As an intern at the University Career Center between August and December of 2017, I was expected to

promote and maintain its mission and vision. The Center provides resources geared towards early,
continuous career and professional preparation. Those materials lie in its resume, cover letter, LinkedIn
drop-in schedule; student and alumni access to career advisors with knowledge of particular industries;
a Mock Interview program hosted by advisors, student workers and employers designed to sharpen
student interview skills; an online resume approval process focused on base-level resume feedback; and
accurate, objective grading of virtual student interviews sent in through Big Interview software. To
summarize, the University Career Center provides student-centered resources spanning four years of
college and beyond to develop skills necessary to succeed in the job market.

What was my role at the Center? As a paid, student intern, my official title was Lead Peer Career
Ambassador. Because I ranked higher than a volunteer, it was expected that I showed greater initiative
in helping fellow workers and developing or volunteering towards career projects. On-average, I worked
12 hours per week.

Two priorities existed for all workers: drop-ins and online approvals. Whats a drop-in? A student eager
to receive feedback on their resume, cover letter and LinkedIn format and content, as well as general
interview tips, could sign-in Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. 4 p.m., with the promise of a volunteer or Lead
Peer Career Ambassador answering all their questions and providing accurate, relevant feedback. Online
approvals, processed through Hire-A-Niner, the Universitys internship and job database, were built on a
base checklist of content required for the student to have on a resume: no grammar/spelling errors,
reverse chronological order within sections, inclusion of a degree, etc.

Lead Peer Career Ambassadors were given additional work. Students had the option of scheduling a
Mock Interview with Ambassadors to receive immediate feedback of their interview skills. Typically, an
Ambassador would receive two appointment requests per week. Many students were required to
submit virtual interview responses through Big Interview software for a class. Ambassadors were asked
to grade such responses according to a strict rubric: were behavioral questions answered by example?
Did the student dress appropriately? Was the content of the answer relevant to the question? Finally,
Ambassadors were expected to be active in volunteering towards Career Center-sponsored events and
presentations. The former usually consisted of campus-wide outreach events promoting the Centers
resources and options for the student body. Presentations were usually given to a class or organization
eager to learn more about resume writing and cover letter structure and overview of Career Center
resources.

In the Fall 2017 semester, the Center opened a new career resource for students: the career meet-up.
After many students were attending advising and drop-in appointments having the same questions, the
Center decided to host meet-ups with overviews of the questions. Thus, meet-ups were 30-minute
round table discussions with 8-10 students concerning topics common to career readiness: LinkedIn
profile polishing, preparation for a career fair and salary negotiation, to name a few. I was lucky enough
to develop a career meet-up focused on the differences between North American, Asian and European
resumes.

After clearing the project with my site supervisor, I began the first phase: research. Primary resources
were industry professionals writing about resume differences on websites such as
www.bbc.com/capital. After compiling the data and constructing a brief PowerPoint, I weighed the
possibility of presenting at one of the Universitys International Club meetings. However, being a career
topic, it seemed more appropriate for the Career Center to host the presentation. I discussed the
possibility of creating a career meet-up with another supervisor, and we finalized the date. Next, I
discussed marketing with a third supervisor, and we targeted international students with visas on
campus. After informing prospective students by sending them two emails through the Hire-A-Niner
database, 20 people RSVPd to the meet-up and eight attended. A video of my presentation can be seen
on the My Presentation link above.

The success of my idea relied on time management, effective communication and problem solving. Time
was a precious resource; for the presentation to be a career meet-up, I needed to complete the research
and PowerPoint portions as fast as possible. By talking to three supervisors, I demonstrated effective
communication, not just through email, but face-to-face. I would not have been able to secure the
presentation as a meet-up had all communication been virtual. Finally, key publics were selected with
the third supervisor. The number of attendees, prime for a meet-up, proved our tactics successful.

The people you work with can make or break a job experience. Fortunately for me, my supervisor and
co-workers, both Ambassadors and volunteers, were some of the most outgoing, bright and
sophisticated people Ive met. They were always willing to help and to listen; these were people of good
character and gave me much to strive towards. Indeed, the biggest way the site impacted me was two-
fold. First, my insider knowledge of career readiness, how to write a resume, etc., was improved
exponentially. Second, and perhaps more importantly, my expectations for an ideal work environment
have formed. I wont be honest if I dont mention that a great deal of our work, while necessary, was
highly repetitive and became mundane rather quickly. But, the people with whom I worked made it
seem like a breeze. Steve Jobs was right. Great things in business are never done by one person.
Theyre done by a team of people.