Events, Programs & Workshops

Events | Programs | Workshops

The Wesleyan Career Center creates, conducts, hosts and sponsors approximately 200 events, programs, and workshops each academic year. Our office offers much more than career counseling. Indeed, we see our programatic initiatives as an integral part of our mission: to establish and maintain mutually beneficial relationships between Career Center staff and students/alumni, students and alumni/parents, and students and alumni/employers. These relationships are forged 200 times a year during our workshops, employer information sessions, alumni career speaker series and panels, co-sponsored alumni association off-campus networking events, and career programs that bring together students, alumni and Career Center staff.

Events

Alumni Networking Opportunities: The Career Center offers many ways for alumni and parents to connect with and mentor Wesleyan students and young alumni regarding issues of career planning and career success. By providing "real world" advice and opportunities for today's Wesleyan students, Wes alumni and parents can support the leaders of tomorrow. There are several specific on-campus networking opportunities that the Career Center hosts annually, including a reception during Fall Homecoming/Family weekend and again at Reunion/Commencement.

Career Forum
The Wesleyan Career Fair provides an opportunity to meet employers from a variety of fields and industries in order to explore careers, discuss job and internship opportunities, and to practice those all-important networking skills.

Employer Information Sessions: Information sessions are a more informal way for employers to share information about their company culture, goals and career paths. In many cases, it allows current students to interact with recent hires (often Wes -alums) to learn more about life after Wesleyan.

Law School Fair
Students meet law school admissions officers to discuss the application process, curriculum, legal clinics, faculty, school culture, costs and financial aid, employment prospects and more.

Senior Survival Month: Each February the Career Center offers several events designed to help you prepare for your first year out of college and on the job. A variety of practical issues are addressed, including renting an apartment, financial budgeting, purchasing a car and auto insurance, plus job search techniques and other tips you might have missed up until now. Seniors, and all other students, are encouraged to attend! Note: for 2012, this event is being incorporated into the grand opening programs of the new Wesleyan Career Center.

Programs

Careers for the Common Good
The Careers for the Common Good program is designed to inform, inspire, and support Wesleyan students who are interested in pursuing careers in public service, and is coordinated in partnership by the Career Center and the Center for Community Partnerships. Programming of note was Public Service Careers Week 2010, a five-day series of panel presentations on various areas of service, featuring 22 speakers, including 15 Wesleyan alumni

Career Outlook (a job shadowing program for career research)
The Career Outlook program provides Wesleyan undergraduates an opportunity to research careers through shadowing a Wesleyan alumna/us or parent during Winter Break. Areas of exploration include business, communications, education, health/medicine, law, and the nonprofit sector.

Health Professions
The Career Center's Health Professions Advisor coordinates several sessions during the year that allow Wesleyan students to meet professionals in the health field as well as representatives from medical, veterinary, dental and other professional school programs.

Management Leadership Conference
The Management Leadership Conference is an intense four-day experience for students who want to know what it takes to be an effective leader.

Pre-Law
For all students exploring law as a career option, this program offers a variety of presentations. Law school representatives cover topics such as the application process, personal statements, and the admissions decision. Wes alumni serve on panels to discuss their careers in law, including Magistrate Judge Steven Gold '77, who has sponsored an annual trip to his courtroom in the US Court, Brooklyn. Mock LSAT exams are held each semester. The Career Center also co-sponsors events with the Wes Pre-Law Society and partners with the Wesleyan Lawyers Association for special presentations and alumni/student networking each HC/FW and RCW.

Urban Education Semester
The Urban Education Semester (UES) is an interdisciplinary, academic immersion program which introduces students from all academic backgrounds to the complexity of issues facing urban public education.

Legacies of Success
Created and sponsored by Kurt Lyn '87 and Michelle Anderson-Lyn '84, this career networking series was designed to facilitate meaningful interactions between successful alumni and students.

Workshops

Resumes and Cover Letters: If you have never written a resume, this workshop is for you! The important components of a resume will be discussed; bring your laptop and leave with a rough draft. You will then be ready to visit the Career Center during drop-in hours for editing advice. The elements of cover letters will also be reviewed.

Interviewing: Interviewing well for a job is a skill that can be learned. This workshop will cover all the points that you need to know, such as preparation, attire, the greeting, providing examples from your past experience, structuring your answers, and questions you can ask the interviewer, in order to present yourself as the best possible candidate for a full-time job or internship.

Networking: Networking is an essential skill that can help you throughout your career. It is an excellent way of finding a job or internship, and is nothing more than talking to people to help you gain advice, knowledge, and tips that pertain to a particular field, industry, occupation, or graduate school. Networking enables you to gather valuable information in a low-stress situation by making contacts and establishing relationships.

Choosing a Major: This workshop explores some of the considerations and typical concerns involved when selecting a major, and presents an approach for narrowing down your options and making that final decision. Examples of alumni, their majors, and the fields/industries they entered after graduation are provided to highlight the versatility of the Wesleyan liberal arts education.

Internship Workshop: Wesleyan students land excellent internships. This important workshop covers the definition and value of internships, the search process, useful resources, and ways the Career Center can help.

Grant Writing: Each year, the Career Center hosts Ann Faust, President of Community Consulting, to provide the fundamentals of grant writing. Students leave with a solid understanding of how to write a grant proposal that will get noticed by nonprofit funders.