Category Archives: Young Professionals
Should I have a Mentor?
Although the idea of having a career mentor is not new, the notion has grown in popularity in recent years. I had heard the word thrown around before, but I wasnât quite aware of the popularity of this tactic until I read Sheryl Sandbergâs book, Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead, last year. Successful professionals from a variety of backgrounds have endorsed mentorship and credited these types of relationships for a portion of their achievements.
So, what purpose does a mentor serve?
The Balance defines a mentor as someone who âbecomes a source of wisdom, teaching, and supportâ for young professionals seeking guidance. Ideally, this would be a person that you could go to and ask for advice when facing work-related dilemmas and they could guide you based on their own experiences. While not completely necessary, it helps if this person works or has worked in the …
Resources for Young Professionals
There are a lot of different tools out there to help students better their careers during and after college, but sometimes you may not know where to start. Each of the resources below can help you find experiential opportunities, expand your network or prepare for graduation.
Career Services Offices
If youâre still in college and preparing to graduate, itâs a good idea to connect with someone at your universityâs career center if you havenât already. These offices can provide multi-faceted assistance with your post-graduation job hunt. A representative can look over your resume or cover letter for free and give you feedback. Sometimes, universities will offer a mock interview service so that you can practice answering tough questions and become more aware of your interview behavior. If you feel nervous about the job search process or want to brush up on your skills, career services is a good place to …
From Intern to Founder: Wyatt Wells
Wyatt Wells is co-founder and chief marketing officer at The Bee Corp, an AgTech startup in Bloomington. Wyatt graduated from Indiana University in 2016.
âWhat do you want to be when you grow up?â
If you asked me this question 10 years ago, I wouldâve replied, âIâm going to play third base for the Boston Red Sox.â If you asked me three years ago, my answer wouldâve been, âLet me get back to you on that.â
Itâs the clichĂ© question nearly all students dread hearing. Responses tend to fall into three categories: the vague (âI want to work in [medicine/software/sales]â), the naĂŻve and oddly specific (âIâm going to be a senior cloud systems engineer at Facebookâ) and the aimless (âI just want to do something that makes me happyâ).
Flashback to 2015
Entering my senior year at IU, I belonged under the aimless category. I became an expert at …
Hands-on Learning
Betsy Adams is currently serving as the talent acquisition intern at Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance (IFBI)Â in the talent management department. She is a rising senior at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana studying human resource management and business. She will graduate in May of 2019 and is anxiously looking forward to kick starting her career in human resources.
On Wednesday, June 27, I had the opportunity, with the other 24 IFBI interns, to spend my afternoon at Gleanerâs Food Bank of Indiana volunteering and serving the Indianapolis community. Our internship program provides us with a number of off-site field trips as opportunities to spend time outside of the home office to better understand the impact of the company and serve the community in a hands-on way.
It was fascinating to see our work dynamics come together in both a competitive and fun way. The healthy spirit of competition allowed us …
Common Interview Questions & How to Answer Them
Interviews are often the deciding factor for whether you get a position, no matter how well-qualified you may appear on your resume. It is very normal to feel nervous before your interview, especially since a lot of the common questions asked can feel like trick questions. The best way to excel in an interview is to come across as confident. To accomplish that, you should prepare for the interview as much as possible. Start out by simply considering what your answers might be to common questions like the ones below.
âSo, tell me about yourself.â
Almost every interview will start off with this type of prompt; do not be thrown off by the apparent open-endedness of it. Employers want to understand why youâre there, sitting before them. An easy way to answer this question is to backtrack: start off with the earliest fact about you that is still relevant to …
How to Dress for Your Summer Internship
You got the summer internship. Itâs relevant to your skill set, works with your schedule, and (BONUS!) itâs paid. It is an excellent opportunity for your professional development, and youâre super excited for the first day. The only problem? You donât know what to wear. Outside, the humidity will turn you to an exasperated blob of moisture and inside, the office air conditioner will freeze you solid. Hereâs what you do:
1. Ask your supervisor
If you havenât already, it is important that you familiarize yourself with the companyâs dress code. Every office has its own idea of whatâs appropriate, and business casual can mean a lot of different things. If you havenât started the position yet, send your new boss a polite email asking them to clarify what the appearance expectations are. For example:
Good morning [Name],
I am looking forward to my …
Connecting Interns to Indy
More than 75 interns from companies in the Indianapolis area gathered at the historic Fountain Square Theatre building on June 1 to take advantage of Indy Intern Connect. Our second intern engagement event of the summer was a casual evening event, hosted by the Indy Chamber. Attendees had an opportunity to network with Indianapolis business leaders and fellow interns while enjoying free drinks, duckpin bowling and a view of the city skyline from the Rooftop Garden.
A welcoming host, longtime Fountain Square Theatre owner Linton Calvert, shared the story of the building with the crowd. Originally constructed in 1928, it has hosted many types of businesses and witnessed the surrounding neighborhood continuously change. It stands tall today after being restored by Calvert and is an Indianapolis landmark.
It was a truly fitting venue for the night, which was all about encouraging interns who are not native to Indianapolis to see …
Post-Graduation Internships
Perhaps you were busy with other responsibilities during undergrad and you didnât have time for an internship. Or maybe you changed majors part of the way through your college career, and it set you back a little bit. Many students pursue internship positions during college, and assume that once they graduate, they will be done with them. While that is the case most of the time, there is nothing wrong with accepting an internship post-graduation. Hereâs why:
The job market can be tough, especially if youâre are seeking employment in a small city where there is lots of competition â namely, your fellow graduates. Full-time positions can be scarce, depending on the economy, your profession and the area in which you live. An internship can help to provide you with some money and additional experience as you search for a salaried role.
Oftentimes, graduates instinctively accept job offers that do …
How Important is Networking, Really?
College students hear it again and again â network, network, network! However, building and maintaining professional relationships is often not high on a studentâs list of priorities. The thought of initiating a conversation can be intimidating. Even once introductions and connections have been made, it is difficult for individuals to keep in touch. Schedules are typically overflowing with academic, financial, and personal responsibilities, which does not leave a lot of room for attending networking events. It can be easy to put off networking and ignore event opportunities, with the hopes your schedule will be less full later. That is not the case. Forty-nine percent of todayâs professionals say that it is difficult to maintain relationships with their network due to a lack of free time, according to a 2017 LinkedIn survey.
Ignoring networking events and failing to create connections is a much easier route, but the truth is that taking …
Meet the Intern: Marissa Smith
Hello, my name is Marissa and I am excited to be Indiana INTERNnetâs intern for the summer of 2018. I have just wrapped up my junior year at IUPUI, where I study journalism, public relations and advertising.
Prior to relocating to Indianapolis for college, I attended high school near my hometown of Losantville, Ind. Though Indy is a relatively small city, it is huge compared to Losantville, which has a population of less than 300 people! I definitely prefer city living and plan to move somewhere even larger later on in my career.
My previous positions have all been communications or event management related, taking place at locally-based organizations such as the Indiana State Museum, Girls Inc. of Greater Indianapolis, and Indiana Futsal. In addition to my new position here, I am also currently interning with HWC Engineering as part of the firmâs pilot program creating public relations plans for …
Four Email Examples That Will Keep Your Network Strong
As spring internships begin to wrap up, one of the most important things  you can do before departing is to record your supervisorâs, mentorâs, fellow co-workersâ, etc. contact information. The connections  you make during your internship can become extremely valuable down the line.
But collecting contacts isnât enough. You have to actually stay in touch with them! The Intern Queen recommends reaching out to your professional contacts at least three times per year. This will help ensure that your connections remain strong.
Use these email examples if youâre struggling to figure out what to say:
____________________________________________
“A good network is like a garden â if you want it to thrive, you have to put in a little effort.”
____________________________________________
You notice your connection accomplished something
Hi XXXX,
I happened to  see on LinkedIn that you received a promotion! Congratulations! What does …
How To Handle Feedback Like A Pro
Being an intern can be hard. Youâre juggling school work, internship work, along with the other aspects of being in your 20s. Sometimes youâre doing so many things you question if youâre doing them right. This is why feedback is the most important aspect of your internship, but sometimes it can be hard knowing what to do with it. Below Iâve included three strategies to use feedback to its fullest potential.
Take it and run.
Feedback from your supervisors and peers can be a great asset, especially if itâs in a form of a mid-term review or working feedback. The best thing to do with feedback is to take it and use it. If your supervisor says that your work needs to be double checked, you should make sure to double check your work in the future. This will not only show your supervisor that you value their opinion, but …
Michael Barney: Making an IMPACT
Indiana INTERNnet celebrated internship excellence on February 7, 2018 at the 12th 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
Michael Barney is pursuing Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science at Indiana University-South Bend. He is a Cloud Engineer Intern at Trek10.  Â
Indiana INTERNnet: Describe your internship experience with Trek10.Â
Michael Barney: My internship with Trek10 has been, to say the least, one of the most life-changing and incredible experience Iâve had. Before Trek10, I had absolutely no clue what the âreal worldâ was like in terms of a career in information technology. Not only do I get to learn some new and specialized technologies, but I get a real sense of how IT careers work. What makes it all so much better and is probably my favorite part about working at Trek10, is the people that work there. Â
The people there are so smart and have so much to offer and are always willing to help and teach …
Tips For A Successful Job Search
Itâs spring, and you know what that means: the search for summer internships is in full swing. Sometimes searching for internships can be hard. Youâve applied, but it seems like your resume has been lost in the mix. It seems like youâve done everything you can. However, there is no need to worry! There are so many resources and actions you can take to make your internship search successful.
Check job boards often.
Most schools have a job board or internship website. For example, IUPUIâs website, Jag Jobs, has both part time positions and internships available for students to apply to. Also, our site, IndianaINTERN.net typically has more than 900 positions available during the peak summer season. Did you that Indiana INTERNnet shares internships with nine different colleges and universities around the state? So you may even see some internships from the site while browsing your schoolâs job board.
…
My Journey with Indiana INTERNnetÂ
My journey with Indiana INTERNnet (IIN) started as a junior at IUPUI, searching for an internship. I was struggling to find an opportunity in the non-profit world that would allow me to remain financially stable. While EARN Indiana is a wonderful program to help students in similar situations, I was ineligible to receive the funds. It was fate that I found IndianaINTERN.net and its internship posting on the day of the application deadline. I immediately applied and came in for interview soon after.  Â
This was my first and only college internship. While I loved my time with IIN, if I could go back, I would have definitely participated in more internships. It might sound clichĂ© but finding a job after graduation is challenging. Take my advice and try to gain as much experience as possible to increase your chances. Â
During my internship, I wrote blog posts, managed social media and assisted with events. Unfortunately, my position came to an …