Career fairs and Internships, Oh My!

It sounds crazy doesn’t it?  You just started college and it’s already time to start thinking about your first job!  But trust me, the sooner you start the better.  Although it sounds intimidating, an internship can be one of the best things you do in college.  It offers you a great first look at what kind of careers people in your major can have, and lets you use the skills your learned at school in the real world!  Plus, you sometimes get to move to new and exciting places for it, and you always meet some really interesting people that share your passion for engineering!

So now that you know why internships are awesome, it’s time to talk about how to get one in the first place.  The best place to start is at one of Penn State’s many career fairs.  There are so many different ones that it can be a bit overwhelming but here are the ones you will want to look out for…

• Fall Internship Recruiting Day: September 16
• Engineering Career Fair: Spring (usually January)
• Career fairs specific to your major occurring throughout the year

Okay, you’ve picked a career fair, now what?  There are 5 things you are going to want to have with you when you go to your first career fair.  First, and most importantly, you need a resume.  It’s okay if you don’t have one yet though, WEPO can give you a hand with that!  Second, you will need to dress the part, (the career fair is business professional) wear your most professional outfit.  Third, you will want to have a list of the companies you want to visit.  The career fair has so many companies there that it helps to go in with a plan.  Fourth, you will need an “elevator pitch,” a short speech about you and what kind of internship you are looking for and why.  And finally you will want to bring confidence!  The recruiters all started out exactly like you so don’t let them intimidate you.  So get out there and get that internship (I know you’ll do great)!

Mikhala Stevens is a junior majoring in Chemical Engineering and is a Mentor for WEPO'15!

Getting Organized in College

College can seem really overwhelming when your first get here. With so much going on between your classes and involvement, it is important to get organized as early as possible. 

 

      - Have a Planner 

My planner was my best friend my freshman year. If I were able to give only one piece of advice to you, it would be to get a planner! I recommend one in a bright color (mine is a Lilly Pulitzer in the Lulu print) because it makes a long to do list a bit more fun.

    - Write Everything Down

If you think you’ll just remember something, trust me, you won’t. With the amount of information you receive during college, it can be pretty hard to keep everything straight. Write EVERYTHING down! Whether it is a homework assignment, a meeting time, or just something your professor says that you think might be important, write it down. Your future self will thank you and you’ll be less likely to have something slip through the cracks.

     - Color Code

I already mentioned how great a planner is, but it can be even more useful with the help of four highlighters. In my planner, I would highlight assignments in orange, due dates in green, club events in yellow, and important things like tests in pink. This really helped me because I could look at the next day for anything green and easily tell if I had anything due. I used these same highlighters to highlight different information in notes. It made studying easier later on and equations easier to find.

Everyone has their own system for organization so try different things to find what works best for you! Good luck with your freshman year and welcome to Penn State!

Mikhala Stevens is a sophomore in Chemical Engineering, and she is a Rover for WEPO '14!