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This is Part III of a four-part series discussing methods to narrow down what jobs you’d like to pursue post-graduation.

If you’ve taken an in-depth personality test, you have insight into how you naturally behave and in what situations you are most comfortable. If you have a college transcript with a broad range of coursework, you probably have an idea of what subject matter interests you.

Now, do you have an understanding of how you work best and what kind of work environment you might enjoy? Career aptitude tests are a great way to unearth your preferences.

One of the most trusted resources among career development professionals is the Strong Interest Inventory. This assessment enables you to identify specific courses, jobs, internships and activities you’re likely to enjoy. It helps you pinpoint your interests, preferences and personal style so you can prepare for a satisfying career. You can visit your …

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This is Part II of a four-part series discussing methods to narrow down what jobs you’d like to pursue post-graduation.

One of the great things about college (that you often don’t appreciate until after you graduate) is the unbridled access you have to an immense amount of diverse knowledge. I’m not just talking about the library or free Internet access. Each college and university offers hundreds of courses with fascinating subject matter, and you never know what lessons, skills or new interests you could take away from a class off your beaten path.

I’ve talked to many people about their careers who have said something like, “I majored in XYZ in college… but I don’t do anything related to that now.” I found that unbelievable until I entered the job market and began to understand the concept of transferable skills. You can find a piece of knowledge in each class …

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Happy Halloween! Though your internship supervisor is likely expecting (and maybe even looking forward to) frights and scary surprises tomorrow, you don’t want to be one of them in the workplace.

Make sure your Halloween costume doesn’t symbolize your internship persona! Here are some scary internship characteristics to avoid:

The Werewolf Intern:  An employer’s nightmare! This intern looks fantastic on paper and interviews extremely well. He or she promises a great work ethic and the ability to help implement improvements within the organization. But when the full moon rises… or rather, when the intern is hired, he or she morphs into something unexpected and undesirable. Make sure you live up to what you advertise on your résumé and in your interview.

The Frankenstein Intern:  An intern who may act like they were born yesterday (eek!). You are smart, creative and accomplished for someone your age; that’s why an employer tapped …

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This is Part I of a four-part series discussing ways to narrow down what jobs you’d like to pursue post-graduation.

“So, what do you want to do after you graduate?”

It’s a question you’ve probably fielded several times in your life. It’s a difficult one to answer, especially at the ripe old age of 19 or 20. You may have your major solidified, but many fields of study open up an infinite number of career possibilities. How can you narrow it down?

A good place to start is with an in-depth personality test, such as the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) assessment. Through a series of preference and situational questions, the test breaks your personality down into four categories that dissect what makes you tick. It’s a little eerie how this test knows you better than you know yourself!

By understanding how you function and how you naturally approach situations, …

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This is a guest post by Kyle Vail, a marketing intern at myCOI. Kyle is a 2012 graduate of Indiana University Bloomington and is from Greenfield, IN.

I am 23 and fresh out of college. I am not afraid to admit that I’m still a little unsure about what I think I will or should be doing for the rest of my life. I completed a Business Economics degree in May, but never really decided on a clear career path. I just knew I loved ideas and the work it takes to make them a reality. Knowing that, the opportunity to join the myCOI team in July as an intern was an easy and rewarding decision.

Working at myCOI as a Marketing Intern means collaborating with a creative, forward-looking team; a team that is always looking to better their product and service by focusing on end users. When a problem arises, there …

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It seems the Class of 2013 has much to look forward to once their tassels are turned. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), employers expect to hire 13 percent more new college graduates from this school year than they did from the Class of 2012 (see Job Outlook 2013).

Take a look at what jobs are most in demand:

Source: NACE Job Outlook 2013

How can you meet representatives from companies in these and other industries? Career fairs at your school’s campus are a great place to start. Visit your school’s career services office and check out the Events Page on our website for opportunities near you.

When you do attend a career fair, you will get much more from it if you are prepared. Check out this post about Do’s and Don’ts at career fairs.

Here are five tips to make the most of …

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A couple weeks ago, I posted ways to develop a good mentality for your internship from my perspective as an intern. This week, I asked a few intern employers what qualities they most desire in an intern. Here’s what they had to say.

“Thirst for knowledge and patience – I want them to be eager to help and seek out projects but also know that it is a balancing act for us to delegate and come up with one-time projects.” — Sarah Waninger, Assistant Controller, Goodwill Industries of Central Indiana, Inc.

“Be an enthusiastic sponge. Ask clarifying questions only after some legwork has been done. Don’t hesitate to ask for more assignments if you don’t have enough to do. Volunteering shows enthusiasm, leadership and interest in the organization and is definitely a plus.” — Kathy Humphrey, Chief Operating Officer, The International Center

“I look for an intern who has the passion to succeed and …

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One of the first skills college students learn is how to juggle. Classes, homework, social engagements… something’s got to give, right, if you add an internship to the mix? Not at all! Time management and organization are the solutions, and here are some tips to help you succeed.

4.   Be more organized than you’ve ever been with your coursework. You don’t want to be cramming for exams and trying to work a job at the same time. That school stress will follow you to work and chip away at your productivity and performance. For your classes, build your study materials as you go rather than frantically compiling them right before an exam. Refresh yourself on course material at the end of every week. A great online tool for this is called Quizlet, where you can make virtual study guides, flashcards and study games. You can share information with classmates, you …

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As fall internships are getting into full swing, we want to remind you of an opportunity to recognize the “Rock Star” you had the pleasure of working with this year. Maybe it’s your intern who exceeded expectations. Maybe it’s your employer or career coach who’s served as a great role model. We want to hear your success stories!

The IMPACT Awards Luncheon, sponsored by Ivy Tech Community College, will be on Feb. 6, 2013, at the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art. We are now seeking nominations for these awards.

Several great stories surfaced from the IMPACT Awards last year.

Josh Bloxsome served as a systems engineering intern at Raytheon Technical Services. When several experienced engineers on that task had to be reassigned, Bloxsome’s role increased – and with great success. The project was completed ahead of schedule and under budget. Bloxsome is now CEO of Bloxsome Technology, …

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Beginning a new internship can be scary, if for no other reason than the fact that you have to build a good reputation for yourself from the ground up, usually in about 10-12 weeks. Can your internship supervisor really come to trust you with meaningful work in that small timeframe?

The answer is “yes!” You can expedite the process, too, by adopting an attitude on Day 1 that your supervisor will love. From my internship experiences, here are some ways I found will help you build a good relationship with your supervisors and mentors:

1.  Act like a professional

Be pleasant and respectful. Know when to listen and when to speak. Contribute to the formal and productive office environment, don’t detract from it. Talking about your 21st birthday while the board president is within earshot is not a good idea. Texting during a meeting also won’t win you any points.

…

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(Click above to view our video featuring Slingshot SEO)

Although Slingshot SEO is just six years old, its prominence in Indianapolis and the “search industry” is unparalleled. Slingshot provides search engine services for nearly 150 clients. With the evolution of search and the nature of constant change in the search industry, Slingshot relies on young professionals to fulfill their clients’ needs.

Slingshot SEO has launched a new-and-improved internship program called the “Search Scholars.” The company hosts interns in every department, including sales, marketing, client success, SEO consulting, search media, IT and human resources.

The program now includes:

1-2 résumé-worthy projects Mentor program Networking development A unique intern group project Variety of trainings for professional and personal growth Weekly structured meetings Final presentations at the conclusion of their internship

You may apply for Slingshot internships using Indiana INTERNnet, but we’d encourage you to check out Slingshot’s website, too. Best of …

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Today marks Day 2 for me as the Marketing and Special Events intern with Indiana INTERNnet. I just read an excellent blog post by Megan Schuman, last summer’s intern, and by the sound of things, I’m in for an incredible experience!

This will serve as my eighth internship, so I am a huge believer in the benefits and take-aways these experiential learning opportunities provide, and I am beyond excited to talk about this for the next several months. I know I am indebted to all of my internship supervisors and mentors for the great experiences they afforded me and all the wisdom they passed to me.

Internships can be downright fun. I’ve had the opportunity to work for the 500 Festival, the Indiana State Fair and Sen. Richard Lugar’s office in Washington, D.C. I gained practical field knowledge, but I also have a host of fun memories from these experiences, …

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This is a guest post by Emily Fauber, summer intern for Miller White Marketing.

I interned at Miller White Marketing in Terre Haute, Indiana. Miller White is an in-house marketing company with two locations: one in Indianapolis and another in Terre Haute. Miller White has been around for more than thirty years and has seen the evolution in marketing. Today, Miller White focuses on marketing, research, public relations, advertising, audio/video, SEO/SEM, interactive and social media. They work with clients to develop creative and relevant strategies to connect the clients with their customer.

I was hired on as an intern to help with College Goal Sunday.  Miller White works with College Goal Sunday to help develop marketing and advertising strategies. College Goal Sunday is a volunteer program that provides free information and assistance to high school student and their families who are applying for financial aid. This is a one-day event held …

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This guest post is from Krista Rangel, a St. Mary-of-the-Woods student majoring in Criminal Justice and minoring in Sociology and Psychology. Krista will graduate in 2013.

My internship at Chicago Juvenile Detention Center was not only my first internship, but I was also the first intern to my site supervisor. I can honestly say this was one of the best experiences I have ever had. I learned about so many facets of the system — from the judges to simply being in the building; I would not have been able to gain these hands-on experiences in a classroom.

My internship at the detention center allowed me to see the system’s process first-hand. Working in a big building with a bunch of lawyers and judges was initially intimidating because I had never been in a corporate environment. After a few weeks, I got to know some of my co-workers and realized that although they have “big …

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OK, so maybe interns can’t “save” your life, but they sure could improve it. Recently, the Wellness Council of Indiana teamed up with Indiana INTERNnet to better understand the positive affects interns can have on the workplace.

 Check out the five dimensions of wellness and how hosting student interns can boost each category.

Career well-being: how you occupy your time and liking what you do each day

Interns increase productivity: Interns bring needed resources to achieve what couldn’t otherwise be accomplished; from promoting the organization and gathering market intelligence to improving operation effectiveness and supporting client needs. Secure future employees: An internship program enables businesses to recruit, qualify, and train potential employees.

 Social well-being: having strong relationships

Interns are energetic, not only in their work, but also in their lifestyle. They can bring fresh ideas and a new perspective. Networking: Interns are engaged—they love to socialize …

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