Written by Monica Black
As summer approaches, students across campus are looking for ways to avoid going home and to bolster their resumes with fancy internships. Luckily, Colorado College has the perfect resource: the Career Center.
The Career Center, which recently moved its location to the Morreale House on Cascade, aims to help students make a likely first step toward their career by putting them in touch with internships. Despite this self-professed goal, only one-third of students on campus use the Career Center.
Although the internship search can be daunting, the Career Center aims to help students at every stage of their search.
The process, while it can vary from student to student, goes something like this: first, a student might attend Career Center programming (which includes lunches, talks, partnering with academic departments, Half Block non-credit offerings, and Bridge Scholar programming), which will ideally help that student attain an idea of what is offered at CC and beyond.
Many then use Career Center services to help network and get in touch with alumni at a desired internship. Once a student has begun the application process, he or she can use the Career Center to review their resumes, cover letters, and interviews.
“There is no typical appointment,” said Megan Nicklaus, the Director of the Career Center. “Some students come in with no preparation, while other students have a vision and just need help with execution.”
Abigail Censky ’18 is one such self-motivated student. She interns at KRCC, and although she discovered the internship and did much of the application process herself, she utilized the Career Center for assistance in writing her cover letter. “It’s idiotic not to use them,” said Censky.
Although the Career Center markets itself as available to all students at any point in the process, Career Center strengths lie in consulting for the nitty-gritty details of the application process.
“It’s a body shop for careers,” said Censky. “If you go into the appointment knowing what you want, you’ll leave happy.”
No matter where a student finds him or herself in the process of the internship search, Nicklaus cites the Career Center drop-in hours as a good place to start. These hours, which are offered most weekdays and can be found on the Career Center’s website, are not by appointment.
“Maybe [students] are just starting the internship search,” said Nicklaus, “and they don’t know where to begin that process. [Drop-in hours] can be a good opportunity to just come in and find out initial steps.”
The Career Center does not ignore the fact that funding is a problem for many students who are considering unpaid or underpaid internships. They have developed the Summer Internship Funding Awards Program, which relies on alumni and family donations and awards a $2,500 stipend for housing and living expenses during the internship.
Although perhaps not exhaustive, the Career Center is one of the best places to visit on campus during the summer internship search.