Resume writing can be intimidating. You sit in front of a half-filled word doc, and suddenly everything you’ve done and accomplished in your life leaves your memory. You feel like there is no way you could ever, ever fill up this page. But never fear! The UMBC campus offers tons of opportunities to help round out your resume and feel confident in your experience.

Volunteering: There are a bunch of charitable student organizations on campus (see the full list here). Whether you're fighting food waste with donations or designing sustainable engineering projects, you’re sure to find an organization that interests you and possibly relates to your major. Reach out to The Shriver Center for more information about volunteer opportunities!

Extracurriculars: Service organizations aren’t the only useful club you can join. Consider attending meetings for your major’s council, or join a club to pursue a hobby! The commitment and leadership experience will look great on your resume.

Research: UMBC is a research university. This means a lot of the professors on campus have their own research projects in addition to teaching classes. Read up on your professors’ projects, ask them questions, and see if you can assist them in their lab! It's a wonderful experience and you get to work on a cutting edge project in your field.

Projects: Speaking of projects, think about starting your own! Whether you want to recruit a few friends to help you or go it alone, take some time and apply what you’ve been learning to apersonal project. There are massive amounts of resources on campus free for you to use, so start brainstorming ideas and get to it!

On Campus Jobs: Finally, consider getting an on-campus job. Come in to the Career Center to get your resume reviewed and approved, then check out UMBCworks for various on-campus job postings. On-campus jobs are a great opportunity to get involved on campus, and you supervisors will understand your student schedule as well!

Between those five options, you should have plenty of material to work with. Be sure to look at our sample resumes by major to explore how other students had added their experience to their resumes, and as always, feel free to drop by the Career Center any weekday from 2 pm - 4 pm if you have resume questions. Have a relaxing spring break!

Name:Kaya Knake

Internship, Co-op or Research Site:Robert Bosch LLC.

Position Title:Intern Software Developer

Major(s)/Minor(s):Computer Science

Work Term:Summer 2018

Tell us about your internship, co-op, or research opportunity, including your day-to-day responsibilities.

This summer, I was fortunate to intern for a second time with Robert Bosch LLC. I worked within the Information Coordination Organization department to create shared service software. I assisted in database maintenance and created a dashboard in Power BI for Bosch Latin America. On a day-to-day basis, I programmed with SQL, attended customer meetings, and worked independently on assigned projects.

Describe the process of obtaining your position. When did you hear of the position and submit your application?

I became aware of the internship position for a software developer from a Bosch employee in January 2018. I applied online and had an in-person interview in March. The application process was more streamlined as this was my second internship with Bosch. Therefore, eliminating many of the requirements for new interns, such as watching the online introduction videos, orientation, and some paperwork.

What have you enjoyed the most about your position or organization?

As a software development intern at Bosch, I enjoyed employing data visualization tactics to create the dashboards.  Data visualization was enjoyable as it allowed me to creatively analyze and display customer data. This experience was enhanced by reading “Storytelling with Data” which explains how people process charts and visuals.

One of my most enjoyable experiences with Bosch was becoming involved with Women in STEM. I assisted in leading a Women in STEM event for Detroit middle schools girls visiting Bosch to learn about working at STEM companies. I lead four sets of girls through a Sphero programming challenge that I wrote. This activity was fulfilling and I was fortunate that Bosch provided me the opportunity to help out our community.

How do you believe you have made an impact through your work?

I believe I made an impact as a software developer at Bosch through my work on the Power BI dashboard. I created multiple dashboards tailored to customer specifications. I also was given the opportunity to create macros to better organize data, instructed my team on the use of these macros, and apply them to other company dashboards.

What advice would you give to another student who is seeking an internship or similar experience?

I would recommend to any other student seeking an internship to avoid limiting yourself during the application process. Internships are an opportunity to gain experience but also can open new doors. Remember to network with your coworkers and have fun!

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Most of us here grew up in a time where emails and phone calls were pretty constant. I got my first email address when I was still in elementary school, and I’d been making phone calls since I learned how to talk. But there is a big difference between calling a relative or emailing a friend and communicating with an employer or customer through phone or email. Learning to communicate professionally can sometimes be a little tricky, so keep reading and check out my tips on how to effectively communicate in a professional setting.

In general, there are a few key things to look for whenever you are calling or emailing in a professional capacity. The first is fairly obvious: remember your manners. Have proper greetings and goodbyes on emails and phone calls. Do your best to speak professionally as well, both in written and oral communication.  When making these calls or emails, keep on track. It’s pretty easy to go off on a tangent, telling stories that aren’t relevant or helpful. Be polite and courteous, but try and stick to the original intention of the message when possible. Finally, keep a lookout for your personal life slipping through. Most importantly, check your email signature and your voicemail message. They should include your contact information while being short and professional.

When emailing, always include a brief but informative subject line and send the email from a professional email address (your UMBC address is great while you’re in school). If you have a longer message, make sure to break up the text into readable paragraphs. Whenever I’m hit with a wall of text in an email, chances are I’ll at most skim the information. One characteristic of emails that should work in your favor is the paper trail. This means if you’re appropriate and professional, you have a clear record of your conversations with colleagues and clients. It is easy to refer back to when trying to recall what was discussed and can be used to clarify miscommunications.

I don’t know about you, but phone calls intimidate me. It's easy to misunderstand tone and body languages like in emails, but requires an instant response to keep the conversation moving. Kind of stressful. So it's very important that you take professional phone calls seriously. Always answer an unknown number politely (I know, I know spam calls are the worst, but you don’t want to accidentally hang up on a potential employer). Try not to talk too quickly, and if possible, have an outline of questions you need to ask. Consider taking notes during the phone call, then emailing a summary of your conversation afterward to make sure everyone is on the same page. Finally, don’t do anything else while on the phone! It's tempting to get mindless chores done, but it's important to give these phone calls your full attention.