Utilizing Your Degree: Gaining Experience

First year students – not sure how start utilizing your degree this early in the year? Overwhelmed by the amount of career activity on campus in the fall?  As career advisers, we understand this time of year can be a bit overwhelming. We’ve put together some recommendations below for those of you that aren’t sure where to start. 

• What to include on your resume: highlight your upcoming or current coursework- name the titles of your classes ex: “Client-Side Web Development, Design Thinking, Computer Programming II.” Consider highlighting project or coursework from your pre-reqs or undergraduate career. If you are currently working on a class project, you can include that as well. Check out examples on these resumes.

• Apply to internships/DFW even if you aren’t fully qualified: I often encourage students to apply if they feel they meet 50% of what the job description is asking for. The only thing you guarantee by not applying is not getting yourself an interview. Internships and DFW are set up to be mutually beneficial to the organization and the student. The employer gains a new perspective and experience from a student while helping you develop new skills. Even if you interview and don’t get the position, you are gaining interview experience (which is actually very helpful) and knowledge about what an employer looks for in candidates.

• Go to Events: Even if you don’t know what exactly you are looking for, going to events can help you figure this out and learn about companies, industries, and types of jobs. The iSchool Career Services Team and the UW Career Center host a number of employer and professional development focused events. You can find iSchool Career events in iCareers (Under the “Event’s” tab and then under “workshops”) and UW Career Center events in HuskyJobs under “Information Sessions.” The UW Career Center also has a student calendar which lists additional workshops and all career fairs on campus.

• Get Involved: Employers look for students that have a holistic experience at UW. Outside of getting good grades and working on projects in the classroom, consider other experience you can get during your time here. Volunteering, part-time jobs, and student club involvement show that you can multi-task and handle a variety of experiences at once. Hoping for a career path that requires deep technical skills? Check out free tech training classes offered through UW or consider taking classes free online through Coursera or Codecademy (then put them on your resume).

• Set-up an appointment with Career Advisers: We’ve updated iCareers scheduling module to make it easier for all students to meet with Alycia or Dean. Set-up an appointment or come by Career Drop-in hours to meet with one of us. We can help you brainstorm ideas, point you to events, or think of other ways to explore professional development you may not have thought about.

While we recommend exploring your professional options in the fall, surveys show us that the majority of students actually get internships or full-time offers in March. Now is a great time to be applying and learning about job/intern/DFW opportunities, but remember there will be more to come!

TOP JOBS/OPPORTUNITIES

• Digital Projects Librarian, Kaiser Permanente (Portland): apply via iCareers, ID 3536
• Clinical Liaison & Content Librarian, UW Libraries: apply via iCareers, ID 3522
• Customer Facing Technologist, Microsoft: apply via iCareers, ID 3528
• Hourly Student HR Coordinator, iLearn Lab (UW iSchool): apply via iCareers, ID 3524
• Hourly Student User Experience (UX) Developer, iLearn Lab (UW iSchool): apply via iCareers, ID 3526

UPCOMING EVENTS

• 10/22, 2:30-4:00 p.m., Strengths Identification Lab for International Students, MGH 134
• 10/26, 12:30-1:30 p.m., Employer Info Session: Liberty Mutual, MGH 258
• 10/27, 12:30-1:30 p.m., Employer Info Session: Workday, Allen Auditorium
• 10/27, 12:00-1:00 p.m., National Medical Librarians Month (NMLM) MLIS Panel, MGH 258
• 10/28, 8:00-9:00 a.m., Employer Breakfast: Fast Enterprises, iLounge (MGH 416)