Innovative program design helps engaged scholars discover and connect their experiential learning with professional relevance and career opportunity. Delivered entirely online, this effective curriculum, concurrent with an engaged scholarship experience, prepares students for the interview hot seat, with mock interviews, SWOT analysis, resume prep, and portfolio creation.
The Penn State online Energy and Sustainability Policy (ESP) programs require that students complete several engaged scholarship activities. One option is a 120-hour internship in the community of their choice. During the internship, students enroll in a concurrent online course built to assess the student’s learning and add depth to the real-world experience. The online internship course prepares students to integrate this experience into their job search once they have graduated from the ESP program.
Internships provide relevant real-world experiences and allow students to interact in a professional environment and gain networking experience. However, translating those valuable accomplishments into applicable experience and examples in a job interview isn’t always easy.
During the course, students complete a SWOT analysis, discussing their personal strengths and weaknesses, while also examining the opportunities and threats that exist. This analysis is straightforward, yet through the exercise, students realize just how much they bring to the table. As part of the course’s curriculum, students are given a job ad for which they submit a resume and cover letter, and then interview, using an online mock interview program. The mock interview exercise uses InterviewStream to mimic a real world interview scenario. Students are recorded while responding to a chosen set of pre-recorded questions. This exercise allows students to cultivate their ability to interview effectively while also relating their experiences to the ESP curriculum. Interviews are self-assessed as well as assessed by the instructor.
Throughout the semester, students are guided through journaling assignments with prompts intended to build higher-level learning and synthesis. Journaling exercises help move the students from simply detailing the experience, to thinking and analyzing it, to eventually understanding how it applies in new/different scenarios. Upon completion of the course, the journal may serve as a robust writing sample that could be used while job searching. Additionally, students will have compiled multiple internship related artifacts, and an updated resume they can use during their job search.
As an icebreaker, the audience will be asked to think about both the best and worst interview questions they’ve ever experienced. Then, some will be asked to share their experiences. Additionally, the audience will be engaged in a discussion regarding challenges in prepping adult students for their next big post-graduation step, the job search. Through the discussion, additional ideas may arise as to how we can better prepare our students for the job market.
Slides and web links will be provided during the presentation and can be posted on the conference website.