This past Tuesday, Phi Beta Lambda (PBL) teamed up with the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) to host an Intern Panel regarding the topics of interviewing, networking, and getting a job. Stevens students who secured jobs and internships at Goldman Sachs, Ernst & Young, and BP were invited to reflect on their experiences while working for such prestigious companies.
The panelists included Quantitative Finance majors David Inga, Chase Greenberg, Keith Libert, and William Calhoun, Business and Technology major Ashley Tomasura, and Computer Engineering major ShaQuill Thomas. Each student has his or her unique story as to how they began working for companies such as Goldman Sachs and Citibank, but all stressed the importance of resume writing and interviewing skills.
Calhoun said that the most important part of the resume is the course work. “Talk about your favorite class and definitely include relevant course work. If you can speak about a class, that is golden. Employers like to see that.” ShaQuill said to stress the extracurriculars. “Talk about your campus experience. They know that you’re smart and you’ve worked before, but if you were in a position of leadership, they know you can be a leader within your company.”
The panelists were also asked questions regarding the workplace and the inter environment. Inga stated, “You need to define the line between you and your manager. You don’t want to dig yourself a hole because you accidently said something that was inappropriate for the workplace.” Greenberg talked about the importance of asking for help. “If you don’t ask for help, you’re doing it wrong. You actually can hurt yourself by not asking questions.”
Tomasura shared a personal account that reflected the importance of asking questions. “I tend to be a person that likes to take on a lot of work, but sometimes the biggest worry was asking for help and it shouldn’t be.”
The panelists gave some tips about interacting in a professional environment, but each student agreed that each working environment varies. They all offered different experiences after working for different companies, but they did concur upon the idea of establishing a strong work ethic and sense of professionalism.
The PBL-SWE event attracted students from all different majors, from Quantitative Finance to Civil Engineering. Although the panelists worked primarily for financial companies, their advice rung true for corporate work settings across all disciplines.
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