Toppel Snuggie Fridays

Where's The Stuffing: Part 3

Written By Pallavi Pal

Are you staying in Miami for the Winter Break and Need Something to Do?

Even though it may be late in searching for and applying for jobs over winter break or even an internship, a great way to boost your resume would be through volunteering. Butler Center has a volunteer search engine where you can find your calling.

Whether it’s working at the Actor’s Playhouse or American Forests Association, there are exciting and fun ways that you can not only get involved with the community, meet new networking sources, but also enjoy your winter break doing something you love. On the Butler website there are options for every major and every field of interest at UMiami. For instance:

Art Majors
• Art Studio of Miami
• Gold Coast Theater
• GableStage
• Miami Art Museum

Science Majors may be interested in working at
• Bascom Palmer Eye Institute
• Baptist Hospital
• Action for AIDS, Inc.
• Children's Cancer Fund

Pre-Law Majors may be interested in
• Child Assault Prevention (CAP) Project
• Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ)
• Juvenile Justice Center School
• Legal Services of Greater Miami Inc.
• Guardian Ad Litem

Pre-Veterinary Majors may be interested in
• Miami-Dade Animal Care and Control Services
• Animal Rights Foundation of Florida
• Adopt- A- Pet

Where's the Stuffing? Part 1

Written By Priyanka Surio

How to make the most of your Winter Break

As University of Miami students, we get all the perks of a great school in academics, research, and athletics. We also enjoy a month and a half of winter vacation where we get to eat turkey, celebrate holidays with our families and relax. But this long break also finds students feeling anxious, bored and yearning to do something productive. So why not make the most of your five weeks at home!?

There are a multitude of opportunities, which include:

Traveling – getting an opportunity to travel abroad and explore other cultures
Learning – taking winter intersession classes
Preparing - getting ready for graduate schools, applications, tests (MCAT, GRE…)
Experience - gaining real world experience through internships and jobs
Service - giving back to the community and making an impact

Traveling:


If you plan on traveling abroad, first look at places that you find appealing from which you feel you could gain the most. Look into whether you have friends or family there. Find cheap tickets as soon as possible. Talk to the study abroad office on campus and receive advice on the different options you have. While you are abroad, look into the different fields and organizations that you are interested in and interact with the professionals working there; you are building your international network!

Study Abroad Office
International Education and Exchange Programs
Telephone: 305 284 3434

Cheap Flight Tickets

Toppel’s Resources
Create an account with CaneZone and browse through Going Global for internships or job opportunities abroad that fall into the time frame and place you will be visiting.


Learning:


Intersession Classes
UM offers countless Winter Intersession and Spring Break Intersession classes for those wishing to gain a head start in their college career.
Why else should you take an intersession course?
•Topics not normally offered during regular semesters
•Getting individual quality time with distinguished faculty members
•Sharing knowledge with other students

Check out the following webpage for more information http://www6.miami.edu/intersession/

Contact Information:
For on campus and domestic travel courses:
Sam Postigo and Carol Wilson
(305)284-6600
Sap.cstudies@miami.edu

For International faculty led travel courses:
IEEP office: (305)284-3434
ieep@miami.edu

What are the dates for InterSession/Spring Break?
InterSession: January 3-15, 2011
Spring Break: March 12-20, 2011

On the webpage is also a Quick Glance Brochure that will list all the courses, the school or subject area, the professor teaching, and the dates/times of the course.

Where's the Stuffing Part 2

Written by Priyanka Surio

Preparing:

Test Prep
Test takers, let Kaplan be your Study Prep for any important test coming up from the LSAT to the GMAT.
You thought Black Friday had deals, this holiday season, Kaplan reiterates its higher score guarantee through offering a plethora of test prep and review material at discounted prices.

Access their webpage to find out what deals and courses/materials they have available.
Kaplan
Get a head start on your competition now while you can.
Use this holiday season to get started on your path to a higher score.
Prep with Kaplan's flexible online options now before your peers get moving.

Graduate Schools
IF you are applying to graduate schools already or wish to visit some beforehand to help you decide on the right school, click here for tips and advice on how to prepare yourself for these visits.
Visit GradSchools.com to get the inside scoop on what to do before applying, what tests you will need for specific schools, how to apply and tips for your application, and further advice on what to do once in Graduate School.

Toppel’s Resources
Visit our main HireACane, click the Students or Alumni tab, and then click on the Graduate Schools tab.

Experience:


The “Search”
In addition to your CaneZone account create a UCAN Internship account if you wish to discover more job/internship opportunities than you can imagine. You can access the UCAN Internship page on CaneZone.

Toppel’s Resources

Be sure to refer to the Internships and Resources tabs on Toppel’s Main website.
Career LINKS: We have compiled a list of websites associated with career-related topics like healthcare, pre-law, business, etc. Select your topic of interest to see the corresponding websites.

Applying

Do not wait to apply to that summer internship, research position, study abroad experience or job. The earlier you apply the more you increase your chances of being offered your dream position. Utilize your break to research programs and opportunities and develop your application for the respective programs in your field of interest.
Be sure to get feedback on your application and any necessary personal statements or essays. Toppel has walk in hours Monday- Thursday 10:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. to help students with their cover letters, personal statements, and resumes. Normal walk-in hours end December 15. Toppel is offering a modified schedule of walk-in advising on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 2:00-4:00 p.m. from January 3-14, 2011. Normal walk-in hours resume on the first day of classes, January 18, 2011.

Stay tuned for more of the main course next time!

Toppel Events for the Upcoming Weeks

Interviewing Skills
Wednesday, December 1, 4:00 p.m. (Samantha Gil)

Effective Resume and Cover Letter Writing
Monday, November 29, 4:00 p.m. (Samantha Gil)

All events take place at the Toppel Career Center unless otherwise specified.

Any questions regarding any of these events, check the Toppel Career Center website or call 305-284-5451

Tackling the Career Fair

Written by Marlo Wyant

Every year thousands of students attend career fairs at universities and national conferences in pursuit of their careers. Although, these days, the economy has made it more difficult for prospective employees to secure positions, the presence of career fairs across the nation demonstrates the existing needs of companies to recruit new talent.

The Society of Women Engineers (SWE) recently held their 60th anniversary national conference in Orlando, Florida at the Orange County Convention Center. The highlight of this conference was, by far, the career fair. The fair had more than 5000 attendees and showcased over 220 employers currently seeking engineering, technical, and business-minded candidates. Companies included engineering giants such as GE and Caterpillar, financial institutions such as Deloitte and Goldman Sachs, non-profit organizations, and graduate schools. The fair provided networking opportunities galore for those daring enough to put themselves out there. There were seven University of Miami attendees who cumulatively secured nine on-site interviews and left valuable impressions on dozens of employers.
Some of the attendees of the career fair were in attendance for the first time. By asking questions and practicing, they were able to make the best of the fair:

What is the benefit of the career fair?

The primary purpose of the career fair is for a job-seeker to network and explore the types of opportunities available to him or her. One can perform web-searching and fill out online applications for weeks and never hear back. The career fair allows job seekers to speak directly with employers about their needs in the workforce. In turn, a career fair attendee can potentially secure on-site interviews, job offers, and general insights into the demands of the industry.

Don’t most employers tell me to make an online profile and send me on my way?

Employers will tell you to create an online profile in order to maintain equal opportunity-compliancy. However, putting a face to the online profile can make the difference. If the recruiter sincerely took an interest in you and would like to consider you for a position, it is possible for them to later look up your profile and personally recommend it to hiring managers. You will have the leg up on the mysterious face-less resumes they receive on a daily basis.

What am I supposed to do at a career fair?

1. Practice your pitch. When you go up to a company booth, you need to properly introduce yourself to a prospective employer so that you can concisely tell them about yourself and why you want to be considered at their company. Making a good first impression is what will set the tone of your conversation. Try starting out with something like this:
   
   “Hello, my name is _________ and I am an experienced ________major in my ________ year of study at the University of Miami. I have related work/project experience at ________ company/university and I am looking for a/an (internship/fulltime position) at _______ Company. Do you have a few minutes to discuss opportunities with me?”
   
   Don’t forget to shake the recruiters hand and ALWAYS ask for a business card if you felt the conversation went well. (If the recruiter does not have business cards to give you, it’s fine, but it can never hurt to ask).
2. Chart your path. For larger career fairs (100+ relevant companies), plan your intended path before going inside. Large career fairs can be distracting and disorienting, so planning is important to ensure that you talk to all of the employers that interest you. However, you can still leave time to speak with employers you have not considered before.
3. Do your homework. Although, employers attend career fairs in order to increase exposure to candidates, they prefer that one knows at least a little about what they do. Make sure to at least read the program book description about the company so that you don’t go up to ANYONE and ask “So, what does your company do?” Recruiters don’t expect you to be an expert on their company, but they want to see that you have some interest in their company.
4. DON’T ask for the onsite interview. Even though many employers host career fair interviews, they will decide when to offer the slots. If you work hard to make a favorable impression and closely match your experience to their desired qualifications, there is a good chance that you will be offered the slot. Be aware that these slots do fill quickly, and if you can’t quite make the slot at the fair, there are still opportunities with offsite and phone interviews with the company. If you make that good first impression, create the online profile the recruiters tell you to, and you may just be contacted later.
5. Keep an open mind. Read the career fair program book, listen to what recruiters have to say, and you might just consider working for a company or in a field that you had not considered before.

Toppel Events for the Upcoming Weeks

Interviewing Skills
Monday, November 22, 5:00 p.m. (Edward Cruz)
Wednesday, December 1, 4:00 p.m. (Samantha Gil)

Effective Resume and Cover Letter Writing
Monday, November 29, 4:00 p.m. (Samantha Gil)

All events take place at the Toppel Career Center unless otherwise specified.

Any questions regarding any of these events, check the Toppel Career Center website or call 305-284-5451