In my previous post I discussed preparation and balance. Now let’s get to it: you’re thinking that you’ve prepared enough, but you can’t find the “right” opportunity.
It’s May and I have yet to nail a summer internship. Am I freaking out? Yeah, you can say that.
Just a tad.
Anyways, can I just say how grueling job hunting and interviewing is? I can assume if you’re reading this that you’ve done one or both of these things.
So first you have a resume. A cover letter. Awesome. You know what you want to do. You know exactly what your strengths and weaknesses are. Now what? NOWWWW WHAT!?!? (sorry for excessiveness)
Thanks to Fox, we’re not limited to company job sites, Craigslist, Monstertrak, Hotjobs, etc. We have Foxnet (http://foxschool.erecruiting.com) where there’s plenty of new internships available everyday. It’s definitely a great resource.
And there’s always connections. I’m sure everyone knows that old adage, “It’s not what you know, but it’s who you know.” Well, I don’t know if I totally agree with that statement, because it’s obvious that what you know counts. But don’t lose sight of your connections. Never burn bridges especially with previous employers, professors, and classmates. You’ll be surprised how well connected these people are and how open they would be to help you succeed. It’s almost certain that you’ll find an employer recommendation and/or job opportunity from someone in your network. Thank goodness for Facebook and Linkedin that makes building and maintaining your social network even easier. I cringe when I hear of someone not having any sort of online social networking tool. It’s like you’re closing yourself off to a whole world of opportunity if you do that! (But I’m not judging, honest) Nowadays, face to face interaction is nice, but it’s all about accessibility when you need to contact someone, and online sources/email seem to be the most efficient way sometimes.
Anyways, I’m still in the process of applying to everywhere that I can (my own qualifications considered). I just hope I’m not limiting myself in any way. I’ve been set on interning in a specific industry and now that my graduation is approaching in January 09, it’s important that I nail the “right” internship this summer.
I think I’ll leave with a question that is perplexing me right now to my fellow bloggers here on the CSPD blog and our readers:
When is it okay to compromise your job/internship goals during your search for something that may or may not be what you wanted or what you can see yourself helping you obtain that dream job in the future?
Let’s make this discussion interactive, people! So go on, leave a message in the comment section. =)
Jena joined the CSPD as the Assistant Director of Recruitment and Professional Development with over 4 years career services experience including a background in corporate recruiting. She is excited to work collaboratively with the Fox School students regarding career search strategies and hopes students gain some additional insight into the job search through “Opportunity Knocks”.
The token recent grad, I just finished in May 2008 with a BBA in Marketing and International Business. I worked hard and was way more involved than my schedule should've permitted, but I made it through and it paid off. I'm now taking on a consulting position with a large multi-national firm here in Philadelphia. I'm going to be blogging about what I did to get here, life now that I'm here, and what I'm trying to get out of the so-called real world.
I'm graduating in 2010, majoring in entrepreneurship, though by no means am I waiting till then to start my own business. Through this blog I'm hoping to let students see how easy it is to get a job, and looking forward to having more Temple students join me in the next wave of Philly Entrepreneurs!
May 5th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
I think your forgetting that although the main responsibilities of your internship might not be what you see yourself doing in the long run…you will gain a lot of professional experience on an internship, regardless of the industry. I know I got a lot out of my internship just in terms of how to speak to higher ups and clients, how to propose new ideas, and really met a lot of great contacts. I think an internship not in line with exactly what you want to do after school will still help you work on your professional competencies. They always talked about that in the CSPD class…ba2101.
May 6th, 2008 at 2:04 am
Hmph. Wow thanks Lisa, you’ve made a really good point!!!
May 30th, 2008 at 2:27 pm
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TomasKell