Daily Archives: May 18, 2012

Beavers Beyond OSU

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Beavers Beyond OSU is an opportunity for students and alumni to share a successful internship, career related experience, project or study abroad opportunity. Perhaps you’ve discovered a new passion or created a start-up. Or you’ve had a meaningful experience that can inspire and educate others on ways to find intentional careers. If you have a story to share, we’d love to hear from you.

To share your story, please submit your interest below.

Name: Leah Anderson

Majors: Merchandising Management and Fine Arts

Year: Senior

What are your plans after graduation? I secured a full-time job at Kohl’s Department Store.

Congratulations!

When will you start? Two days after graduation

What will be your title? Management-in-Training (MIT), which would prepare me for an assistant management position at the conclusion of the summer

How did you hear about your job opportunity? At Career Services Career Fair

What did you do to prepare for your job search? Before attending the career fair, I researched which companies were planning on attending the fair and targeted those who met my career goals. My goal was to work for a large retail company who could offer me corporate advancement opportunities. Then, I worked on customizing my resume to the company’s needs (as found on their website) and even ordered myself some flashy new business cards (courtesy of Vistaprint). I also invested time to pick out a business outfit and was ready to network.

Tell us about your experience networking with the recruiters/employers. I connected with three of the four representatives –one of them was my former sorority sister (score!). They were very easy to talk to, very informed about the opportunities available, and super enthusiastic about me (and those business cards).

What was the result of networking with the recruiters/employers? I was invited for an on-campus interview a few days later.

How did you prepare for the on-campus interview? Preparing for the interview was much more work. I read almost every page on Kohl’s website –about their philanthropic work, their celebrity endorsed brands, their high/low pricing strategy –everything. I wanted to know as much as possible, both to ensure I was impressive at the interview and to make sure this was in fact a company I wanted to work for. I also scheduled a mock interview at Career Services. This turned out to be incredibly helpful. They helped me organize my thoughts and experiences into answers that would help me market my skills and talents to the employer.

What happened after your on-campus interview? I was selected for a second interview. I credit my over-preparedness for my first successful interview. I totally would have cracked under the pressure if I hadn’t practiced my answers several times before hand.

Tell us about your second interview. What happened? Kohl’s offered me the MIT position during my second interview.

What skills and knowledge do you hope to learn while working at Kohl’s? I am definitely very excited about this opportunity. I would like to learn how to successfully merchandise store products, create sales projections and employee schedules, and explore the realms of Human Resources. I want to use these experiences to help me determine whether I want to manage a store, become a recruiter, work my way up the corporate ladder, etc. I am excited to apply my degrees to such a vast field. With so many retail-oriented jobs to choose from, this MIT program will bring me one step closer to finding my dream job.

How did your education/experiences help to prepare you for this type of job? My classes, volunteer and work experiences prepared me for this opportunity.

What information can you share with your peers who are preparing for the job search? I would definitely recommend having a mock interview to anyone who is serious about landing a particular job and to attend the career fairs.

Marian Moore, Career Development Coordinator/Career Counselor in Career Services at OSU is passionate about empowering others holistically to find meaningful and sustainable careers that promote lifestyle optimization. Interests: Career Coaching, Talent and Human Capital Management, Curriculum Design and Development, International Education, Personal Branding, Organizational Development, Entrepreneurship, Global Economic Development, Human Rights and Immigrant and Refugee advocacy.

Too Much To Do in a Day? Tips on Managing Your Time Better

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Being a college student as well as an employee, I know firsthand how stressful life can become when it seems like there is never enough time in a day to accomplish the things you want or need to accomplish. However, there are many ways to manage your time and to cope with this type of stress you may endure throughout your life.

Of course there are your priorities such as school and work but making sure you take a little bit of time out of each and every day to yourself is extremely important.  When I say taking time for yourself, there are so many things you can do. For example, this could mean go workout for an hour, sit down and talk with your best friends, read a book of your choice, and so on. Just because your day seems overwhelming, you don’t have to let it be that way.

A lot of people, including myself, get stressed out because they look at their schedule many days in advance and see all of the things they have to do that week. The best piece of advice I have ever received that I would like to pass on is to take it one day at a time. With that being said, the best thing I have ever done for myself was purchasing a daily planner. Almost every student I come across on campus owns one. If you would have asked me in high school if I would use a day planner in college, the answer would have been no, now it’s my life saver.

I highly recommend keeping track of the things you need to do each day in either a daily planner or on some sort of calendar. Doing this will eliminate the extra stress that comes along with the questions, “was I supposed to do that today, or what time is that event?” Sounds silly now, but once you find yourself asking those questions every single day it will get old and you will find yourself wishing you had it in a planner or calendar.

With a busy schedule and never enough time in a day to do all of the things you had planned, just remember to take it one step or day at a time. Finish the assignment or work task that needs to get done first and then worry about the rest as they come. Take time for yourself, write everything down in a planner, and as a benefit, become less stressed out.