Part of being a professional school is taking the career development of students seriously. From the day a student arrives at SIPA the Office of Career Services is involved in making sure there is a strong focus on developing career management skills.
The message below was recently sent out to incoming SIPA students. I thought I would post it here for students interested in our program to provide a glimpse of the type of resources available. Note that most of the links in this message require a user name and password that is only provided to incoming students.
So, if you are an admitted student please take advantage of the links. If you are a prospective student, this message is just meant to provide general information about the first steps new students take with our Office of Career services when they join us for Orientation.
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Dear incoming SIPA students:
We in the Office of Career Services at SIPA are looking forward to meeting you upon your arrival for Orientation on Monday, August 30, 2010. It will be an exciting time as you embark on this journey to prepare for careers in international and public affairs. Obtaining internships and getting the opportunity to apply your new knowledge will be an important part of your experience at SIPA.
Many private sector employers and some federal government agencies begin recruiting for interns as early as September, while other public and nonprofit recruitment begins in the spring. You will be able to prepare for your internship search through various OCS programs available throughout the fall, including the Professional Development Class, career-related workshops and career advising appointments. Those of you interested in the private sector should register for the Private Sector Professional Development Class which will take place on Saturday, September 11, 2010. A schedule of additional classes will be available during Orientation.
We suggest you review the following information to ensure a successful internship search.
SIPAlink: OCS uses SIPAlink to advertise job and internship opportunities, career events, employer information sessions and on-campus interviews. As an incoming student, you will be able to register with SIPAlink at http://sipa.columbia.edu/resources_services/career_services/current_students/find_job.html on Monday, August 30, 2010.
Resume: Make sure you have a well written and clearly formatted one page resume. You may refer to our Online Career Resources for sample resumes and fact sheets, such as Resume Writing-General Tips and Resume Writing Tips for Positions in Finance and Banking, listed online at http://sipa.columbia.edu/resources_services/career_services/current_students/career_resources/fact_sheets.html.
Business Attire: If you’re interested in private sector employers, be sure to have a conservative business suit to wear to all business/finance employer information sessions and on-campus interviews. For some public sector and nonprofit employer presentations, business casual attire is acceptable.
Employer Information Sessions: These sessions offer a company/organization overview and provide excellent networking opportunities with employers. You should conduct prior research on the employer and arrive with well formulated questions. This will demonstrate your seriousness and interest in the particular employer and their industry. Once you have registered on SIPAlink, you will be able to view and sign up for employer information sessions of interest to you. In order to see a list of recruiters who came to campus last year, please look for a document entitled On-Campus Recruiters 2009-2010 in the SIPAlink Resource Library.
All students attending employer information sessions should order professional name tags through OCS. They can be ordered by logging into your SIPAlink account at https://www.myinterfase.com/cusipa/student/. Under On-Campus Recruiting and Career Events, click Career Events. From there go to the event labeled Office of Career Services: Getting a Name Tag First-Year Students Only (Class 2012) and sign up for this event by clicking the RSVP button. The deadline for the orders will be Monday, September 13. In addition, it is a good idea to order business cards to give to employers after their formal presentations. These can be ordered during your first week at SIPA through the Journalism School or Printing Services at SIPA.
Enjoy the rest of your summer, and we look forward to seeing you on during Orientation!
