Summer is coming sooner than you think, want to be prepared?

Thu, 04 Feb 2016 15:36:36 -0500

We’ve had some freakishly nice, warm days lately right? We had a blizzard that melted almost instantly thanks to these 50 and 60 degree days. I even hear birds chirping outside in the mornings, did they ever even go south for the winter? It’s kind of hard not to think about summer with days like this…

We have about three months of break during the summer, which is delightful, but also convenient. It’s a great opportunity to have a job or internship, considering it gives you time to reflect on your career goals, gain experience, and best of all you don’t have to come home at the end of the day and worry about homework or studying. It’s a win-win. Even though summer is a few months away, employers are starting to consider the candidates they’re going to hire for the summer. If you’re about to graduate in the spring, this is a perfect opportunity to consider full-time jobs starting in the summer as well! Whether you’re looking for a job or an internship for the summer season, now is the right time to figure out where you want to apply.

For a perfect opportunity to get a jump start, I highly recommend coming to the UMBC Summer Job and Internship Fair on Wednesday, February 10th in the University Center Ballroom. There will be over 60 employers including NIH, Peace Corps, and PayPal! You can check out the entire list of employers and their descriptions here.

There’s a few things you can do before the fair to make sure you make the most of it and ensure good results:

1. Research the companies and figure out which employers you want to talk to before the fair. This way you can confidently speak with them about their company’s outlook and goals, as well as why you’d be a good fit with them.

2. Make sure your resume looks strong before you hand it out to employers. You can look at our resume writing page on the Career Center website, or you can come get your resume reviewed beforehand! You can make an appointment at the Career Center or you can come into our drop-in hours between 2-4 Monday-Friday. The day before the fair we extended our drop-in hours to 10am-12pm and 1-4pm.

3. Dress professionally! If you need some help, check out our helpful guide here.

4. Network, network, network. Talk with recruiters, e-mail them after the fair, and consider connecting to them on LinkedIn. There will be a lot of students at the fair, so you want to be sure you stand out.

If you want any more information on this, you can check out our page on navigating career fairs or get in touch with the Career Center by careers@umbc.edu, 410.455.2216, or stopping by Math/Psych 212.

I hope to see you all there on Wednesday!