Sunday, September 28, 2008

career fair

I went to the career fair this week. It was the first time I have gone to one. Its really overwhelming. There were a lot of companies that I have never heard of. The Michelin center lists the employers that are participating and the companies website. I think that there should be a description of the company and what types of positions they are looking to fill. I went up to one company that said that they were looking for people with a psych degree. They pretty much told me that I wouldn't be using my degree at all. So why would they even say that they were looking for people with a psych degree. I thought the whole thing was frustrating.

Monday, September 22, 2008

cover letter

I thought that all the advice was interesting. It all seemed to be good advice. The person who wrote it sounded like he knew what he was talking about and was in a place where he had seen enough cover letters to give advice on what he would like to see on one.
It was interesting that he said cover letters are the last thing that someone looks at. I wouldn't have thought about it until I read that, but it makes sense. Why would someone waste time reading a cover letter when they could just look to see if it is even worth their time.
I also thought that the cover letter should be about me. I actually wondered why you would need a cover letter if your resume is written well. I didn't know what I would put in a cover letter that my resume didn't already tell the reader. I don't think being redundant is helpful.
I thought that it was interesting that in class we often talk about personalizing the cover letter to the company. My dad has been trying to get me to send out a mass resume just to see what kind of interest my resume draws, but now i know that doing that would hurt more than it would help because if I sent a generic resume to a company I was really interested in they wouldn't think I was worth the time.

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Interview strategy- telling stories

This article taught me that it is good to have stories ready when you go into an interview. This is an excellent idea because it is so much easier when you have something prepared. Its also good because when I have to remember something word for word I get flustered and can't speak clearly. Stories are more natural responses to a question about yourself. There were also good ideas for stories. Once I have the stories all figured out for all of those suggestions I think that my interviewing skills will be much better.

Sunday, September 7, 2008

in ten years...

Ten years does seem like it is very far off, especially considering ten years ago I was twelve. The fact that I have a sister who is 10 years older than me makes it a little easier. I have an idea of what the main goal is, I just have no idea what I am doing in December after I graduate.
I want to have a masters in neuropsychology. I would like to be doing research on neurotransmitters. I want to work at developing a drug that would effectively treat a psychological disease. I'm not sure if I want to be doing that research through a drug company or if I want to work at a university. I like teaching, but I hate public speaking so I dont know if I would be able to do that or not.
Other than my career I would like to be married and living in a house that I own. Im not sure exactly where I want to live yet, but I know that I want to be somewhere warm and near the beach.