship!
Indiana INTERNnet: What attracted you to intern at netlogx?
Sara Jones: When I started as an intern at netlogx, I did not have a very deep understanding of netlogx services, but I did know that netlogx was a growing small business with a great culture, which really appealed to me.
IIN: What learning experiences and projects did you have during your internship?
SJ: During my internship, I was able to take ownership of several internal administrative initiatives, but also was assigned part-time to a client project. Being part of the project team was incredibly valuable because it gave me the …
Steps to Prep for Graduation
Spring is almost here and itâs time to start thinking about graduation. College graduation is much different than high school. Teachers arenât going to hold your hand throughout the process, you have to take the initiative to get the ball rolling.
1 . Make sure youâre ready to graduate
Contact your advisor and verify you have completed all the requirements for your degree. Many students run into being a class or two short of completion. If thatâs the case, you may have to take classes over the summer, but could still walk in the graduation ceremony.
2Â . Order your cap and gown
Many students are opting out of participating in the graduation ceremony. Maybe you agree, but you have put so much work into earning this degree that you deserve the recognition. This is a special day for you and your family to celebrate your great accomplishment. You …
Interview Tips: Harry Potter Style
1. Research the organization before the interview
Before an interview you should research the organization. No need to spend hours in the Restricted Section at Hogwarts; simply find out what its mission is, who the key staff members are, who its audience is, etc. This shows you are willing to put forth the effort and are interested in the organization. After your research, think of something the organization is doing well. For example, âthe companyâs presence on social media is great, however I could help increase awareness on Twitter.â Then discuss how your experience would accomplish this task. If you want to take it to the next level, you could look into the challenges the organization faces and brain storm possible improvements.
2. Dress the part
First impressions are a big deal, it can negatively or positively affect the way in …
New Year, New Adventure
The New Year started with an opportunity to learn and gain real-life experience as Indiana INTERNnetâs marketing intern. In December, I had been struggling to find the perfect spring internship until I came across Indiana INTERNnet. Suddenly, there was a plethora of internship opportunities!
I am currently attending my last semester at IUPUI for public relations. I grew up near Bloomington, Indiana in the small town of Spencer. I met my fiancé, Jacob, in high school. He was a football player and I was the equipment manager. Besides football, my true passion in life is animals. I have a Pomeranian, Vada, and a grey short-haired cat, Murphy. They are the best of friends, always chasing each other around the house. After graduation, I hope to work for an animal rescue organization. In the future, I aspire to start my own organization!
Since graduation is right around the …
Gen Z: Coming to a workplace near you
In recent discussions about generational differences, Millennials dominated the conversation.
However, experts such as Nancy Ahlrichs of FlashPoint say another generation is emerging. Called âGeneration Z,â people born between 1990 and 1999 are beginning to enter the workplace. The introduction of Gen Z makes five generations in todayâs workforce: Veterans (70 and older), Boomers (Ages 51-69), Generation X (Ages 39-50), Millennials (Ages 26-38) and Generation Z (Ages 16-25).
Ahlrichs says as with Millennials, employers should consider the characteristics and expectations of Gen Z in order to foster high productivity and retain top talent.
Gen Z prefers a teaching-style of leadership rather than following orders without explanation. The preferred communication channels for Gen Z are face-to-face; tweets and texts; Instagram, Vine, Snapchat; and no phone calls/meetings. Interestingly, Gen Z typically does not use Facebook because thatâs the social media site used by their parents and grandparents. Gen Z requires feedback on …