Author: Shannon Kelly

Shannon Kelly is the Job & Internship Coordinator in Career Services.

The Hunt for Career Services: Social Media Challenge Blog Clue #PennCSHunt

We’re excited to be on day 4 of The Hunt for Career Services: Social Media Challenge 2013.  If you’re reading this blog post, then you’ll earn an entry into the hunt with two simple steps – add a comment to this post and fill out our super short form (it should take 15 seconds to fill out)!

What kind of comment, you ask? Tell us your favorite Penn Career Services’ resource on our website, it can be anything.  Then, go to this form to give us your name and email address – so we can get in touch if you’re selected as the winner of our iPad mini! If you want to increase your odds of winning, check out our Facebook event with all the clues.

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The Hunt Is On For An iPad Mini

Social Media Challenge Flyer ImageWhat does an iPad mini, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, WordPress, and Vimeo have in common? Our 2013 Social Media Challenge, also known as The Hunt for Career Services, where we’re giving away an iPad mini. Yes, really, and yes, that is pretty sweet.

All you have to do is check out our social media channels (mentioned above) and submit a response to one or more of our clues. Follow the clues by searching for the #PennCSHunt hashtag. Get the full details on the challenge’s website, then get hunting!

p.s. there will be a clue shared here on the blog on Thursday, look for it!

Day in the Life: Google+ Education Partnerships Lead

Have you Googled all the careers Google offers? In case you haven’t, they offer quite the array of paths. Not only do they offer careers in sales/marketing, software development, product development (like their nifty Google Glass), they have paths focused on community relationships and education. What better way to learn about their work in communities, and whether that is a path that may fit your interests, than to hear first-hand from a Penn alum who works in that area?  We couldn’t think of a better way, either.  Which is why we’re excited to welcome Lisa Jiang (WH ’08) to @PennCareerDay on Tuesday, October 15th and learn about her role as Google+ Education Partnerships Lead. To learn more about Jiang, read her bio below and be sure to follow her on the 15th!

LisaJiangIn her five years with Google, Lisa Jiang has gained experience across marketing, strategy & operations, and product, working on both B2B and consumer products (Search, Maps, GoogleX, and AdWords). In her current role as Google+ Education Partnerships Lead, Lisa works closely with partners like NASA, National Geographic, and The White House to provide new educational experiences for learners young and old on Google+. Leading a Partnerships team that spans K-12, STEM, higher education, and maker/DIY, Lisa is passionate about the intersection of education and technology, and about providing access to educational resources through tools like Google+.

Day in the Life: Software Engineer at a Silicon Valley Startup

Do you dream in code? Is Silicon Valley where you want to work after graduation? If you thought, “heck yeah!” or “…maybe…”, then you’ll want to follow @PennCareerDay on Wednesday, September 18th when Stanley Wang tweets about his day as a Software Engineer with BrightEdgestanley.  To learn more about Stanley, read his bio below and be sure to follow him on the 18th!

Stanley Wang graduated from University of Pennsylvania in May 2013 with a Masters in TCOM. Before that, he received his BS in Software Engineering in 2007 from Darlin University of Technology. When he started at UPenn, Stanley knew that he wanted to be a software engineer, so he took the majority of his classes in the CS department. He found classes like Network Systems, Computer Architecture, and Database Systems to be particularly useful for transitioning his skills to a real-world software engineering career.

While he had many options upon graduation, he chose to move to the heart of Silicon Valley to join BrightEdge, a fast-growing startup. Stanley liked the company’s emphasis on teamwork and fostering a collaborative environment, and he started at BrightEdge as a Software Engineer in July. He enjoys the challenging work like solving tough problems related to design and scalability.

In his free time, he enjoys the outdoor activities that the San Francisco Bay Area has to offer, like rafting and skiing.

Organizations Use Social Media To Recruit? Yes.

social-media-resume-36077% of organizations today use social media to recruit. The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), reported this growing trend in a recent survey. So, who are some organizations that partake in “social recruiting”? More publicly-owned organizations are leveraging these tools, like ExxonMobil, Apple, J.P. Morgan Chase. You may have heard of them, and if you’d like to work for them one day, you should consider how their social media presence can be used to your advantage.

At Career Services, we’re here to help take your social media presence beyond liking pictures of friends on Facebook, tweeting sarcastic comments on Twitter and being intimidated, perhaps, by LinkedIn.  If you want to take your social media use to a professional level, see what we have in store for you this year to make that happen:

1) LinkedIn Profile Reviews.  A LinkedIn profile is the new resume.  Just like resume/CV critiques, we’re offering LinkedIn profile critiques on a one-on-one basis. Connect with your school’s team of counselors to set up an appointment.

2) Social Media Workshops. We’re offering special programming to students this year on how to use social media, as well programs through Weigle Information Commons on setting up LinkedIn. Stay tuned for these programs through our various event calendars for grads/postdocs and undergrads.

3) Follow Us on Twitter.  Our main account is @PennCareerServ, but one gem in particular is our @PennCareerJobs account.  Employers who post on PennLink schedule tweets to promote their new listings – don’t miss out!

4) #Hashtags.  If you’re already active on social media, and given Facebook has rolled out use of hashtags, it’s time to put them to professional use.  Look for our hashtags: #penncsevent, #pennOCR. Beyond that, consider #career and #jobtips, as well as following an organization you’re interested in to see what tags they are using. Wondering what is a hashtag? Read this article from Twitter.

There are a LOT of opportunities out there to connect with organizations, learn about their internships and full-time jobs, as well as see if there is a Penn connection – all via social media.  Take advantage of the resources we have available to help you take your social media presence to the next level.

To see more resources, check out our Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Vimeo and Online Networking pages.

by Shannon C. Kelly