Networking And Volunteering Is Key For Career-Minded. College Students And Graduates
College students and recent graduates seeking to get a foot in the door in the working world can gain valuable experience through volunteering. The key to success is in thinking beyond traditional jobs to find volunteer opportunities and resources that will jump-start a meaningful and fulfilling career.
Volunteering experience can be a significant asset to the resumes of college students and graduates. Many recruiters now look for volunteer service on resumes as a telltale sign of strong moral character, good work ethic and proven leadership skills. Not only does volunteer experience show potential employers that a candidate is a responsible citizen of the world, but it also provides networking opportunities, a critical component of the business world that may be a new concept for those in college or recently graduated.
Kiwanis International, a global volunteer service organization, and Circle K International, a Kiwanis service leadership program for college students, created the Career Contacts program and job board with the link between volunteering and networking in mind. Designed to promote career development by encouraging college students to interact with Kiwanis members, the program offers opportunities for students and recent graduates to introduce themselves to key decision-makers across a wide variety of professional fields. Kiwanis members support the program in many ways; as career mentors, hosts for a “day at the office,” participants in a campus career fair or mock job interview, or just by being listed in the business directory.
“We created this program in hopes of educating today’s youth on the process of job searching and providing them with opportunities vital to success in today’s working world,” said Casey Keller, director of Circle K International. “Career Contacts is an excellent resource for both potential employees and employers to find prospects with similar, service-oriented interests and backgrounds.”
For other ways to build a circle of professional contacts and gain valuable volunteering experience, consider the following tips:
• Join a service organization or start your own local club.
• Actively seek out volunteer opportunities, job fairs and professional networking events related to your field.
• Ask to job shadow a professional contact met through volunteering.
• Utilize volunteering and networking Web sites to meet likeminded individuals.
• Participate in your school’s local chapter of a larger professional organization.
An internship is a pre-professional work experience for the students and recent graduates by which they gain experience in a particular career field. The internship program provides practical experience to the intern through direct exposure of the company environment. During the internship the assignments are tailored according to the interns so as to expose the student to the areas in which they are specializing in their academic studies. The summer internship program provides an excellent opportunity to the young aspirants to gain work as well as internship experience.
Internship blogs
The students and graduates write internship blog to tell their internship experience and also help the other aspirants as guides them and provides internship advice to them about the internship. The internship blogs really help in conveying the information about the experience with the company and other internship experiences also. Majority of the internship blogs written are just personal experiences of the interns but they really give good internship advice related to different career fields to the young aspirants.
Summer internship procedure
For the summer internship program the placement office of the college contacts the companies. Then the interested companies tell their requirements regarding the interns along with the project details to the placement cell for their different internship programs. Thereafter the placement office sends the resumes of the students to the companies for the summer internship program. Afterwards the companys shortlist the student and send the student list to the placement office. Then the interested companies conduct the summer internship recruitment process at the college campus. The selection for summer internship is based on personal interviews and group discussions. Thereafter the companies announce the list of selected candidates. The companies if not visiting the campus will select the students on the basis of their resumes and telephonic interviews. But just as an internship advice students should apply to several companies and should accept the appropriate offer. The companies also have a waiting list of students for summer internship. And by doing internship in a reputed company the student can get further placement in the same company.
Student Evaluation
The intern works under the supervision of the company executive who evaluates the interns performance during the summer internship program. Then the company executive sends interns feedback in the evaluation sheet provided by the placement office. The student is then evaluated by faculty members on the basis of the project report submitted and the project presentation. After the completion of the degree the fresh pass outs can get good jobs due to the internship experience as now they have the practical experience of the working procedures in the company.
Benefits of internship
There are many benefits of the internship experience as per various internship blogs seek by the fresher for the internship advice. The resume of the student gets a boost by the letter of reference from company after the completion of internship. The student also gets an internship experience that provides an exposure to internal workings of the company. The students also get to work closely with industry professionals and gain new professional skills for their future. One can also establish valuable contacts during the summer internship which help them in getting jobs after the internship ends. For further information, browse to the site www.internshipblogger.com
Tags: internship, internship experience, internship advice, internship blogs, summer internship