The Graduate Students’ Forum was preceded by a four-day Professional Development Week that consisted of a series of workshops designed to assist students in securing employment and excelling in their careers. Along with hearing from professionals from a variety of sectors, sessions were held on writing resumes and cover letters, interviewing best practices, and job searching for international students.
Be passionate and enthusiastic
Throughout the Professional Development Week and the Graduate Students’ Forum, students were continually reminded to be passionate and enthusiastic. For many job applicants, this expression of excitement begins with the resume and cover letter, which several of the panelists emphasized should be specifically tailored to the position being applied for.
“A cover letter really allows me to imagine you in the position because you’re telling me why it is that you think you’re a fit for this role, so I don’t have to do as much imagination because you’ve already told me,” said Adetoun Adeniji-Adele, hiring manager for Integral Molecular. “And if you’ve done that, you’ve taken a lot of that work that I need to do to determine whether or not I should even pick up the phone and talk to you.”
When Adeniji-Adele invites applicants to interview, she is looking for that spirit to continue.
“You can be the best candidate, but if you can’t convey that and why you are either enthusiastic about the work you did previously or the work that you you’re trying to do now and or the company, then why should the company hire you versus another candidate,” said Adeniji-Adele.
Love what you do
While a well-written resume and cover letter might get the candidate’s foot in the door, and an energetic interview can lead to a job offer, several presenters reminded the students that career happiness and success can be realized by having that same enthusiasm for the work they end up doing.
“Whether it’s industry, whether it’s academia, whether it’s politics, pursue your passion and try and make a difference in the world, and to me that’s the most important thing,” said Yoram Cohen, who earned his doctorate at the University of Delaware in chemical engineering and has been a professor at UCLA for nearly 40 years.
Chen said that by having passionate goals for ourselves, we will get up every morning ready to go to work.
“Really look for something that you’re passionate about,” said Chen. “That will keep you going when things are great and when things are tough.”
Student awards
To conclude the week of educational activities, UD’s graduate students were given a chance to show what they have been learning through oral and poster presentations. Negin Mohammahmirzaei (psychological and brain sciences) won the best poster award, while Andria Farrens (biomedical engineering), Ishti Mahbub (mechanical engineering) and Dylan Haywood (sociology and criminal justice) had the first-, second- and third-place oral presentations, respectively.