Tips for the Transition going from Student to Staff: You've Got a Friend in Me!

This is the third in a five part series that provides a tip about the transition from college student to full time employee. Make friends in the office! You will spend the majority of your time  working in direct contact with the people in your office. Not that you need to be best friends with everyone, but you want to be able to feel comfortable around them. Most people say that they spend more time with their coworkers than their actual family members. It is important that you are able to build some type of cordial relationship with those in your office so that you not only enjoy the job that you are doing, but also the people that you are working with!

Every once in a while you may need a Beyonce dance break (cue music) and who better to do it with than with your office friends! Sometimes you get so bogged down with tasks that it is necessary to take a breather and relax a bit. Having a friend that you can chat with for 5 minutes or take a quick walk around the building with is necessary for keeping your brain clear and staying productive.

Office colleagues may be the best friends you EVER make and may become a bit of an extended family. Make sure that you have a strong enough relationship that they can remember you for the good!

Friends Forever,

Jennifer McGrew '13

#youngalumnichronicles

Extended Drop-ins: Same Time, New Location

Do you live in the library from mid-afternoon to night? Have any career or graduate school questions?  Still seeking a summer internship or advice on how to get a recommendation for that application due next week? Career Services advisors are available for Drop-In meetings from 1:30 to 4 pm everyday in Career Services, 63 South Main Street. You can find us on the second floor of the Bank of America building.

You can also meet with Career Services advisors on Tuesday and Wednesday from 4 to 7 pm in the new Undergraduate Deans Office on the first floor of Carson Hall, Suite 125. (This is the same location as the old Computer Store.) No need to sign up in advance for these extra hours;  Drop-Ins are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Simply stop by during Drop-In hours with your questions, concerns, and printed copies of any materials you want reviewed.

We look forward to seeing you!

Wardrobe Musts for Interviews (& Local Places to Score Big!)

Dressing up for interviews is important -- regardless of whether you're interviewing with a start-up, a grad school, or a Fortune 50! Here's a short piece from Lindsay Olson at U.S. News on 10 Wardrobe Musts for your Next Interview. If you've yet to find that perfect interview suit -- or your wallet says "not right now," you may want to check out local consignment stores from the Pink Alligator to Listen. Also, this Friday and Saturday, October 19 and 21, the nearly New Consignment sale will feature some of the finest used clothes in the Upper Valley at Norwich's Tracy Hall. And did we mention the fabulous sale racks at Talbots, Rare Essentials and Rare Essentials for Men in Hanover?

A good dry cleaning and tailor can do wonders!  So can that free bang trim at J.C. Penney in West Lebanon, just a few steps away from Sephora.

Employer Pet Peeves

Our on-campus interviews rooms are filled with students and employers this time of year. In addition to extending invitations for further interviews and potential job offers, many employers leave behind valuable insight you can learn from -- feedback! The following feedback comes from an employer that's been recruiting at Dartmouth for many years. We asked them to share their pet peeves, as well as a short overview of their experience this year:

We received 150+ resumes from Dartmouth. We have to narrow this pool of applicants down to less than 25.  The easiest way for us to do that is to overlook applicants with simple/careless mistakes such as the following:

• Salutation of cover letter is addressed to one company, and body of letter has been updated for our company.  But we’re “one of the top companies that you want to work for.”
• If you are going to recycle your cover letter from your summer internship application, don’t leave in the sentence that you are a junior and looking for a summer position – my first response is, then why are you applying to our full-time position?
• Transcript errors – when they print off the transcript from banner web, it’s too long. Unofficial transcript means type it out in word in an easy to read format and then PROOFREAD!
• If we’ve got 2-3 documents from each candidate, do the math for how many pages we have to read in ~5 days, on top of our full time jobs.  We don’t want a 5 page transcript or 2 page resume.  Condense to 1 page for each document required.
• BUT, if you’ve got a page to fill, then fill it.  A one paragraph cover letter or a short resume stands out!

So there you have it: A short list of things not to do that will improve your chances of getting in for an interview -- and landing a job offer. All of the things you can do are simple -- and should take you less than 30 minutes to get right.

• Customize your cover letter.
• Research the employer.
• Provide a one page transcript that is easy to read. Instructions on how to do this can be found here.

Have additional questions? Want help preparing. Stop by Career Services for a Drop-In appointment, available Monday through Friday, 1:30 to 4:00 pm.

"I Work Hard for No Money" - Are Unpaid Internships Really Worth Your Time?

Thinking that sweet unpaid internship at JPMorgan will land you a guaranteed job after graduation? Think again. According to the University of Georgia's Red and Black, in 2012 the  National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) conducted a survey revealing that just 37% of unpaid interns received job offers, only one percent higher than those who hadn’t done an internship at all. Paid interns however, received nearly double that amount, with a whopping 60% of the 48,000 students studied going on to receive at least one job offer.

But wait - don’t get too discouraged. Although these statistics may be difficult to hear, keep in mind the valuable industry experience gained from each internship opportunity, paid or unpaid. As an intern, you have the chance to develop connections and skills necessary to make you a more viable candidate in the job search later on.

Want to score an internship that comes recommended? Check out the Internship Feedback database (access via the Internships tab in Dartboard). You'll see internship reviews and contact information, supplied by current students and recent grads!

check out the new Internship Feedback database in Dartboard's Internship section, and see internship reviews and contact leads provided by other Dartmouth students!