{"220321":{"#nid":"220321","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Summer Spotlight: Make the Most of Your Summer Work Experience","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ESummer is a time when many students are getting work experience through a part-time job, co-op position or internship. Some may not be thinking strategically about what they need to be doing in these temporary roles to help ensure long-term career success \u2014 but they should be.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETo kick off a summer series on career resources, we asked upperclassmen and young alumni what advice they would give current students on how to make the most of their work experience this summer. \u0026nbsp;They have worked at firms ranging from Boeing to Kurt Salmon to Tindall Corporation. Here\u2019s what they had to say:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EOn Networking:\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWork your butt off. Forget about being a college student for a semester and show your supervisor that you\u0027re responsible enough to tackle real-world problems. Then connect with every person you\u0027ve met on LinkedIn or some other networking tool so you can call on them for a position or a reference come job application time.\u201d \u0026nbsp;\u003Cem\u003E\u2014 Scott Jossey, aerospace engineering student\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cGet out of your comfort zone and keep in touch after the internship or co-op has ended. Staying connected across semesters is meaningful. Take the initiative to set goals or milestones to elicit feedback on performance and accomplishments.\u201d \u0026nbsp;\u003Cem\u003E\u2014 Margeaux Leighton, BA 11\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cDon\u0027t stop networking just because you landed the position. You want to keep building strong contacts in the company and the industry because your contacts can put in a strong word for you when you apply elsewhere later.\u201d \u003Cem\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u2014 Hunter Hammond, BA 13\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EOn Finding Things to Do:\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cAsk questions and get involved with a key project. If you don\u0027t feel visible, make a list of potential projects you could initiate, tasks you can help accomplish, or areas that you are interested in learning more about. Engage with others outside of your department and say yes to things that may not be 100 percent in your field of study or ideal job description. You will learn something from it. Also, keep a running list of things you have worked on as you go. It will be easier to know what you have done come resume time and will provide a quick assessment of what your bandwidth is.\u201d \u0026nbsp;\u003Cem\u003E\u2014 Courtney Telfare, IE 12\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cYou may not have something to do every moment of the day, but that doesn\u0027t mean you\u0027re not valuable. Be proactive about seeking out work, but don\u0027t bug your boss constantly. When you do have downtime, try and find projects you think could be helpful \u2014 and if you run out of things to do, get really, really good at Excel and VBA.\u201d \u0026nbsp;\u003Cem\u003E\u2014 KC Young, IE 10\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cPush your boss or mentor to expose you to multiple aspects of your industry. It will allow you to determine a more specific direction to take after graduation and give you a \u2018big picture\u2019 understanding of all of the variables that come together to contribute to your success.\u201d \u0026nbsp;\u003Cem\u003E\u2014 Mary Leah Todd, BC 09\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cIf you are experiencing a slow day, ask your boss if can you shadow them. Better yet, ask if you can visit an employee in another department that catches your attention and spend the day shadowing them.\u201d \u0026nbsp;\u003Cem\u003E\u2014 Brandon Dupree, mechanical engineering student\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cAsk your boss to let you sit on an interview panel to experience what it\u0027s like from the other side. It will give you an inside look at how interviews can go, good and bad.\u201d \u0026nbsp;\u003Cem\u003E\u2014 JD Ingram, AE 12\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EA few other recommendations are:\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Ch4\u003EBe Professional\u003C\/h4\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.careereducation.columbia.edu\/resources\/tipsheets\/skills-business-etiquette\u0022\u003EBrush up on workplace etiquette\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EAlways be on time, but be early whenever possible\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EDeliver high-quality work\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EDress the part \u2014 fit in with culture. (More on this next week!)\u003C\/li\u003E\u003C\/ul\u003E\u003Ch4\u003EManage Your Experience\u003C\/h4\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EDon\u0027t let your experience happen to you\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EBe vocal about how you want to grow and projects that you\u0027d like to work on\u003C\/li\u003E\u003C\/ul\u003E\u003Cp\u003EStay tuned: Next week\u2019s Summer Spotlight addresses things students should do every summer to prepare for the next phase of career development.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"Advice from Students and Young Alumni"}],"field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EStudents and Young Alumni offer advice on how to get the most out of your summer work experience.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":"","uid":"27841","created_gmt":"2013-07-02 16:57:03","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:14:27","author":"Lauren Spikes","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2013-07-02T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2013-07-02T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"220331":{"id":"220331","type":"image","title":"Getting Feedback","body":null,"created":"1449243508","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 15:38:28","changed":"1475894888","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:48:08","alt":"Getting Feedback","file":{"fid":"197252","name":"0414003-p3-16.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/0414003-p3-16_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/0414003-p3-16_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1213733,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/0414003-p3-16_0.jpg?itok=cMrrvP77"}}},"media_ids":["220331"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.career.gatech.edu\/","title":"Career Services"},{"url":"http:\/\/www.careereducation.columbia.edu\/resources\/tipsheets\/skills-business-etiquette","title":"Workplace Etiquette"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"},{"id":"8862","name":"Student Research"}],"keywords":[{"id":"69021","name":"Career Resources"},{"id":"1648","name":"Internships"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:stucomm@gatech.edu\u0022\u003ELauren Spikes\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EInstitute Communications\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["stucomm@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}