Welcome!
The Vandy in Exploration Career Community is dedicated to providing you with the fundamental knowledge and skills you need to navigate the competitive job market with confidence and to empowering you to align your passions with meaningful careers. Join our community to access resources and events, to tap into a unique network of alumni and employers, and to find opportunities in any industry. Get ready to unlock a world of opportunities as you embark on your path to a rewarding career!
Your Community Contact
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James Hoon
Career Coach
Drop In Hours
During the following days/times, you can stop by the Career Center or hop on Zoom for some quick career guidance (e.g., resume critique, etc). Drop ins do notrequire an appointment and can last up to 15 minutes.
Drop In Schedule for Spring 2024
- Mondays: 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the SLC
- Tuesdays: 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the SLC
- Wednesdays: 10:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the SLC
- Thursdays: 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. via Zoom
Vandy in Exploration Stop-Bys
The purpose of Vandy in Exploration Stop-Bys will be focused on how to utilize assessments, online resources, and other tools to explore potential career paths. Some of these assessments/resources are:
- SteppingBlocks
- What Can I Do with This Major?
- Myers-Briggs Personality Assessment
- Career OneStop Interest/Skills/Work Values Surveys
- FirstHand & Vault Guides
After attending Vandy in Exploration Stop-Bys, you are encouraged to sign up for a longer individual coaching session to debrief with the Vandy in Exploration Career Coach! This will allow you time to take the assessments/utilize the resources and think of any questions you might have. If you would like feedback on your resume/cover letter, please attend one of the Career Center’s drop-in sessions.
Starting January 8th, 2024, Vandy in Exploration Stop-Bys will be every Friday from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. and will be hosted on Zoom using the following link: https://vanderbilt.zoom.us/j/2706801475.
Individual Coaching Sessions
Sign up for an individual coaching session with our Exploration Career Coach, James Hoon. Individual coaching sessions will focus on broader career/major exploration, internship/job searching, networking & LinkedIn profiles, and more. If you would like feedback on your resume/cover letter, please attend one of the Career Center’s drop-in sessions. Please sign up for a coaching session using Handshake under “Vandy in Exploration”. Below, you will find this semester’s individual coaching availability.
- Mondays (In-person or Zoom): 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
- Tuesdays (In-person or Zoom): 9:00 a.m to 11:00 a.m.
- Thursdays (Zoom): 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
- Fridays (Zoom): 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
*Please note: If none of these times work for you, please reach out to James directly to see if there is other availability that week.
- What Can I Do With This Major?: Features 100 major profiles with information on common career paths, types of employers that hire in the field, and strategies to maximize opportunities. Scroll to the bottom of each profile for links to professional associations, occupational outlook information, and job search resources.
- SteppingBlocks: An online career exploration platform that allows you to personalize an industry-focused resource feed, take the Myers-Briggs personality assessment to learn about careers that fit your personality type, and learn more about Vanderbilt-specific outcomes. You also have the opportunity to discover different career pathways that real people in your major have gone down or learn what major will benefit you in your desired career path.
- CareerOneStop: Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor, CareerOneStop allows you to explore your skills, interests, and desired work values using quick, easy-to-use self-assessment tools. They also feature hundreds of videos that go into detail about the ins & outs (tasks, work settings, education needed) of different occupations. CareerOneStop also features several articles on how to plan your job search, the importance of networking, interview etiquette, and more!
- Vault: A career exploration platform designed around informing students about what different careers entail as well as how to put your best foot forward to secure your dream internship/job. Vault also publishes rankings of the best opportunities/companies within different industries. Provided by the Jean and Alexander Heard Libraries, you will need to create an account using your Vanderbilt credentials to access this resource.
- Vault Intern Resource Center: Vault is excited to provide undergrad and grad students with a resource that helps them apply to, interview with, and select the right internship programs for them. This resource includes the best of Vault's internship advice, rankings, reviews, and research—all in one place. It includes rankings and reviews of the best internship programs by role and industry, resume and cover letter tips, and expert advice for networking, interviewing, and turning internships into full-time offers. Vault's new Intern Resource Center has everything students need to ensure their success throughout the internship process.
- Vault Career Rankings: Interested in learning who the top companies are for your industry? Check out some of the listings on Vault’s Career Ranking page. There are also rankings for best internships/jobs based on employee wellbeing, diversity, and professional growth.
- Vault Career Guides: Vault’s career guides offer industry insights into what it takes to land your dream job in your chosen profession. If you’re still exploring your options and you want to know what different industries look like, this is a great opportunity for you!
- CareerShift: Helps job seekers access the 70% of jobs that are never published on public job boards. Recognizing that who you know is critical and many job seekers have limited networks, CareerShift’s mission is to level the job playing field and provide equitable access to job opportunities. CareerShift breaks the cycle of waiting for employers to contact you and puts you in control of your job search. CareerShift provides a powerful set of job search, organization, and management tools to enable job seekers to find the companies, jobs, and contacts that will advance their careers. When creating an account, you will need to put Vanderbilt into the Group or School Identifier box to get access to this resource for free!
Recruitment Timeline
While certain industries have specific recruiting timelines* (i.e. consulting, finance & investment banking), most industries use a method of hiring known as “just-in-time recruiting”. This method of recruiting means that most jobs are posted when they are needed/made available. Because of this, you will see internship/job opportunities being posted throughout the academic year.
*If you are interested in one of these time-bound industries, please set up a meeting with the Career Coach for that community as soon as possible to ensure that you are on the right track!
Gain Experience
Finding Internships
When it comes to finding internships, there are two main ways to approach the search. One is through using resources like Handshake, LinkedIn, and other job search websites. The other is by tapping into your network to see what jobs they might know of that haven’t been made public. It is important to balance both of these methods for a successful job search!
If you want assistance in navigating these job search websites or how to start building out your network, sign up for an individualized coaching session!
Beyond Internships
To paraphrase Scottish poet Robert Burns: No matter how thoughtfully something is planned, those plans can still fall apart. We recognize the stress that comes with planning out your summer if your internship goals fall through. Because of this, we have developed a way of designing your summer called Beyond Internships.
Beyond Internships is the intentional layering of experiences throughout the summer that you can include in a resume, cover letter, and talk about in an interview. Take advantage of the time you have and build out a program that fits your interests and future career goals. At the end of the day, employers want to see how you take initiative and spend your time. Purposeful planning of these experiences will prove just as valuable as an internship. Below, you will find some of the pieces we recommend building your summer experience from! If you have any questions on what these experiences are, feel free to schedule a coaching appointment or swing by our drop-in hours.
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Example Beyond Internships Summer Plan for Exploring Students
Online Coursework
While Vanderbilt might be on summer break, you don’t need to! Whether you take a course through Vanderbilt or an asynchronous online platform like Coursera, you can work towards developing skills needed for your future career! If you are still unsure of what career path, taking introductory courses that are geared towards industries you are somewhat interested will provide you with insight into that work.
Vanderbilt Students get access to some courses for free through Coursera.
Summer Job
Being financially stable is important! Regardless of whether it is a job at a coffeeshop or in retail, you are gaining a lot of valuable skills that employers are looking for in candidates (i.e., teamwork, leadership).
Informational Interviewing/Job Shadowing
Set a goal for yourself of connecting with X number of Vanderbilt alumni who work in a variety of fields. Doing this will allow you to learn more about what the day-to-day looks like in those industries. It also is a great way to build a community of support as you continue along your career journey. To get started, check out VUConnect, Vanderbilt’s alumni database.
Micro-Internships
Micro-Internships are shorter, project-based internships that allow you to partner with small businesses, entrepreneurs, and even large corporations to assist on a project or two. This allows you to get some experience working in a professional setting while putting your skills to work! These are often paid positions that last from 2-6 weeks. And you can do more than one at a time!
Vanderbilt has partnered with ParkerDewey to bring these micro-internships to Vanderbilt students!
FAQs
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I Have No Clue What I Want to Do During the Summer or Even After Graduation. Where Do I Begin?
This is a very common situation for most college students! Attend one of the weekly Vandy in Exploration Stop-Bys sessions to chat with a Career Coach about how to start narrowing down your interests. Then, sign up for an individual coaching session with a Career Coach to discover how your passions can be turned into a career!
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I Am Majoring in ___________, but What I Want to Do Has Nothing to Do with My Major. How Should I Approach the Job/Internship Search?
“A major reflects your interests at one moment in your life. Where you end up in a career is the result of a meandering pathway that most college graduates are destined to take after graduation. Some graduates apply their majors to their careers more than others, and some not at all.”
Jeff Selingo, author of There Is Life After College: What Parents and Students Should Know About Navigating School to Prepare for the Jobs of Tomorrow
While it is true that certain majors lend themselves more to a specific career path (i.e. engineering, teaching, finance), most majors are designed around providing you the transferable skills that are needed for a successful career, regardless of the industry. The National Association of Colleges and Employers has identified the following skills as being the most important for students heading into today’s workforce:
- Career & Self Development
- Communication
- Critical Thinking
- Equity & Inclusion
- Leadership
- Professionalism
- Teamwork
- Technology