Career and Vocation - Summer 2023
Course Access Dates: Students from 5/6/2023 until 8/10/2026; Faculty from 12/7/2022 until 8/10/2026
Weekly outline
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Academic credit for your internship comes through WCSC 380 - WCSC Internship, a 5-credit class that is graded pass/fail.
Expectations of the internship class
Pre-arrival: Before the term starts, students will work in a timely way with a WCSC staff member and potential internship partners to apply, interview, and secure an internship.
Upon arrival: Students will sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with their supervisor. They will figure out how to get to work (on public transportation if possible) and practice getting there. Students will work out a schedule with their supervisor that meets the program requirements (25 hours per week).
Throughout the Term: Students will report to work every week for the full length of the term and complete their requisite 225 hours. They will meet weekly with their supervisors, completing a mid-point check-in with WCSC staff. Students will be expected, like any other employee, to show up to work on time and for tasks agreed to do. Students should make sure to call and email their supervisor at work if unable to make it to work or will be arriving late. Students must log their hours on a weekly basis.
At the end of the term: Students will participate in an exit interview with their supervisor and a member of the WCSC staff, wrap up loose ends, and write a thank-you note to their supervisor.
Days off and vacations. The WCSC follows the EMU calendar. Internships may include EMU breaks. Students are responsible for reminding their supervisors about days off for those breaks, for WCSC retreat, which will all be listed in the MOU.
Internship Logs
Ben Clare Ethan Gelila Isaac Justin Laura Lily Will Zoey -
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Read:
Callings: The purpose and passion of work, by Dave Isay (2016). (Select and read 10 conversations from this book.)
Submit:
(Mon) Response blog #1: (1) List the 10 conversations you read (name and career from the table of contents). (2) What takeaways stand out to you about what meaningful work looks like? (250 words)
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Read:
Tactics for Effective Informational Interviewing – Definitive Guide (2022). Get Five.
3 Steps to a Perfect Informational Interview, by Lily Zhang (2020). The Muse.
Submit:
(Sun) Reflective journal #1
(Mon) Response blog #2: In preparation for setting goals for your internship, respond to the following questions:
1) What technical skills do you want to build through your internship?
2) What background knowledge would help you perform better?
3) What soft skills (i.e., interpersonal skills) would help you in this work?
4) Who are two people at your internship that you’d like to know better? -
Week 4 – Speaker: Aaron Butler (Private chef); Resumes and cover letters; Introduction to mission statements (6/27)
Read:
Your Complete Guide to Writing a Cover Letter. The Muse.
How to write a resume. Glassdoor.
How to Make a Resume in 2023 | Beginner's Guide. Novoresume.
Submit:
(Sun) Reflective journal #2
(Mon) Informational interview plan: Submit a paragraph explaining who you will interview for your informational interview and why you would like to interview them (250 words).
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Complete:
Take the CliftonStrengths Assessment, using the provided access code.
Submit:
(Sun) Reflective journal #3
(Sun) Target job opening and description: Submit the job description of the position you have identified (copy and paste it into a document), along with an explanation of why you are interested in the position and why you are a strong candidate (250 words beyond the job description).
(Sun) Response blog #3: After taking the CliftonStrengths Assessment with the provided access code, read about the five strengths the assessment identified for you and write a reflection responding to these results (250 words).
_________________________________________________July 7-9: WCSC Retreat in West Virginia! (Fri-Sun)
We will travel together to Rolling Ridge, a retreat community near Harper’s Ferry in West Virginia. The weekend’s activities will include times for reflection, relaxation, and fun. It is an opportunity to step back and think about your experiences in the city and at your internship, and to plan for how you would like to focus the rest of your time in DC.
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Submit:
(Mon) Community life self-reflection and assessment: Submit completed responses to the questions listed here and sign up for a 1:1 meeting with Ryan.
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Submit:
(Sun) Reflective journal #4
(Mon) Cover letter and resume: Submit your cover letter and resume through Moodle and bring two hard copies of each document to class. We will workshop your job documents during class.
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Week 8 – Speaker: Bianca Ward (External Affairs Community Liaison, ViiV Healthcare); Communicating with and around power (7/25)
Listen:
Knock Knock! Who's th— MANTERRUPTING COWORKER (2018). Battle Tactics For Your Sexist Workplace [Audio podcast].
Submit:
(Sun) Reflective journal #5
(Mon) Response blog #4: What is your response to the podcast? Does it describe dynamics that you have witnessed or experienced? Whose responsibility is it to change assumptions and behaviors shaping whose voice is given greater authority in a group?
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Come to class prepared to share your personal mission statement and to report on your informational interview.
Submit:
(Sun) Reflective journal #6: Write a letter to yourself in which you tell your future self the top 10 things you have learned this summer—insights that you don't want to forget. Be sure to include your persona mission statement in this letter. I will be printing out what you turn in and physically mailing this to you via USPS five months from now, so please include in your journal entry the address you want me to send it to (where you will be in mid-January 2024).
(Mon) Informational interview report: Submit a paragraph reflecting on your informational interview, including your assessment of how it went, the individual’s name, why their experience is of relevance to you, and the date of your interview (250 words). -
Submit:
(Sun) Final reflection paper: Assignment details at the end of the syllabus.