This is an unprecedented time in our lives, something everyone has probably heard countless times over the past several months. In the midst of trying to navigate our new normal, career coaches are telling new graduates and internship seekers a bit of advice: Build a new normal. This was something emphasized In a recent webinar titled “Essential Advice for Entry-Level Job and Internship Hunting During COVID-19” presented by Eugenia (Jeannie) Liakaris, of Cappfinity, Chelsea Williams, Founder and CEO of College Code, and Lindsay Pollak, New York Times bestselling author of Getting From College to Career.
The career coaches stressed that while we must be focused on our safety, there are still ways to increase your chances of finding that job/internship for your future. Three mindset themes that perpetuated the concepts of the webinar were: Be proactive, Be creative, and Be reassured.
Be proactive:
- There are plenty of opportunities for continued learning while this pandemic goes on. There are LinkedIn Learning courses, podcasts on your industry/industry skills, academic literature, and more. In addition, leverage your network. You have created it by connecting to people over your time here at Bucknell, be proactive about reaching out to them. Now, professionalism is key here, so being upfront about why you are reaching out, in addition to being specific about what you would like support on. Do not reach out for the sake of reaching out, be meaningful about your networking.
- Tips on creating a great profile:
Be creative:
- This time has disrupted our nation’s normal trends, although there are creative ways around this. Career coaches say those graduating (or looking for internships) should reflect on your past experiences. Use this time to figure out where your strengths and past experience lay. College Code has plenty of organizational tools and resources to help you reflect on your journey to finding the job for you. In addition, it is okay to cast a wide-net. Hiring is strong in some circles, while it is stagnant or declining in others. Depending on your path, it may be beneficial to take a position that you believe is below your pay-grade. However, career coaches caution that you would gain more if you framed that experience as a place to grow and were able to provide support during a national crisis.
- College Code:
Be reassured:
- It may seem like companies do not care about the effect on recent college graduates from this pandemic. Opposite of that thought, there has been an outpouring of support and understanding of the situation from those within industries, although it is true that this doesn’t equate to all the jobs lost. While less jobs and internships are available, there are opportunities to extend your reach. Higher Education career centers, like our Bucknell Center for Career Advancement, offer support to current students, recent graduates, and even alumni. Right now, Bucknell’s Center for Career Advancement is supporting individuals virtually and can be reached from their website: https://www.bucknell.edu/azdirectory/center-career-advancement.
- Resource focused on showing the industries that are still hiring and who is not:
This blog post was written by Kyle Kern, Graduate Assistant in Freeman College of Management.