This week, I thought I would take a little time to highlight one of CP&R’s resources that I have found helpful in the never-ending search for internships. As I have said before, I think networking is valuable no matter what field you are going into. Not only do personal connections give you a leg up in the application process, but you have the chance to make real, meaningful connections with professionals in your field. It’s hard to put yourself out there to “network”, in whatever form that may take, but I have found that people are inherently kind and genuinely want to help. Without further ado, here is one of my favorite weapons in my (not so secret) networking arsenal!
Every year, Scripps Career Planning & Resources invites members of the current graduating class (and alumnae 1 year out) to submit their resume for an online resource called the Resume Book. It serves multiple purposes:
First, it is a publicly available document that allows recruiters to see the accomplishments of the graduating class and contact them about job opportunities.
Second, for first years, sophomores and juniors who may be stressed out looking for jobs/internships, it provides some wonderful ideas of internships that our amazing seniors have landed, formatting examples and a way to build a list of companies you might be interested in.
The Resume Book is organized by career interests, so all you need to do is look up professions you’re interested in and BOOM! you can see where past Scrippsies interned, what their activities they were involved in on campus, and get good examples of what a resume in your field might look like. While I’m not saying that you need to follow someone’s exact career trajectory, it gives you a good idea of how their budding careers have evolved from student activities to professional experience.
When we think of networking, we usually think of contacting real, professional adults. But your peers are also a invaluable resource. For example, last year I was panicking about internships and began digging through the resume book. I found, and reached out to, a then current senior who had interned at companies I was interested in. When I emailed her, she warmly agreed to meet me at the Motley, we had a delightful conversation, and she then connected me to a company she had interned with. Through a personal introduction, and subsequent calls with employees at the company, I landed an internship! Because I have had such success with and find the resume book a valuable resource, I thought I would share this insider tip.