People have always said I’m too sentimental, and the following statement is no exception…If you’re reading this, it means you’ve already taken a very serious step in getting involved in your community.
“Thanks for that, Drew, but why should I care?” I thought you’d never ask skeptic reader! Your role as a digester of this blog gives you something in common with the person next to you reading it who wants nothing more than to learn more about the CBA’s student organizations or at least what kind of events they have to offer. Or maybe they’re just interested in the musings of its rather pedantic and dashingly handsome writer.
This commonality is more important than you think. Experiences shared and discussed immediately add more value to your life than just reading this blog and forgetting about it. If our life’s success is truly just the sum total of experiences that make us a better people, why not enjoy more of these experiences with as many people as possible?
Before I sound completely nebulous, let me ground myself by sharing what I overheard someone saying on campus yesterday. “At other colleges it’s expected that you find a good internship. At UIC no one really cares; good internships aren’t really expected.”
I wish I could say this guy was delusional and his comments were unfounded by the rest of the CBA undergraduate student body. Unfortunately, too many of you are probably silently agreeing with his sentiment.
I hope you see an issue with this. I hope you see an issue with people not perceiving their college well and not trying to get internships as a result. This ennui also leads to a proportional lack of student involvement in the CBA student organizations that is astounding.
If you think this is beyond your control, I’d like to recommend a few proactive solutions for your semester that will improve your college and your time in it:
- Take a friend with you to the next CBA event you go to. Whether it’s a Finance and Investment Group meeting (hint hint), career fair, or info session, I’m sure both of you would benefit doubly by going together. In addition, employers are more likely to come back to a school that shows interest in attending events.
- Raise your hand in class. If you’re confused, I’m sure three other people are too. Your classmates and professor will thank you for performing better in class.
- Make a LinkedIn profile and USE IT. Applying on UICCAREERS is not enough! Send a message to a possible hiring manager and it really stands out. You and your peers’ collective interest will well reflect the overall tenacity of UIC students.
- Get passionate about a particular field you want to end up in, and learn all about it. If you don’t know what this entails, ask Tracy Warner and any of the folks in the Business Career Center. They want to assess your skills and help you find the best fit for you right now.
- Embrace the challenge in finding the internship that’s right for you and do really well at it. No one knows how to do this better than you.
If everyone of you follows these few steps, it will undoubtedly make your professional future clearer and increase the value of your degree (and mine, too. So, if you could get crackin’, that’d be great). Be sure to contact the Business Career Center at (312) 996-5139.