Fall 2020 Interns
Ways Career Services Can Help Improve the Environment and Not Impose On It
By: Ashley Clinton (Career Services' Social Media Analyst Intern)
Do you ever get bombarded with loads of papers with useless information? Don’t you end up just throwing them away? What people that print those loads of paper fail to realize is that they are ultimately harming the environment. When offices print 50+ pages of papers such as fliers, and news about events, they end up getting thrown away or end up as trash on the street.
Career Services is an amazing place to go to to receive information about upcoming jobs, career tips, interview etiquette, how to build a resume, and more. But let’s be honest here, printing 200 plus pages of the SAME information is not necessary. You can only read it one time. And if we are being completely honest here, social media is a more efficient way of reaching most Career Services target audience. So, why waste paper when there is another more efficient way?
The truth is, the paper industry accounts for about 40% of the world's industrial logging, and about 4% of the world's total energy usage. On average, about 68 million trees are being used on paper per year. Do you know what this means? Deforestation is happening even more! Ultimately, animals will start to lose their habitats at a greater rate and become more vulnerable to being in close contact with humans. Ultimately, these papers will only end up being littered in the streets, and in turn end up in either a body of water or become molded together in the ground. Why should animals, and the environment have to suffer because others won't do their part to stop unnecessary printing. It’s absurd. If Career Services continues to print paper at the rate that they are, there’s no telling how the World will look in a few years.
In reality, Career Service’s printing problem is only a small part of the World’s environmental issues, but they can help reduce it by doing their part. Here's how Career Services can make better use of their time: Technology! Technology has been one of the most beneficial inventions of the 21st century. With everything being at the touch of our fingertips now, most people really don’t want to have to worry about keeping up with a piece of paper. Emails and Social Media have been useful resources for spreading information. It’s both handy, and you don’t have to worry about keeping up with it. It’ll always be there, nothing is ever TRULY deleted. So here’s a chance for Career Services to use technology more efficiently, and to stop harming the environment.
The Impact of Mental Health on Career Development
By: Ryia Steps (Career Services' Student Coordinator Intern)
The college student statistics report that 46% of jobs in the United States of America require higher education for career advancement. However, an individual’s mental health can either have a positive or negative impact on their career development. Mental health is defined as an absence of mental illness and determines our psychological, social, and emotional well-being. It is important at every stage of life, and ultimately affects how we think, feel, and behave. Good mental health is positively correlated with “good” satisfactory work and improves your chances of being successful. Whereas, poor mental health is correlated with “bad” work satisfaction and decreases your chances of success.
Mental health problems, such as mental illnesses, are an example of poor mental health that include depression, anxiety, eating disorders, schizophrenia, and addictive disorders. 35% of college students suffer mental health problems, and 64% of college students drop out due to mental illnesses. This not only proves that there is an increase in the number of college students struggling with mental health problems, but the stress of a mental health problem is leading to young adults not completing their studies and never receiving a degree. If they do not obtain their degree, the possibility of them pursuing the career of their interest becomes very slim. Therefore, maintaining good mental health is critical for the impact of your career development.
In order to maintain good mental health, you have to notice the early warning signs of mental health problems. Paying attention to your mood and behaviors helps determine if you are suffering any problems with your mental health. Here is a list of feelings or behaviors that can be used to identify early warning signs of mental health problems:
- Social withdrawal
- Changes in sleep pattern
- Changes in eating pattern
- Substance abuse; alcohol, drugs
- Mood Swings
- Thoughts of self-harm
- Changes in school performance
- Low or no energy
- Persistent thoughts and memories
Mental health problems can affect your personality, productivity, and concentration. Can you imagine manifesting a career without feeling like yourself, or with a lack of motivation and focus? Sadly, this is not possible. The process of career development is stressful so maintaining good mental health can be easier or harder for others. However, relaxation, regular exercise, and healthy eating will help an individual's mental health. Along with the Alcorn State University’s Counseling Service, the department of Career Services and Pre-Professional Program offers resources to students suffering mental health problems. I hope you are now aware of the impact of mental health on career development, and know of the resources offered to help you cope with it!
United States Navy Service
By: Ashli Hasan (Career Services' Students Relation Intern)
There are several opportunities and paths to take in the United States military. There are five branches: Navy, Army, Air Force, Coast Guard and Marine Corps. Each branch offers the choice of active duty or reserved which determine the number of hours required of you in a week. Between each branch, they vary slightly in both duties and with steps to join. The first step to join any branch differ slightly as well, but all require an individual to find a recruiter to help them with the process. To find a recruiter one can simply look up online the branch they are interested in and recruiters in their location, go to their local military civilian office, or reach out to career service personnel at their school or institution for help. This article will focus on the Navy branch.
When entertaining the idea of joining the United States Navy without any ROTC experience, individuals can choose to enlist or to become an officer if they have a college degree. Those who choose to go enlisted are required to take an ASVAB test to see what scores their job qualifies them for. Among proper testing, individuals must meet all government requirements as well and adhere to any additional regulations the Navy holds. Another route to take for those who qualify to enter the Navy as a commissioned officer. The difference between an enlisted member and an officer is the leadership role, whereas enlisted personnel perform specific job functions and have the knowledge, skills, and abilities to ensure the success of their unit’s missions; officers manage enlisted personnel, plan missions, provide orders, and assign tasks. Officers must go through a lengthy process to qualify and be selected for service. A different test, entitled the OAR is taken and upon receiving a qualifying score, individuals prepare an application packet to be reviewed by the board.
There are different paths to the in the military, when enlisting jobs can include but are not limited to: attorney and legal support careers, aviation rescue swimmer careers, business management careers, construction careers, cryptologic technician careers, electronic careers, emergency fire and rescue careers, explosive ordnance disposal technician, flight operations careers, flight support careers, food service and hospitality careers, medical support careers and many others. The direction the enlisted navy can take you in is extremely broad depending on both individual interest and qualifying scores. The officer route is a bit more limited with career paths including aerospace and operational physiology careers, aerospace experimental psychology careers, attorney and legal support, biochemistry, civilian engineering careers, clinical psychology, cryptologic warfare, cyber warfare and density careers.
Overall career paths both in the enlisted and officer side are extensive. Before making any broad decisions, you should review all your options and contact a recruiter who is open and honest with you about the process and all requirements and opportunities you have. As well, individuals need to ensure they meet all the requirements and agree with the statements each branch holds to be true prior to committing.
A Freshman in Career Services
By: Myla Stanford (Career Services' Social Media Analyst Intern)
I chose to do this blog to help students who are on the same career path as me. It is never easy being a Black woman in America wanting so much more than the stereotypic statistics placed on us. We do not have the advantage of having our answers handed to us. The lack of communication not only from other races, but our own, makes it so much harder to find the motivation to go to college for a fulfilling career. Therefore, I want to use my resources to answer others’ questions and to help motivate my generation of Black students to KEEP GOING. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”- Philippians 4:13
My name is Myla Stanford, and I am a biology undergrad major at Alcorn State University planning to be a successful OB/GYN. Coming here, I didn’t know what really to expect when it came to the opportunities that I should take advantage of, but I did know I wanted to be apart of something that would benefit my future. When I met with my advisor, I received the dreaded news that I would have to do a lot more to make myself as a desirable candidate to medical schools that I would apply to. I first learned that it is it highly recommended that I participate in internships to set myself apart from the sea of medical school applicants.
The first significant change to affect my career journey was my decision on what work-study position to apply to. I received two interviews from the positions I applied to and was offered both of those positions. With the library position, I knew it would be easy and I would be able to get more homework done. However, with the Career Services’ position, I would be exposed to more opportunities within my career field. I would be more prepared for my future, but it would call for more work and responsibilities from me because I would have to get out of my comfort zone. Lastly, this position would aid in my social skills, so that I could help my colleagues and make my own connections for my career path. The only downsides I could think of was that I may lose time to do have homework, and I would have extra responsibilities along with the work I already have from my classes. I decided to take the position with Career Services because I knew that this opportunity would have a better long-term benefit for me and my future. Now I am the Instagram Social Media Analyst Intern with Career Services. I get to write about and share internships and graduate schools that I am exposed to while working for this department.
The first major event that I participated in was the Graduate and Professional School Fair. It was a virtual event that included schools from all over the country to meet with Alcorn students on Zoom and present what graduate school programs they offered. I only went to one of the virtual sessions, which was a presentation from Maya Smith from Western University. Since this school is in California, I was not really interested in attending this institution, but I did want to talk with someone from a medical school to gain some general knowledge. My main takeaway from this was finding out that I had another degree option to becoming an OB/GYN. I could obtain my D.O., which has the same credentials as an M.D., and still pursue my same career choice. Ms. Smith shared with me that the D.O. program is a degree option that takes the same amount of time as an M.D., it just takes a more holistic approach toward treating patients. Being a D.O. means that one would look at a patient’s entire environment (stress levels, medications, home life, preexisting conditions etc.) to find the best treatment option for them. From the information that she shared with me; I preferred the D.O. approach. Although I wanted to talk to schools in areas where I plan on starting my career at, I did gain a lot from this session.
As my first semester working with Career Services comes to an end, I have been informed by my supervisor of two events for those who are pursuing a career in the medical field. The first is a pre-medical workshop that is presented by the Comprehensive Medical Mentoring Program. This is a two-day workshop that allows undergraduates meet with Student Doctors and Physicians and ask any questions that we may have about that aspect of our future. I believe that either way it will be beneficial to my future if I attend this event.
The second event is the Minority Student Medical Career Fair that is hosted by the American Association of Medical Colleges. The virtual fair has hands-on health activities, diversity affairs, admissions, panel discussions for physician and doctor pathways, and so much more. I believe that this is a great opportunity to pre-med students. I do feel like it is a lot of activities to fit into a 5-hour virtual fair, but I know that it will be a lot to take away from this fair. As the Social Media Analyst Intern, it has sparked my interest in finding new ways to share these events with other students. I know that I am not the only student that is excited about these opportunities, but I also know that if I was not working with Career Services, I would not have known about these events. By next semester, my goal is to find better ways to significantly increase the student attendance of career events, so that we are all lead to success.
Why is getting a LinkedIn Account Will be Helpful for Freshman
By: Aaliyah Findley (Career Services' Intern)
Starting from your freshman year of college, you are fresh out of high school and still looking for extra cash to pay for college or any expenses you may have. During that time freshman tends to look for internships opportunities to help them. But did you know those experiences count towards your future career? Most employers want to hire employees who are experienced, and the most used resource to determine your experience is your LinkedIn account. LinkedIn is like an easy access professional networking tool for employers all over the country to into what you have to offer to their company.