In a job market that feels inundated with candidates, you may feel completely overwhelmed trying to find ways to stand out among your competitors. This can be especially true if you’re starting out in your career and are trying to find ways to add experiences to your resume.
It feels like an endless cycle. You need experiences...to add experiences to your resume...but without experiences...it’s difficult to get experiences in the first place. Internship opportunities fill up quickly within a seemingly narrow window of time.
In other words, how in the world do you get the visibility you need to land that first internship?
Here’s the truth: pursuing and securing an internship can feel like chasing a purple unicorn.
But here’s a secret: there are actually other ways to acquire career-related experience.
Here are a few to help you get started:
Want to know more ways you can stand out as a leading candidate outside of internships? Join us for a Keys to Success workshop on Monday, October 7 at 12 PM at The Commons 331 to learn how.
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Name:Hikaru Belzer
Pronouns:He/Him/His
Semester of Internship:Summer 2024
Major:Mathematics
Current Class Level:Senior
This semester I completed a(n)...:Internship
Internship, Co-op, or Research Site (Company/Organization Name):Morgan Stanley
Location of the Organization (City, State):Baltimore, MD
Title of position:Non-Financial Risk Analyst
Tell us about your internship, co-op, or research opportunity, including your day-to-day responsibilities:
During my internship, I worked on the Strategic Product Management Team, supporting scenario analysis and coverage. I acquired knowledge in Agile Project Management by assisting the Product Owner in leading a team of Software Developers, Quality Assurance Testers, and Analysts. Additionally, I had the opportunity to lead stakeholder meetings with international members (from London, Budapest, Mumbai, etc.) to guide the team in redesigning and documenting an improved workflow for the global scenario analysis program.
Some of the skills I gained include backlog management, UI/UX design, process management, data management, stakeholder management, and requirements gathering. I also conducted more than 20 interviews and created a SharePoint database for a program-long non-financial risk technology inventory project, which was shared firm-wide. We presented our findings to Executive Directors and senior management.
My day-to-day responsibilities involved joining meetings (both virtual and in-person) and networking with employees. I used a variety of tools, including Excel for writing user stories, PowerPoint for creating presentations and creating new workshop workflows, and JIRA for project management tasks. I also used ServiceNow to grant employee entitlements.
Describe the process of obtaining your position. When did you hear of the position and submit your application?:
I obtained my position by applying to the program online through Morgan Stanley's website. I applied on July 25, 2023. I sent my resume, and soon afterward, I was contacted through email for the next steps. The first step involved a phone call where I was asked questions. This call was intended to make sure I was prepared to move on to the next stage. Then, the next step was an in-person interview day, which was called "Superday." During this day, I had multiple interviews, each one with a different person, and a group project with other interviewees.
About two weeks after this process, I received a phone call from the recruiter in the morning, and they told me that I had been accepted for the position. I was officially extended an offer on November 15, 2023, and this was when I logged onto the online portal and accepted it there.
What resources did you use to find your current experience?:
Handshake
What have you enjoyed the most about your position and organization?:
I enjoyed having the opportunity to get in-depth experience working at a large financial company. I enjoyed making connections with other employees the most. The process of networking and working with my manager and team was an exciting aspect.
How do you believe you have made an impact through your work?:
I believe I made an impact by contributing significantly to the team. I helped my manager redesign the entire new workflow for the scenario analysis program we were working on, and the team will continue to use my work. Additionally, the NFR Technology Inventory project I made with a group of other interns was shared with the Legal and Compliance Division in Baltimore, so employees will continue to use that.
What advice would you give to another student who is seeking an internship or similar experience?:
I would advise another student to focus on developing skills that show they are taking initiative. Creating your own projects, your own club, or another original idea will greatly enhance your resume. Focus on diversifying your skills while maintaining high grades and other commitments.
Please provide a short reflection or quote about what you liked most about your position / earning internship credit / working with the Career Center.:
I enjoyed working with my team the most and establishing a connection with my manager and mentors. The Career Center helped me prepare and adjust my resume before applying to the position.
The 2024 Women of Color (WOC) STEM DTX conference, hosted by Career Communications Group, Inc., is taking place October 3-5, 2024 with options to participate either in-person or online. The conference features leadership and professional development programs in addition to a career fair where many top national and local companies in the STEM fields are actively recruiting STEM interns and professionals.
You will need to register to participate. Open to ALL students! You can register to participate until the day of the event. However, it will take about 15-30 minutes for registrations to be activated and to gain access to the platform.
· The job fair is free! To participate in the online job fair only, go to: https://s4.goeshow.com/ccgroup/womenofcolor/2024/job_seekers_registration.cfm
· To participate in the full conference (in addition to the career fair) go to: https://s4.goeshow.com/ccgroup/womenofcolor/2024/student_registration.cfm and select whether you will participate “in-person” (Detroit, MI) or “online”
· The fee for the first 50 students will be waived by using the promotional code PCKDR84. The fee for attending the full online conference is $50.
· If you are interested in attending in-person and have not already notified the Career Center, please register on the WOC website (link above). You will be responsible for the hotel, airfare, and the $100 conference registration fee.
If you have any questions, please contact Diane Crump-Fogle (crump@umbc.edu) or Chrisi Giannakaris (chrisig@umbc.edu) from the UMBC Career Center.
]]>Name: Velma Funebe
Pronouns:She/Her
Semester of Internship:Summer 2024
Major:Public Health
Current Class Level:Sophomore
This semester I completed a(n)...: Internship
Internship, Co-op, or Research Site (Company/Organization Name):Amgen
Location of the Organization (City, State):Thousand Oaks, California
Title of position: Representation in Clinical Trials -Global Expansion Intern
Tell us about your internship, co-op, or research opportunity, including your day-to-day responsibilities:As a RISE intern I work in Amgen's Research and Development Function. My job is to design a community engagement strategy to build Amgen's new Clinical trial infrastructure in India. On a day to day I connect with government affairs, R & D directors and business performance managers to create an ethical and strategy to support health equity goals in India.
Describe the process of obtaining your position. When did you hear of the position and submit your application?: I heard about this position through personal research in Early january. I applied through the website and about a month later began the 2 round interview process. Funny enough, after I was offered the position my friend sent me a post from UMBC advertising positions at Amgen. UMBC's Career and academic resources are really doing a great job keeping us on the pulse when it comes to amazing opportunities.
What resources did you use to find your current experience?:LinkedIn or other social media
What have you enjoyed the most about your position and organization?:I love everything about my position. The team and company culture is my favorite. Everyone is so encouraging and gives you a lot of room to design your internship experience to your liking. Ive been able to set meeting with VP's, CEOS and so many executive partners who are so excited to meet me and genuinely are happy Im there. My managers are supportive in every step and have faith in my abilities. I'm so grateful to be here and excited for the future.
How do you believe you have made an impact through your work?:My work is meaningful to me because it really has an impact. Making a familiar industry in a new country digestible is no easy feat. The research I'm doing about community efforts that are making a real impact will help in how funding is allocated to communities in need. I'm so excited to be on a team that focuses on diversity and equity in the Clinical trial space. My work helps in shaping better relationships between communities and Amgen.
What advice would you give to another student who is seeking an internship or similar experience?:My advice would be to go to every Resume Rescue. I went to almost every resume workshop and they really showed me how by just framing my experience differently according to the industry I can leverage my transferable skills.
Please provide a short reflection or quote about what you liked most about your position / earning internship credit / working with the Career Center.:The cafeteria, work- life balance and impact Amgen is making in biotech is amazing to witness. I'm so grateful to God for putting me in a position to learn from such a diligent and diverse team. The Career center resume workshops have really helped me stand out and leverage my brand.
How did they do it?
This may be a question you may ask yourself when admiring the career path of a sibling, family friend, or mentor. The way you see it, this person seamlessly transitioned from undergrad to the high-paying dream job they have today.
The reality is there were many steps taken to get there. In fact, it may have taken several jumps, transitions, and even pivots to get to the ideal job.
But oftentimes you don’t get to see the entire trajectory of a professional’s career. You just see what’s in front of you, right now, when that person has already “made it.”
If only there was a way to see the whole journey.
Well, now you can.
Say hello to Steppingblocks, a series of self-service and skill-building tools that help students explore any field of study or major. Using cutting-edge technology, Steppingblocks serves as a digital career counselor by tapping into a database of 135M+ career paths. Students can also take a deep dive into UMBC’s alumni pool, reviewing the unique career paths of various alum.
What does this mean in more understandable terms? With Steppingblocks you can do the following:
No more guessing and no more confusion — just the evidence-based insights you need to figure out how to plan your career.
You’ll be able to see how UMBC alumni specifically navigated the job market — what their career titles are, and what skills were required to get where they are today.
It’s the first step toward making intentional, informed decisions about how to up-level your skill set and snag your first job.
So what are you waiting for? Check out Steppingblocks today and unlock your career potential.
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