The spring quarter is here and you will be too as of Monday. Aside from the changeable weather conditions, the spring quarter is time to think about internship and career opportunities. Hopefully, this is old news for many of you, but for those who have yet to begin one or the other process, it is time to get moving.
There are plenty of sources for each (e.g., online, personal contacts). For those students who are not majors yet, and thus cannot get credit for internships, I have an option to gather a bit of extra experience without the need to find a full internship. Many of our students were athletes in high school and I encourage you to contact the athletic director for your program. He or she might have camps or clinics going on in the summer and might need some administrative and/or event management assistance. You do not need to worry about internship credit as this is volunteer work and short in duration. Further, you should be able to volunteer and work over the summer at whatever job you have lined up.
For those students who were not athletes, you can still try this option out. You might also consider contacting other high schools in your area besides your alma mater.
Finally, for pre-majors and majors alike, the spring and summer are good times to conduct an informational interview. These are usually done with a person in the industry in a position where you would like to work in the future. Generally, you should target about thirty minutes for the interview, which can be done in person, by telephone, or even Skype. The purpose of the interview is to gain insight into the position, ways to get to that level if it is not an entry level one, and targeted career advice from the person you interview. Not only can you get insider information from these interviews, but you can also add this person to your network database. If you really hit it off with him or her, this person might even be willing to serve on your Personal Advisory Board (PAD).
If you have any questions on how to arrange summer volunteer work, informational interviews, or any other career matter, please let me know. Also, Mr. Moran is available to help with internship and practicum opportunities. MEP
