Should I go abroad?
Should I get out of here for a semester?
Won't I get homesick?
What if it's weird?
How will I survive for a whole semester with NO ONE I know?
These are all the typical questions that people ask themselves when deciding if they want to spend a semester abroad or not...
Yes, going abroad is a BIG DEAL, but it's such a great opportunity to explore other cultures, other people, and most of all have the time of your life.
When will you ever get the chance to go somewhere for fifteen weeks, and have almost nothing to worry about?
So, let me make a case of why you should go abroad during your college career.
Going abroad....
1. is all about learning who you are.
By putting yourself in an abroad situation you are going to learn how you deal with different cultures, missing home, and more about your likes and dislikes.
2. is a chance to explore the world.
Traveling from country to country in Europe is way cheaper than traveling in the United States. Imagine jumping on a train when you are in Venice and ending up in Amsterdam a few hours later. You can hear different languages, see different sights, taste new foods, smell different cities, and touch all the different streets in different cities! Going abroad puts your five senses in a whole new light..
3. is a way to meet new people.
When you go abroad you will meet students from different parts of the United States, natives of the country, students studying abroad from different countries and many other travelers. The amount of people you meet will amaze you, and build a worldwide network of friends, especially with the worldwide craze of Facebook.
4. is great if you want to learn (or polish) a different language.
For students who are majoring in a different language, studying abroad is a must. Many people have told me the only true way to become a true bilingual speaker is to live and learn from natives. For students who are interested in picking up some conversational language skills in another country, going abroad gives you the opportunity to do that as well. If you live somewhere for fifteen years there's a good chance you will be needing a few phrases and words.
5. makes you more knowledgeable about world affairs and politics.
Students come back over to the United States knowing far more about the world when they left. Hearing different opinions and viewpoints about politics, world affairs, and domestic issues helps broaden your horizons.
and finally...
6. will change how you think about your life.
You may have never wanted to study abroad until college, but now that you have the opportunity it could change what you want to do when you graduate, or maybe it will make you realize that you want to live abroad.
So...take advantage of your Study Abroad program. Brockport Study Abroad is a great program, and is one of the best in the SUNY system. We have programs on every continent. The people in the office will be inviting, make you feel comfortable, and help you every step of the way. From picking a program, to figuring out how many credits you will get, to arranging your financial aid - they are there for you.
If you aren't interested in going for a whole semester EF College Break tours offers shorter programs. They have trips during the Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer semesters. These are "touristy" programs, but they allow to you go abroad while traveling in a group, and having a set itinerary. Check out their website if you are interested!
Get out there! Travel the world, meet new world, try new things, and find out who you are!
Monday, March 30, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
Spring is here...
March 21st brought us the new spring season! With that comes warm weather, green grass, days of laying in the sun, and of course less clothing.
After reading that second sentence you are probably wondering, "Where is she going with this?" Well, this blog is going to talk about dressing professionally no matter the weather. Wherever you work there is likely to be a "dress code." It might not be formal, written down or even enforced, but there is always that silly dress code that you must abide by. For example, think about your classes at college; you all dress alike. Jeans, sweatshirts, sandals, boots, button downs, khakis, and overall a casual look. I bet you can find the same pattern for college professors, college staff and various other career professionals.
So, there are two main kinds of dress in the business world: business professional and business casual.
Business professional incorporates more formal attire. For men this will include suits. Keep them classy - no baby blues or pinks! Think solid colors, and pinstripes. I suggest staying with navy, charcoal, gray and black. As far as ties go, make sure they match your suit and shirt. Red, navy, striped and patterned ties will look great. Make sure your socks match your outfit. You would be surprised how many people notice this! As for you shoes you should have a pair of dark slip on or lace up shoes that are appropriate. Keep in mind when laying out your outfit that your belt should match your tie. A sport coat with trousers would also be appropriate for a business professional look. Males should take it easy on the cologne. Smelling up an interviewer’s office will leave a bad impression.
After reading that second sentence you are probably wondering, "Where is she going with this?" Well, this blog is going to talk about dressing professionally no matter the weather. Wherever you work there is likely to be a "dress code." It might not be formal, written down or even enforced, but there is always that silly dress code that you must abide by. For example, think about your classes at college; you all dress alike. Jeans, sweatshirts, sandals, boots, button downs, khakis, and overall a casual look. I bet you can find the same pattern for college professors, college staff and various other career professionals.
So, there are two main kinds of dress in the business world: business professional and business casual.
Business professional incorporates more formal attire. For men this will include suits. Keep them classy - no baby blues or pinks! Think solid colors, and pinstripes. I suggest staying with navy, charcoal, gray and black. As far as ties go, make sure they match your suit and shirt. Red, navy, striped and patterned ties will look great. Make sure your socks match your outfit. You would be surprised how many people notice this! As for you shoes you should have a pair of dark slip on or lace up shoes that are appropriate. Keep in mind when laying out your outfit that your belt should match your tie. A sport coat with trousers would also be appropriate for a business professional look. Males should take it easy on the cologne. Smelling up an interviewer’s office will leave a bad impression.
For ladies, business professional will be suits in dark colors as well. Women can also wear a contrasting jacket and skirt, or a two-piece dress. Always have a few white or cream colored blouses to wear. They match anything in your closet! A scarf can spice up your outfit, as well as bring hidden colors out. Have dark colored high heels that are appropriate to wear to the office. They should be close toed, and not too high. Shoes that are over 4 inches are not appropriate for the office. Also, it is extremely important to wear neutral or taupe hosiery. In business professional settings it is considered very inappropriate for women to not be wearing stockings. Simple jewelry – earrings and a necklace is okay as long as it’s not too flashy. Don’t forget to take it easy on the perfume. Just a few sprits – don’t overdo it.
Now, most people that are business professional have dress down days. It can be once-a-month or sometimes weekly. Just make sure you have a handle of when the days are and what is appropriate. If you are new to workplace try and be a little dressy until you get the hang of what people are wearing. It is better to be overdressed than underdressed in any situation.
Business casual is a little less tricky to maneuver. For men it can include slacks, khakis or Dockers-type trousers. It can also be sport shirts, polar shirts with collars, sweaters, and sport jackets. For your feet it can be causal loafers or lace-up shoes…with socks, please.
For the ladies, business casual includes skirts and slacks, neatly pressed khakis and corduroys. Cotton shirts are appropriate in solids, and prints. Make sure the color isn’t too bright. Women can also wear sweaters as long as they are not too tight or reveal too much. And finally, low-heeled shoes and flats are appropriate on your feet. The most important thing for ladies in the workplace is to make sure they don’t reveal too much.
Even when the warm weather starts coming, try and abide by these basic rules. It will keep your employer happy, and it will keep you professional; business or casual.
For the ladies, business casual includes skirts and slacks, neatly pressed khakis and corduroys. Cotton shirts are appropriate in solids, and prints. Make sure the color isn’t too bright. Women can also wear sweaters as long as they are not too tight or reveal too much. And finally, low-heeled shoes and flats are appropriate on your feet. The most important thing for ladies in the workplace is to make sure they don’t reveal too much.
Even when the warm weather starts coming, try and abide by these basic rules. It will keep your employer happy, and it will keep you professional; business or casual.
Monday, March 9, 2009
How to Deal with Priorities
Managing your time can be tough, especially in college. There are always 8139874201 (quite the exaggeration, I know) things to do; it can be hard and extremely frustrating. Even if you think you are managing your time effectively, there are probably some tips you can live with knowing. It never hurts to manage your time better.
Here are some things that I do to better prioritize my life. These tips can apply to work, school, your social life, and anything else that is on your mind.
The most important thing is, obviously, the due date. The most common way a person can prioritize their work is by due date. When you know when something must be finished, it is easier to find the time to finish it by its due date. For example if something is due on Tuesday, then obviously it will be more important the assignment due on Friday. If your tasks do not have any concrete due dates, assign them due dates yourself. By giving yourself a time frame to accomplish the work, you will likely be more productive.
The next thing to focus on is the weight of the project. If the task is falling heavy on your mind then you may want to put it at the top of your list. Keep in mind that some things may need to be done first, just to get them off your mind. If you have a task that is bothering you, then get it done because that way the you will be able to accomplish your other tasks with the least amount of stress possible. By getting the heaviest projects out of the way, you will be able to get everything else done with the least amount of stress.
The third tip I abide by is the length of a project. If the project is long and tedious then you are going to want to start it far in advance, so you can work on it in pieces. You should probably start this is the morning because you are more likely to have energy and do a better job of the task at hand.
Another great way to stay prioritized is by using your emotions. If you are passionate about one project, it means that you will put it at the top of your list. If you are excited about a project or task you should put it near the top of your daily list. The same goes if you are dreading a project; if you think you are going to hate doing it, then get it done and out of the way first. If you do it first, chances are better that you will accomplish the task quicker and better because you will be able to relax for the rest of the day.
If you like to group your work by degree of difficulty, then your work by level of ease. This means that you might feel most comfortable doing your easy daily tasks at the beginning of the day to get them out of the way. You may be the type of person who likes to get the most tasks done early in the morning. If you would rather save the easy tasks for the end of the day, then tackle the difficult tasks in the morning, before you are tired from the day.
And finally, let me tell you what works best for me! I make lists. A lot of people hate making lists, and actually now that I think about it...so do I, but I enjoy crossing things off my list, so I guess it evens out. My favorite thing to do is to complete a task and then cross it out of my agenda. It is a stress reliever.
When you are prioritizing you need to done what needs to be done. The key is a well accomplished day is being a great "prioritizer." The sooner you start prioritizing, the better you will be later! Being organized never hurt anyone...so give it a shot!
Here are some things that I do to better prioritize my life. These tips can apply to work, school, your social life, and anything else that is on your mind.
The most important thing is, obviously, the due date. The most common way a person can prioritize their work is by due date. When you know when something must be finished, it is easier to find the time to finish it by its due date. For example if something is due on Tuesday, then obviously it will be more important the assignment due on Friday. If your tasks do not have any concrete due dates, assign them due dates yourself. By giving yourself a time frame to accomplish the work, you will likely be more productive.
The next thing to focus on is the weight of the project. If the task is falling heavy on your mind then you may want to put it at the top of your list. Keep in mind that some things may need to be done first, just to get them off your mind. If you have a task that is bothering you, then get it done because that way the you will be able to accomplish your other tasks with the least amount of stress possible. By getting the heaviest projects out of the way, you will be able to get everything else done with the least amount of stress.
The third tip I abide by is the length of a project. If the project is long and tedious then you are going to want to start it far in advance, so you can work on it in pieces. You should probably start this is the morning because you are more likely to have energy and do a better job of the task at hand.
Another great way to stay prioritized is by using your emotions. If you are passionate about one project, it means that you will put it at the top of your list. If you are excited about a project or task you should put it near the top of your daily list. The same goes if you are dreading a project; if you think you are going to hate doing it, then get it done and out of the way first. If you do it first, chances are better that you will accomplish the task quicker and better because you will be able to relax for the rest of the day.
If you like to group your work by degree of difficulty, then your work by level of ease. This means that you might feel most comfortable doing your easy daily tasks at the beginning of the day to get them out of the way. You may be the type of person who likes to get the most tasks done early in the morning. If you would rather save the easy tasks for the end of the day, then tackle the difficult tasks in the morning, before you are tired from the day.
And finally, let me tell you what works best for me! I make lists. A lot of people hate making lists, and actually now that I think about it...so do I, but I enjoy crossing things off my list, so I guess it evens out. My favorite thing to do is to complete a task and then cross it out of my agenda. It is a stress reliever.
When you are prioritizing you need to done what needs to be done. The key is a well accomplished day is being a great "prioritizer." The sooner you start prioritizing, the better you will be later! Being organized never hurt anyone...so give it a shot!
Monday, March 2, 2009
The "I" Word
Internships, internships, internships...
You will hear that word from the time you walk onto your college campus as a freshman to the time you leave as a senior.
As a Delta College student I knew walking into Brockport that I would be doing internships. The programs mandates that a student does at least one local internship, one national internship and one international "experience." The international experience can be either a study abroad program or an abroad internship. So, by the time I was a sophomore my resume was already growing with internship experience. You can look into the Delta College program more at www.brockport.edu/delta!
I did my first internship at (this is when I get a little embarrassed) Governor Spitzer's Regional Rochester Office. I was a little freshman with no office experience and I was terrified, not to mention the fact I somehow was picked out of ten applicants and all of the other interns were juniors and seniors. I had only ever been a lifeguard! That's all I knew. Although now I realize that I gained many transferable skills through that job, I had no idea that it would help me when I was getting ready for the internship process.
When I interviewed for the internship I was shaking, literally. I couldn't control it. Although I may have seemed and sounded confident: I was scared...for my life. Even after I received the great news that I got the internship, I was still terrified for the first day. Of course, I was still pretty shaky on the first day. The drive to Rochester was a my calming down time for the first few weeks, and then as I grew more and more comfortable I started being able to answer the phone without my blood pressure rising at the office. My internship consisted of answering the phone, writing short press releases, clipping all the important regional Rochester-area newspapers to go to the Albany office, talking with constituents in the regional areas if they were having problems, and making sure the office was in generally working order.
As an internship, it was one of the best I could have asked for. I quickly learned that spending my life in politics was not something I was interested in. My minor of communications became my major and my major of political science became my minor. Because I still hold an interest in the field, I still keep in touch with the woman I worked for. I send her an email every six months to catch up and see how she is doing. It pays off, trust me. This way she always has me in mind. For example, in January of 2007 First Lady Silda Spitzer came to the Canandaigua Wine and Culinary Center. Since Jennifer knew I was still in the area, she immediately called and asked if I was interested in helping her with the event. Another great experience gained from a past internship...
My second internship was in my hometown. I interned for the woman in charge of marketing and public relations at a Business Improvement District Office. Since working at Career Services I had become obsessed with making flyers and coming up with catchy slogans. That was the basis of my internship, but I also was able to connect with many of the downtown merchants. I learned about the hardships they were finding, and the constant problems they faced. The internship opened my eyes to many things I had never thought of before.
Along with marketing the events, I was able to do some event planning and really enjoyed that aspect of my internship as well. I also was able to work all the summer events in my hometown, so I was able to broaden my interpersonal skills. Of course with all the exciting times of an internship there are an equal amount of boring things that happen in an internship. When I didn't have an event to plan or market I helped Nicole update her lists of contacts, break down her press contacts for her event press releases, and make sure that her files were all in order.
Here are a few tips for getting through your internship.
1. Internships are boring sometimes. Every intern has to do some office work. It's not the worst part. Just remember, in your real job you are going to have some boring work to do.
2. If you work at your internship for a few days and know already that you are going to hate it, just think that it's one future career that you can cross off your list.
3. Talk to your supervisor. Let him/her what you are thinking and how comfortable you are with what you're doing. Your internship is partly what YOU make of it.
4. When you finish your internship, be sure to ask your supervisor for a letter of recommendation and keep in touch so that you can call upon him/her later when you are in need of a reference. This will also help your supervisor keep you in mind when future opportunities arise.
5. Be easy to work with. Accept assignments without complaint, ask for more work when assignments are completed, and turn out good quality work.
Internships are worth it. They can change your major, your interests, your thoughts on a certain career field. Believe your professors when they say "Employers want to see that you had an internship!" It gets you experience in the field before you are out of college. Employers will see that you went out, found an internships and gained a valuable experience - whether you enjoyed it or not. So, when you hear something about an internship, find out!
Brockport Career Services offers four internship programs. They include America Reads, Brockport Career Exploration Course (BCEC), Albany Semester Program, and the Disney College Program. You can find out more about these four internships at www.brockport.edu/career!
You will hear that word from the time you walk onto your college campus as a freshman to the time you leave as a senior.
As a Delta College student I knew walking into Brockport that I would be doing internships. The programs mandates that a student does at least one local internship, one national internship and one international "experience." The international experience can be either a study abroad program or an abroad internship. So, by the time I was a sophomore my resume was already growing with internship experience. You can look into the Delta College program more at www.brockport.edu/delta!
I did my first internship at (this is when I get a little embarrassed) Governor Spitzer's Regional Rochester Office. I was a little freshman with no office experience and I was terrified, not to mention the fact I somehow was picked out of ten applicants and all of the other interns were juniors and seniors. I had only ever been a lifeguard! That's all I knew. Although now I realize that I gained many transferable skills through that job, I had no idea that it would help me when I was getting ready for the internship process.
When I interviewed for the internship I was shaking, literally. I couldn't control it. Although I may have seemed and sounded confident: I was scared...for my life. Even after I received the great news that I got the internship, I was still terrified for the first day. Of course, I was still pretty shaky on the first day. The drive to Rochester was a my calming down time for the first few weeks, and then as I grew more and more comfortable I started being able to answer the phone without my blood pressure rising at the office. My internship consisted of answering the phone, writing short press releases, clipping all the important regional Rochester-area newspapers to go to the Albany office, talking with constituents in the regional areas if they were having problems, and making sure the office was in generally working order.
As an internship, it was one of the best I could have asked for. I quickly learned that spending my life in politics was not something I was interested in. My minor of communications became my major and my major of political science became my minor. Because I still hold an interest in the field, I still keep in touch with the woman I worked for. I send her an email every six months to catch up and see how she is doing. It pays off, trust me. This way she always has me in mind. For example, in January of 2007 First Lady Silda Spitzer came to the Canandaigua Wine and Culinary Center. Since Jennifer knew I was still in the area, she immediately called and asked if I was interested in helping her with the event. Another great experience gained from a past internship...
My second internship was in my hometown. I interned for the woman in charge of marketing and public relations at a Business Improvement District Office. Since working at Career Services I had become obsessed with making flyers and coming up with catchy slogans. That was the basis of my internship, but I also was able to connect with many of the downtown merchants. I learned about the hardships they were finding, and the constant problems they faced. The internship opened my eyes to many things I had never thought of before.
Along with marketing the events, I was able to do some event planning and really enjoyed that aspect of my internship as well. I also was able to work all the summer events in my hometown, so I was able to broaden my interpersonal skills. Of course with all the exciting times of an internship there are an equal amount of boring things that happen in an internship. When I didn't have an event to plan or market I helped Nicole update her lists of contacts, break down her press contacts for her event press releases, and make sure that her files were all in order.
Here are a few tips for getting through your internship.
1. Internships are boring sometimes. Every intern has to do some office work. It's not the worst part. Just remember, in your real job you are going to have some boring work to do.
2. If you work at your internship for a few days and know already that you are going to hate it, just think that it's one future career that you can cross off your list.
3. Talk to your supervisor. Let him/her what you are thinking and how comfortable you are with what you're doing. Your internship is partly what YOU make of it.
4. When you finish your internship, be sure to ask your supervisor for a letter of recommendation and keep in touch so that you can call upon him/her later when you are in need of a reference. This will also help your supervisor keep you in mind when future opportunities arise.
5. Be easy to work with. Accept assignments without complaint, ask for more work when assignments are completed, and turn out good quality work.
Internships are worth it. They can change your major, your interests, your thoughts on a certain career field. Believe your professors when they say "Employers want to see that you had an internship!" It gets you experience in the field before you are out of college. Employers will see that you went out, found an internships and gained a valuable experience - whether you enjoyed it or not. So, when you hear something about an internship, find out!
Brockport Career Services offers four internship programs. They include America Reads, Brockport Career Exploration Course (BCEC), Albany Semester Program, and the Disney College Program. You can find out more about these four internships at www.brockport.edu/career!
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