Category Archives: Young Professionals

Each year, Indiana INTERNnet aims to celebrate the interns, employers and career development professionals that make internships exceptional at the IMPACT Awards.

Nominations for the 2014 IMPACT Awards are due on Oct. 24 by 5 p.m. EST, and time is running out to nominate your colleagues! The Feb. 4, 2015 IMPACT Awards luncheon will honor three interns of the year (high school, college and non-traditional), two employers of the year (for-profit and nonprofit) and one career development professional of the year.

To fill out our online nomination form, visit http://bit.ly/1qGHeIh and tell us how your nominee made the internship experience valuable for all those involved. Help us celebrate the benefits of internships by filling out a nomination form today!

This is a guest blog by Alecia Kissel, HR/Recruiting intern at Milliner & Associates, LLC in Indianapolis.

Since I juggle school, Speech Team, work and everything else college students are busy with, I figured I was already pretty skilled with time management.

That was until I came back for the fall semester going from 40 hours a week to 14 hours a week. I felt like a hamster running on a wheel in overdrive. Going, going, going but never really getting anywhere. The struggle is real.

This hourly transition challenged me for more than one reason. Being at work all day, every day over the summer was my life. Now I have to balance that work with school. If there are stages of senioritis, I must be at stage 5. The summer showed me what it would be like to be in the real world, and I’m ready for …

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This is a guest blog by Macy Gentry, intern at Milliner & Associates, LLC in Indianapolis. Gentry is a senior at Marian University. 

I have had a great experience thus far at M&A, and I have learned so much in a short amount of time. This internship has opened my eyes to what recruiting is. I have read about recruiting in my text books, listened to a number of lectures in class and even have recruited a little myself, but I have never been in a true recruiting environment.

Looking back to just a few weeks ago, my whole understanding of recruiting has changed. I saw recruiting firms as the people that call and just ask if you need assistance filling positions, but I was wrong. Recruiting is so much more in depth and a lot more complicated and competitive than I could have imagined.

Just having a …

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This is a guest blog by Alecia Kissel, HR/Recruiting intern at Milliner & Associates, LLC in Indianapolis. Milliner & Associates recently hired Kissel to continue her duties into the fall. 

Often I look back at past experiences and wish I knew then what I know now. If I had stepped in the door of Milliner & Associates in May and known it was going to be the best experience of my life, I would’ve hopped on the phone and started calling resumes right away. That is not an exaggeration either; being a summer intern at Milliner & Associates was the best experience of my academic, soon-to-be-professional life thus far.

Prior to this internship, I had no knowledge of staffing. Honestly, I had no idea that staffing and recruiting firms existed. Coming from someone who stepped into staffing with no experience, it is a great industry to learn about and …

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Remote internships are gaining popularity with each season. These are even more prevalent during the academic year, when remote interns can work on their own time in between classes. While there are many benefits to working from home, the temptations are obvious. With Netflix and friends beckoning, it is important to keep focused and productive when you’ve set aside time strictly for work.

Establish a routine: Just like you have a classroom and office routine, you should employ the same practices when working from home. Start your day by checking your email or another small task to set the stage for an efficient few hours of work.

Find your own “office”: If you know you won’t be able to get any productive work done lying in your bed, establish an “office” elsewhere. Whether it’s your dining room or even a coffee shop, have a set space for work that is …

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This is a guest blog by Nicole Bieker, Vice President of Operations at Milliner & Associates, LLC in Indianapolis. Milliner & Associates recently hired Alecia Kissel, former summer intern, to continue her duties into the fall. 

Please join us in welcoming Alecia Kissel back as our HR/Recruiting Intern for the fall semester. Alecia joined us in May as our summer intern, and she did such an amazing job that we invited her to return for another semester. We are so proud of her and the significant contribution that she has made to our team in a very short period of time.

Alecia is a senior at Marian University pursuing Bachelor of Arts degrees in Communication and Pastoral Music Ministry. Upon graduation, she’s looking forward to traveling abroad and pursuing a career in HR or Event Planning that allows her to create and nurture relationships in the business …

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Small details make a big difference.

If there is one place this holds especially true it’s during a job or internship search. Landing an interview may seem like half the battle, but your job as a potential hire is far from over once you leave the office. A recent Forbes article (onforb.es/1nMGfpt) provides tips for a thoughtful follow-up that will separate you from other job candidates.

Thank everyone who interviewed you individually. Be sure to make each follow-up original, as they may share them with each other. The initial thank you should be handwritten, though any additional questions can be sent via email. Pay close attention and take good notes during the interview, as these will come in handy when writing your follow-up. Talk about anecdotes or conversations from the interview. Not only does this show that you paid attention, but it can be a subtle way to remind them …

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The summer after my sophomore year, I interned and studied in London—an opportunity that left me academic and life skills I take with me each day. During my time in London, I worked for a corporate public relations firm. The internship gave me obvious work experience, but studying abroad offers so much more. Brazen Careerist’s recent blog (bit.ly/1rLjusY) shows how to convey the benefits of time overseas to future employers during an interview.

Talk up your communication skills: Even if you studied in an English-speaking country, travel abroad exposes you to people from all walks of life. Chances are you honed in on valuable communication skills that go far beyond polite conversation. Communication is indispensible in nearly every field, so bringing up what you learned during an interview signals that you could handle even the most difficult client.

Budget, budget, budget: Between tricky conversions and strange currency, handling your finances abroad …

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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 schools’ 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 …

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With only two weeks left in my internship, it is exciting to think about heading back to Bloomington, starting classes and living with my best friends instead of my parents. However, just as finals week brings the most stress to students, the final weeks of an internship can be packed with projects to finish. Don’t let these essentials fall through the cracks during the last weeks of summer.

Tie up loose ends: Whenever possible, finish the projects delegated to you. This equates to more experience as well as portfolio and resume-builders. If there is a project or task you will not have time to complete, make sure to leave good notes for the next intern or employee who will take over for you. If possible, speak to them in-person about the ideas and plans you have for the project moving forward.

Ask the right questions: If your internship has a …

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The busiest time for interns often comes as they near the end of their internships. With projects to finish, resumes to update and thank you notes to write, most begin to look toward the school year or full-time job search that looms ahead.

Your updated resume may be full of great quantitative gains from your internship, but it is important to remember the soft skills you learned on the job so you can discuss them in your next interview.

Many new graduates and interns struggle with soft skills, according to this Forbes article. Chances are you developed many of these during your internship, but articulating soft skills can be difficult. You may know that you are an effective communicator and team player, but emphasize this during an interview by recalling a project that required group collaboration. Communication skills are vital in any industry, and using an example from your internship …

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The idea of finding an internship in college is nothing new.

However, recent trends show that interning even before graduating from high school can be extremely beneficial. Not only does a high school internship look great on college applications, but it also helps students begin to narrow down their career goals.

Group Dekko’s high school internship program, Explore, presented its final project this week, an E-Shelf that the students helped design and manufacture. Their E-Shelf was auctioned off at the end of the program, with proceeds going to Riley Children’s Hospital. The interns chose Riley because of personal experiences they had with the organization.

As high school students, the Explore interns got a firsthand look at each step of the manufacturing process, and were able to see their project transition from idea to reality. Not only will this translate to any job they hold in the future, but it …

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“Align,” “engage” and “advance” turned out to be more than just political buzzwords on Tuesday.

I had the opportunity to attend Align, Engage, Advance: Transforming Indiana’s Workforce cohosted by the Center for Education and Career Innovation and Education Workforce Innovation Network. The conference presented the Indiana Career Council’s strategic plan, and opened my eyes to the challenges Indiana faces with employment. It also reassured me the Indiana INTERNnet will play a significant role in helping provide paths for career success in Indiana.

The biggest lesson I took away from the day is that experiential learning is a driving force in the efforts to elevate Indiana’s workforce.

Lt. Gov. Sue Ellspermann said that she and the rest of the Indiana Career Council hope 60% of Indiana’s workforce will have postsecondary credentials by 2025. This includes industry-recognized certifications, apprenticeships and certificates, among others. Internships provide hands-on, real-world context to classroom studies and …

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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 (I’d 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 efficiency—make an effort to be prompt.

The minor details that send impressive messages don’t stop with your morning routine. Make eye contact with your boss and other coworkers; it …

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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 you’ve reached and what you still need to do to finish the others. This will give you a sense of accomplishment in what you’ve 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 …

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