Spring 2012 Seminar 2

Those of you who missed our Internship Seminar last week missed an opportunity to practice your interview skills. We explored the common questions you can anticipate in graduate school or job interviews, and ways to highlight your internship experience during these.

For your make-up assignment, write a comment which shares your answer to one of these potential interview questions:
1. For students who anticipate seeking a job after graduation -  "What skills have you used during your internship which you believe will help make you a stronger asset to your future employer?"
2. For students who anticipate applying to graduate/professional school after graduation - "How has your internship helped you get more out of your classroom experience?"
3. For students who need a back-up question - "Tell me the most important thing you have learned about working with others."

I look forward to your comments!

Spring 2012 INTERNS Galore!

The Spring 2012 semester promises to be an exciting one for internships at Presbyterian College. Not only are there more students completing internships in the spring than the fall, but also, many of these internships are for longer hours.

Students who are completing an internship this semester are invited to introduce themselves in the comments to this post, and to tell a little about your internship and what excites you about the opportunity.  Faculty intern advisors and employers are also invited to read along, comment in our discussions, and contribute to the internship community-wide discussion.

Please keep in mind that this is a public forum, using discretion when discussing any challenges, particularly maintaining confidentiality with workplace-related specifics. Contact me directly by phone or email if you have an internship-related problem which needs to be addressed.

End-of-Semester Workshop

During the last week of classes, fall interns came together to discuss and reflect on their experiences this semester. Students marked the office map with a flag showing their internship location, wrote down challenges which they overcame and which will help them face future challenges, and illustrated their transferable skills in pictorial fashion. They also created a list of the most important or best thing about their experience and a summary of accomplishments which they can list on future resumes.

Fall intern discussion - The Workplace Environment

Each work setting has its own personality, so to speak. You use knowledge related to the industry requirements. An example would be the vocabulary related to that field. You also develop new skills, some of which are specific to a field  (such as use of certain software), but many which are transferable to a wide variety of locations and fields. These two areas are fairly easy to identify and descibe.

More difficult, though, is trying to describe the underlying attitudes or values of a particular workplace. How do individuals interact with those who have different backgrounds or cultures? What value systems are overtly expressed - or are there subtle values which are harder to identify?

During your internship this semester, we will be exploring your own development in all four areas: knowledge, transferable skills, attitudes, and values. One part of this will be comparing your current experience to previous experiences and observations.

As you begin your internship, reflect on other workplaces you have observed or experienced, and comment on the use of academic knowledge, transferable professional skills, personal or faith values, and attitudes towards others in those locations. Also, comment on where you anticipate being in your own professional growth in five to ten years.

Remember, this is a public forum, so if anything you wish to say should be kept confidential, please email me instead of posting here.

Fall 2011 Internships Conversation

Welcome to fall semester 2011! Our first intern seminar will be held on Thursday, September 1, at 4:30PM in HP 214. I hope that all interns will be able to attend.

Should you have a scheduling conflict, this blog will serve as a place where you can participate in the conversations we hold during the seminar. Watch for the initial topic to be posted on Friday, September 2 for follow-up for the Thursday discussions.

Happy Interning, everyone!

After the Internship

I had no intention of posting anything else on our blog, but today I came across an article which is worth sharing with each of you!

Internships.com - How Should I Keep in Touch?

Presbyterian College has membership with Internships.com, and there are many informative articles as well as exciting opportunities posted there each day.

Don't hesitate to contact me if you have more questions, want to do a follow-up internship, or are preparing a resume!

Final Thoughts

The summer has almost come to a close - and I think most of you have had wonderful educational experiences. So what comes next? After all, an internship isn't just another class; it is a full-immersion experience.

While your experience is fresh in your mind, I encourage you to take time to add a file to your computer folder. In it, make a list of people and contacts you have made (thanks to Brandon, one of our interns this summer for this idea), as well as anything specific which might be helpful to you in an interview or on a resume.

Include software you've learned, presentations you have made, trade-specific vocabulary you have developed. This one or two page document will be a resource for you to reawaken the memories which seem so fresh right now. So, in two months, six months, or two years from now when you want to be able to answer questions in an interview, you'll have this resource. Or, if you hear of a job opening in a related business, you will have the name and contact information for someone who may help you learn more about the job or be willing to be your reference.

If any of you have tips for the rest of the interns, I'd love to hear those, too, so feel free to share them here! You are welcomed to drop by my desk any time this fall if you want to discuss anything related to your internship experience, professional development, or job search. And last but not least, don't forget to update your resume!