By Brittany Pierce
Over the course of “Like a Boss: Alma College Career Week”, students had many opportunities to improve their skills related to all aspects of the interview and job process.
Sponsored by the Center for Student Opportunity (CSO), campus hosted a dozen career related events, activities, speeches and workshops.
Last Monday kicked off Monday with three events: a casual drop-in at Starbucks where students could get their resumes reviewed by a professional recruiter, a Career Bootcamp hosted by Steve Bohus about the basics of professionalism and a session about using LinkedIn, a business-oriented social networking site.
Tuesday and Wednesday began with Alumni Speed Interviews, where students could gain constructive feedback on how to improve their interviewing skills, as well as extra practice to help calm any anxiety surrounding the process.
Last Thursday promised three events, starting with joint-session on how to write strong cover letters and resumes. At the workshop students looked at examples of strong cover letters and resumes and received one-on-one help with their own.
Following this, there was an informational meeting on service opportunities offered nationally and internationally through the AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps. Lastly, another session was offered to show the tips and tricks to navigating employment, specifically in the federal government.
Futures Fair, the big finale to Career Week, was on last Friday. This an opportunity for students to meet with over 45 employers to talk about internships, summer jobs and entry-level employment opportunities. As an added bonus, for making it through the week, students got to take home a Like a Boss: Career Week t-shirt.
“[This experience is] always really helpful,” said Ariel Capaldi (‘18). “I think it was a really good reminder that the writing center is there . . . so even if this [event] wasn’t at a convenient time . . . I can make an appointment and still have people who are better at [cover letter and resume writing] look at it.”
Besides Career Week, CSO has many other opportunities for students to improve their career oriented skills. The writing center, for example, is a resource that will always help students review and better their cover letters or resumes.
Another source available to students through the CSO is peer consulting. These are fellow students who are well trained in cover letter and resume building, the interview process, job searching and networking. They are always available Monday through Thursday from 5pm to 8pm in the CSO. Specific appointments for this service can be made through Handshake.
A good reference for students looking to refine their interview know-how is Big Interview, accessible through the Alma College website. Big Interview is a website that allows students to do mock interviews and be advised by experts in over 140 industries, as well as learn common questions asked at interviews.
Although campus has numerous ways to improve on all skills, career-centered students still felt that Career Week was beneficial, “Anyone can google how to write a cover letter and the format,” said David Suidgeest (‘20), “but here you get specific advice towards what you can do to make yours better.” 
