#2020careervision

Am I Career Ready? The big question that I have been asked throughout this education course. What I have been preparing for throughout this course. Becoming career ready is important. So, some competencies to help prepare and succeed in the workplace are:

·      Teamwork & Collaboration

·      Professionalism & Work Ethic

·      Leadership

·      Global Perspective

·      Creativity & Problem Solving

·      Communication

·      Technical Application

An informational interview is an informal conversation with someone working in an area that interests you who will give you information and advice. So, I just decided to do my interview with the NICU registered nurse that I shadowed at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte. For my shadowing experience in the NICU, I was placed with Crystina Marwitz, an RN in the neonatal intensive care nursery. During the experience, I really enjoyed shadowing her and learned a lot while there. If I had a child in the NICU, she is the type of nurse that I would want taking care of my baby. So, doing an informational interview with her was a great deal of help and encouragement. Lately, I have been a little unsure on whether I want to stick to being a registered nurse or go higher and become a nurse practitioner in the specific field. I was going to try to interview a nurse practitioner to get more information, but that did not work out, so I just did Crystina since I knew her. After shadowing her, I really found to love more of what the registered nurses did rather than the nurse practitioners. The RN’s seemed to be more hands on and that is the kind of person I am. So, with this interview here are some questions I asked and the responses that I got:

·      How did you become so passionate in neonatal rather than the general nurse?

The environment in the NICU is one like no other. We see and hear all of these babies and these little patients are just growing and wanting to live.

·      What specific skills are needed for the work that you do?

Many skills are essential for work in the NICU. You need critical care skills and be able to be an effective communicator when you have the parents coming in wanting updates and such on their child. Charting and medication calculations are also very important. If you do not like to untangle things, this is not the job for you. You must be able to work with very tiny bodies-and sometimes quickly!

·      How do you process the challenging times that come your way?

When you have to keep interventions going, there can be a lot of strain and pressure I will say. You see them struggling and sometimes you don’t want to see them going through such pain and suffering anymore. I think my coworkers help a lot because this is an opportunity to talk to others who are in the same place and you can do things to get it out of your head.

·      How are the families and do they come in all the time?

Yes, we see families come in all the time and usually they are terrified that their child could be close to death. I try to ease them and tell them what is going on and why they are attached to so many different things. Mostly, I try to get them to stay positive. We do get a lot of Spanish families that come in, so we have to get interpreters in order to effectively provide the families with the information that they need.

Reflection #8 – Week 9

        Over the past two weeks, I have been emailing Mrs. Oakley about meeting with her for an informational interview about working at Krispy Kreme. Unfortunately, we would not meet in person while I was home for spring break so we decided to on a skype interview this week. She had business come up unexpectedly so, for this week’s reflection, I interviewed Debra O’Connor about her small business start-up. Mrs. O’Connor and her husband Patrick began Recreation Turf in 20--. The company supplies turf and other turf supplies to companies. Because this interview was very last minute, I was not able to personalize the questions as much as I would have liked. Some of the questions and answers were:

1.    Why do customers choose this company?

We have repeat customers because of our dedication to quality work. We go the extra mile to make sure everyone involved in the project is completely satisfied.

2.    What does the company do to contribute to its employees’ professional development?

The company sponsors trips to trade shows to attend educational sessions and to learn what is relevant to our industry. They also hold corporate outings to help develop team building skills.

3.    Tell me about a typical day? What do you do? What are the duties/functions/responsibilities of your job?  

Check on payroll items: make sure everyone has a clock in time or enter sick or vacation code if someone is out. Go through invoices and purchase orders and resolve issues and decide on payments. Get with crew leader and discuss current and up-coming jobs and handle orders or call city/county for locates if necessary. Call vendors and/or subcontractors for bid prices. Go to bid openings if directed to do so by supervisor. Make bank deposit if necessary. Open and distribute mail. Help with job scheduling. Handle all company correspondence.

4.    How does the time use vary? Are there busy and slow times or is the workflow fairly constant?

So much of the work is seasonal, so in colder months the work load is lighter.

5.    Why did this type of work interest you, and how did you get started?

I like seeing a project from start to finish. My family has been doing this type of work for most of my life.

6.    Can you suggest some ways a student could obtain this necessary experience?

Volunteer at church, your library, or and civic organization. Get involved in an organization that has the need for these skills.

7.    What part of this job do you personally find most satisfying? Most challenging? I like the challenge of getting the best price/quality products and services. I get frustrated by subcontractors not getting their job done in time for our crew to get in and finish the job by the deadline.

Reflection #6 – Week 7

        Last Thursday my school’s career services put on a career fair expo on campus. Almost one hundred prospective employers were in attendance at the fair. Unfortunately, I only had about forty minutes to circle the fair between my classes that day. I had plans to introduce myself to The Hershey Company, ALDI Foods, Erie Insurance, Altria, and the Central Intelligence Agency. I did not take into account the other students at the expo, so I underestimated the size of the lines to speak with representatives. Because of this, and having to reach my next class on time, I only got to actually speak with three of my five companies. My first stop was The Hershey Company’s table.  Of my three stops, I believe this one dropped to the bottom of my potential internships list. I was mainly looking for an internship in management or finance but, the recruiter I spoke with said they were primarily concerned with finding potential employees in distributions. All the recruiters at the expo were from the Raleigh area so she was unable to tell me about opportunities that might be available in other locations or states. The second representative I got to speak with was from Erie Insurance. Meaghen Dube was just recently relocated to Winston-Salem and she was able to give me a lot of information regarding internships with the company. We spoke about internships that I could apply for in Winston-Salem or any other area. Meaghen told me that as an intern I would, in a way, be getting paid to shadow someone on the job.

Networking your way into a new job? Yes, this is a thing and some people are very successful at it. Networking can be defined as different things and in different ways. “Networking is defined as the act of making contact and exchanging information with other people, groups and institutions to develop mutually beneficial relationships, or to access and share information between computers.” Some examples of networking can be: handing out business cards, exchanging contact information, or sharing and acquiring information. In the case that we are talking about, networking is almost like a business activity in which businesspeople meet to form business relationships and to recognize, create, or act upon business opportunities. People network to obtain internships or jobs. So, you may think networking sounds a little intimidating. Well, it does not have to be. It can be as informal as you make it to be. Sometimes all it takes is talking to someone in the same field that you are interested in. You’d be surprised to see how easy networking can be. Various forms of networking can be things such as emailing, searching on websites such as LinkedIn, or even talking to someone sitting beside you on an airplane, for instance. This person could work in a field that you are interested in and you get to talking and earn yourself a job.

I honestly cannot think of a good enough opportunity that I have had that I did not seize to network. I feel as if I am just now starting to get old enough to know what networking is and how important of a role it plays. But, one thing that I do wish I had done more networking was at the Fall Fest. I was/am a freshman and did not know what was really going on or what I was doing, so I just walked around Fall Fest. I wish I had used that time to network myself into some clubs or other organizations on campus. When these opportunities come around to me, I need to seize them and take advantage of the great opportunities because they do not always come around.

Reflection #4 – Week 5

           In preparation for the upcoming career fair at Chapel Hill, I selected five of the represented companies to do a little more in-depth research. Ally Financial was chosen because of their main job openings are for business majors and those focusing in accounting; a career I am interested in pursuing. The Hershey Company, Erie Insurance, and Altria were also chosen for their focus in business majors. But, The Hershey Company was also researched for their jobs or internships in food science; a possible second major. Lastly, I selected the CIA because I am curious about government work also, because my cousin works for the FBI so someone in the family should work with the CIA.

           For my research I used the company’s websites, www.glassdoor.com, www.referenceUSA.com, LinkedIn, and other social media sites. Most of the companies listed ‘all majors’ on the UNC Career Services page when looking for interns, full or part-time job applicants. When I took a closer look at the company websites, it became clear that some would value one degree over another when interns or job applicants applied for positions. Ally Financial, a company specializing in accounting and investment banking, would value a degree in business or a focus in accounting more than a degree in sports science and medicine. Whereas the CIA might give equal consideration for both degrees because of its wider variety in career options like an accountant or a field agent. All in all, the assumed primary degree for my five companies would be business but, there is definitely room for other interested majors.

           One of the most pressed skills to have in any of these companies is communication. In order to be effective in the work place and to be able to move up in a corporation, everyone must efficient in communicating with others. Another skill that is needed in almost every field is the ability to be a leader. Having a career can mean getting a promotion and rising tiers within the company. For employers to even consider a candidate they must have the ability to keep order, rally, and leader those around them.

I’ve always wondered what kind of person I am. I enjoy taking assessments that reflect myself. My FOCUS 2 work interest assessment identifies my Holland Code as CSA. The C corresponds with the “organizers,” the S is the “helpers,” and the A is the “creators.” I am pleased with my results and I feel as if they strongly reflect me. Some maybe not so much as others, but I definitely have certain aspects of each.

The conventional category (organizers) are people who like to see things run efficiently and smoothly and generally enjoy keeping accurate records, organizing, working with numbers, and using a computer. I am the kind of person who you may never see have a messy room because I like my stuff to be organized and if it’s not I just cannot live life. I cannot stand a mess. I have also always loved helping my teachers in school file papers and such.

The social category (helpers) is people who describe them as cooperative, friendly, and understanding. They generally enjoy teaching, caring for others, volunteering, mediating disputes, meeting new people, and working in groups. I feel as if the social category explains me more as caring and helping for others, rather than meeting new people or mediating disputes. I have volunteered in the hospital for about three years maybe and it is something I really am passionate towards. This is when I knew I wanted to work in the hospital helping people.

The artistic category (creators) is people that like to be expressive and the opportunity to create new things. They typically do not like structure or conformity. They prefer to use their imagination and be creative. People in this category generally enjoy activities such as: writing, poetry, photography, designing, singing, acting, dancing, painting, etc. I think that I only fall in the artistic category because I like being creative. I was the one in school where I would go above and beyond on like projects and such, getting all my coloring utensils out and everything. I like to have fun with things and express myself. But, on the other hand I definitely do not enjoy writing or poetry. I use to dance when I was little for the longest time and I do like painting. Actually, one of my paintings from Honors Art in middle school got hung up at some school. My dad is a painter, so I must get it from him!

Occupations matching my results were things such as: Audiovisual Production Specialist, Child Support Services Worker, Librarian, Library Technician, Patient Advocate, and Social and Human Service Assistants. I thought the Patient Advocate fit best with my interests because a Registered Nurse was one of the supporting majors/programs associated with this occupation. I also could see myself doing health care administration too. But, I was shocked to get the Librarian results because I am not a fan of reading or writing. I have also gotten a lot of psychology results that surprised me. I think psychology can be very interesting, but I do not know if I could do it because it is such a hard concept. I took AP Psychology my sophomore year in high school and struggled!