Episode 6: Making the Most of your University’s Career Center with Dr. Barbara Hewitt
Guest Spotlight
Dr. Barbara Hewitt currently serves as the Executive Director of Penn Career Services where she leads a staff of 30 in providing comprehensive career services for undergraduate and graduate students, post-docs and alumni. Prior to becoming Executive Director Barbara served as a Career Adviser to students in the College of Arts and Sciences and in Wharton at Penn, and before coming to Penn worked in career services at both The College of Wooster and Dickinson College. Barbara holds a Bachelor of Arts from Dickinson College with majors in Psychology and Spanish, a masters in Counseling from Shippensburg University, and an EdD in Higher Education Administration from Penn. Barbara believes strongly in the power of education to change lives and indeed the world, and has enjoyed focusing her career on helping students and alumni to take what they have learned while in school to contribute to society in their own unique ways. Away from the office, Barbara spends time with her two teenage daughters and husband as well as a motley collection of furry friends including a shi zhu/ yorkie dog, two cats, and four occasionally noisy guinea pigs (at least when it’s their dinner time!).
Questions Barbara addresses in this episode
Walk me through your career journey - this doesn't have to be brief since it's often one of the most compelling parts of the show
What's the best piece of career advice you've ever been given? (I ask this of every guest)
How can students benefit from going to their school's Career Services office? (What services are offered)
When should students start taking advantage of these services?
Do students have to know what they want to do or prepare anything for their appt with Career Services?
Can Career Services help students select a major?
What hiring trends are you seeing for 2021?
For students who did not have internships in 2020 due to covid (either they had an internship and it went away or they never found one), how can they frame that in their interviews for summer 2021?
What are employers looking for in their student hires?
When should students start their internship search and job search?
Any tips for video interviews and succeeding at HireVue and those platforms?
How can students connect with alumni from their school and why is that beneficial?
How can students make a great impression on employers at information sessions and career fairs?
What can students do to make the most of their internship so they are more likely to receive a return offer
Please tell me about your work with LIME for students with disabilities.
As we wrap up, what’s your advice for the audience?
Mentioned In Today’s Episode
Just a quick note about today’s show - this was recorded in mid-January. When Dr. Hewitt discusses about timing for internships and if she says “about now,” then she’s referring to mid-January. In preparing for my podcast launch, I spent a couple of months recording many different episodes and then I went through and edited them and put them together in a way that I thought made sense. I envisioned a 12-episode launch and then transition into a weekly format.