Freshman Seminar Fall 17 FRB

Dining Etiquette Workshop

On Oct 26I went to the Dining Etiquette Workshop. It was a nice workshop that introduced a lot of information about how to handle yourself during a breakfast or lunch interview.They also provided buffet.The food also attracted me to attend this workshop.  I really really enjoyed this workshop and I learned a lot form it. There was also something awkward happened to me. I didn’t wear formal attire.When I saw the email from Starr career center, I didn’t know about the attire requirement until I was there. Everybody looked so professional except my friend and me. Both of us were casual. I even hesitated to go inside when I saw their professional attires. But the overall experience was still wonderful.

Terri Thompson was a very professional as well as humorous instructor. She told us the right way to eat soup was to spoon your soup away from you in the bowl. It’s like the opposite way of how we usually eat the soup, but it’s what we should do while in a formal dinner. Actually, this was my first time to hear about it. It’s so weird when I eat soup in this way. She also talked about the differences between American style and the Continental style when you try to cut the food. In continental style, you don’t have to switch the place of fork but keep it in your left hand. While, in American style, you cut food first then switch the fork to right hand and start to eat. I personally preferred the American style because I feel it’s uncomfortable to eat with my left hand since I am not a left-hander. Moreover, she explained the resting position and finished position of forks. One of the most important things was to get away from alcohol. Good dining etiquette will enhance your chance of being hired.

Attending a workshop

Resume. One of the most stressful paper but the most necessary paper in order to get a job. Starting from high school, teachers and fellow students always emphasized how important a resume and cover letter are in life. My resume will be the first impression to an employer, which will determine if I will be eligible for an interview or not. Even though I kind of learned how to write a resume in my English class in senior year of high school, I was not so sure about how to write a professional and perfect resume. Then, I received an email from the STARR career development center about the workshop about “writing winning resumes.” I immediately made a reservation on STARR website since I thought this workshop was what I needed.

The workshop was supposed to start at 12:30. However, the instructor/advisor came into the room at 12:54. I was little bit cranky at that moment because it was after I took my history midterm. Anyway, the instructor began the workshop with the powerpoint she made. She emphasized how important the format of the resume was. She told us how most resumes are in chronological order and resumes must be one page. She also pointed out that Computer Information System majors should have a more formal resume style, which was the information I needed. With various examples of different kinds of resumes, I started to get a sense of what I need and don’t need in my resume.

   ⬅︎ me after waiting 30 minutes

Through this workshop, I was not as worried as before about my resume. I realized I could always make an appointment with STARR center to revise my resume. I am planning to attend more workshops that Starr Career Development Center provides before it’s too late for me to get an internship place.

 ɪᴛ ᴡᴀs sᴏ ᴍᴜᴄʜ ғᴜɴ!

Freshman 15 Career Workshop

I went to the Freshman 15 event held by the Starr Career Development Center on October 18. I was made aware of it by a friend during English class and was convinced to check it out before I went home. It was held in the second floor lobby, in the form of a small booth.

At first, I was a bit shy to go and start a conversation, but one of the sophmore’s from the booth approached and started the conversation. He explained how there were some internships that could be applied for even as a freshman. He handed out some papers that went into greater detail on what internships were available. He also took the time to talk about some of his experiences.

He went on to stress the difficulties of trying to get an internship and how it was important to start early in the search for one. He explained how some people would wait until their junior year to even begin looking for one and how that was late to start. Because of the difficulty in trying to land an internship, starting late meant a risk of not being able to get one at all.

Overall, the event was informative, and I am glad to have had the opportunity to attend it.

Continue reading “Freshman 15 Career Workshop”

Career workshop

On Tuesday I went to the Diversity Career Pipeline Programs Panel & Networking Event. It was held on the top floor of the New Vertical Campus Building. I found out about it from an email from the STARR Career Development Center. Once I got there, there were a lot of kids in there that were mostly freshman and most of them were wearing business clothes. Once it started each of the people up on the panel stated what each of their  programs were for and when the deadlines to sign up were for. They also told us the importance of networking and how important it is to start networking earlier to have an advantage to get the jobs you want later on. They gave us two papers one with the deadlines and the other with the aim of the programs just so we wouldn’t forget. After they finished speaking they gave experiences for some students that joined their program. When they were finished talking they set up tables so you could talk to the leaders personally and ask them any questions that you had and ask if their program was right for you. I found the panel very boring because I wasn’t very interested in the programs they were talking about, I’m not really hoping to work in business later on in life. Also I don’t qualify for a lot of these things since you have to be a sophomore and up. But even though I wasn’t interested in the programs I do think it is important to have these programs so people who do want to work in business can get ahead in life.

Career/ Business Blog

I recently was accepted into the EMET program by Hillel at Baruch. It is a program that consists of about 25 Jewish students who are taught throughout a series of 10 sessions about Business and Judaism. Every week we have a prominent business speaker come in and discuss how these two things go hand in hand. Even from the first session, I could not have been more interested. At first I was skeptical of whether or not I would even enjoy or find any sort of connection to the speakers but I soon found myself attached to everything the speaker was explaining. I was able to relate alot of what he was saying to my family and form an attachment and suddenly understand first hand what he meant. Instantly you were able to feel the amazing, wholesome energy between everyone in the room. As though we were all complete strangers and in a matter of minutes we were all discussing and laughing amongst each other, as if we had known each other for years. I am very excited and looking forward to going through these next 9 sessions and learning about my culture as well as new techniques that have to relate to my future. I think this is an amazing opportunity to learn more about what I want to do with my life and opening my eyes to so many new interactions. I am hoping this program guides me into the right direction with what I want to do in the future and gives me a starting glance at what is to come. I’m thankful that I was able to come across and be able to take advantage of one of so many opportunities that come with not only Student Life but in terms of your career as well. Unfortunately, I had my phone away the whole lecture so I was unable to take any photos, however if needed I can provide one next week!

 

 

 

Target Corporation Workshop

Today I attended the Target Corporation Workshop in the Newman Vertical Campus, where I learned about the interviewing process. Upon entering the lecture room, I was greeted by the representatives of Target Corporation. When everyone else that attended settled in their seats, the representatives began the presentation.

The presentation was very thorough and included the necessary steps and helpful tips in each slide. Through the first few slides, one of the representatives discussed the importance of doing research about a company to determine if it is suitable for one’s preferences. The second representative stressed the significance of preparing for an interview in advance in order to ensure one’s confidence when answering questions. The third representative presented helpful tips for conveying confidence during the interview, ways to mask one’s nervousness and questions that one may ask the interviewer at the end of the interview.

The content in the slides was familiar to me, as the Virtual Enterprise program in my high school prepared me for the interviewing process. Though I have prior knowledge of interviewing for jobs and was prepared for it in high school, I feel that this workshop really reinforced my knowledge of it and refreshed my memory of important things I forgot since then. What especially made the presentation helpful was the suggestions made about keeping one’s nervousness internal, since I am usually anxious before job interviews. Even some of the questions asked by other people who attended related to me and I found the representatives’ answers informative. For instance, one of the attendees inquired about whether or not it is okay to ask the interviewer to repeat their question. One of the representatives said that by asking an interviewer to repeat the question, one is showing eagerness to respond in the best way possible. This was new to me, as I always thought that it showed a weakness in the listening and communication skills of the person being interviewed.

Overall, I found the Target Corporation Workshop on interviewing very informative and helpful and hope to utilize the new interviewing skills I learned from it.

STARR

Today, I attended a STARR Workshop at Baruch that discussed Interview Prep. Representatives from Target were there to present the workshop and get a better understanding of what retailers have to say about interviews. When I saw that Target was there, I knew that the workshop would be helpful because Target is a very successful retail store. There would be no better presenter then them. They began by telling us what they look for in a new employee when it comes to an interview. Some of the major tips they gave us were to do mock interviews and research successful interviews so that when we go in for a real interview we are well prepared. They mentioned some important things during an interview, like posture, confidence and word choice. When target sees that a possible employee presents themselves nicely, confidently, and properly, they see them as fit employees. These ideas are going to resonate within me as I move along my career path. I realized the importance an interview; in many instances, it is the deal breaker of whether or not you will be accepted to your dream job. My goal is to start researching famous interviews and taking notes on them so that I can begin practicing from now. I hope to master mock interviews and have the confidence to go on and master my real job interview one day. I Hope to attend more STARR workshops at Baruch so that I can better prepare myself for my career and my future. It is amazing to see what Baruch has to offer. With their workshops, tips, and practice, I will soon be on the right path towards my career. I hope to be so prepared that when I finally get there, all my hard work will pay off.

Delta Sigma Pi

On September 12, this Tuesday I attended the Brother Panel of Delta Sigma Pi. Earlier that day, one of the members approached me in the hallway and gave me a brief introduction to the fraternity. He was very friendly and it seemed like a great opportunity to explore Baruch student life and professional opportunities.

Before the panel started, they offered everyone food and drinks. During the panel, 5 brother members sat in front of the room and talked about their experience in Delta Sigma Pi. This presentation was very interesting and informative. Each member started off by introducing themselves and talking about their backgrounds. The majority of presentation was focused on explaining business opportunities, internships, and support that DSP provides for its members. All of the members presenting interned at various big business companies. It was very interesting and inspirational to hear stories of their success in the business world. All the members presenting also gave us valuable advice about student life, academics, majors, and business world.

One advice that really stuck with me was to pick your major very carefully and only choose something you are truly passionate about. Often times people pick majors just to get a well paid job. As it was explained by multiple brothers at the panel, certain jobs and environments simply won’t be suitable for you. For example, jobs and internships in Finance and Accounting fields require you to sit in the office and stay focused for long periods of time. This can be very stressful and hard for some people, which will make them unhappy and unmotivated in the long run.

In addition, I had a lot of fun meeting new people and hearing their experiences in business. All the members of Delta Sigma Pi were very friendly and welcoming. They answered all of my questions and gave me their contact information. The atmosphere and professional environment really sparked my interest and made me want to join them.