Monday, November 19, 2012

International Cooperative Education, U.S. Department of State & Peace Corps

"Movember" is marked by the attempt by many to grow an awesome moustache. However, I am declaring this November (drum roll) "Globvember". Why? The theme has been GLOBAL. Global internships, that is. Everywhere I turn someone is inquiring about the best way to land an internship abroad and Career Services has been bringing you multiple information sessions, while I’ve been meeting with organizations and attending the Lessons from Abroad conference down in L.A. to learn even more about internship options. What have I found? There are a lot of cool ways to go abroad for that internship experience you are craving…if you are willing to explore, work for it, and perhaps accept a reality check at some turns! In addition to the great internship opportunities available to UCSB EAP students, there are many other internship paths to explore and alternative post-BA programs. We brought The U.S. Department of State, Peace Corps, and International Cooperative Education to campus this last month to share some of these great options.
  
A wardrobe change. The tango. Photos of internships at Rolls-Royce, banks, schools, and more. Talk about a colorful and vibrant information session!! I would expect nothing less from a UCSB alumnus who is dedicated to helping students find the right internship fit by meeting individually with students after the information session for short “pre” interviews to assess interests, language skills, and just to get to know his fellow Gauchos. If you missed this session, don’t worry! Dr. Günter Seefeldt meets with interested applicants via Skype while he is abroad, just check out International Cooperative Education, explore the wealth of opportunities and the application, and contact him for more details.

We were lucky enough to have a Diplomat in Residence visit UCSB to share his incredible career adventures abroad and let students know about the Student Experience Program, which offers U.S. citizen undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to participate in internships where you work closely with representatives of the U.S. Department of State’s Foreign and Civil Services. There are opportunities internationally and nationally at OVER 265 locations where students gain hands-on experience and insight into the daily operations of U.S. foreign policy!

You have probably seen our campus representative around as she visits several times a month for information sessions and tabling to share the multitude of international opportunities Peace Corps has to offer volunteers (and if you were one of the students to attend the Lessons from Abroad conference in L.A. you may have spotted our rep there, too!). You can check out the Peace Corps website to learn more and get a current list of where volunteers can go. Remember, Peace Corps accepts applications year-round! Better yet, why not keep an eye on our Career Services website for the Winter calendar to see when Peace Corps will be back on campus!?! You will hear a first hand story from a past volunteer and get the scoop on the many perks for your hard work in Peace Corps—two of the coolest ones I learned about last week: 1.) the opportunity to consider secondary projects that fit your interests while you are abroad 2.) career fairs held twice a year exclusive for returning Peace Corps volunteers!


That’s it for now, Gauchos, but I will leave you with this sentiment from Dr. Günter Seefeldt, “You will stumble in every internship, job, and travel experience—but you must learn the tango of every country you visit.”

Thursday, November 1, 2012

AppFolio

appfolio 


I recently had the pleasure of visiting AppFolio, one of our Career Partners here at Career Services, and boy was I impressed by both their staff and office. If you’re not already aware of the growing company now’s the time to get informed.

AppFolio provides cost-effective, web-based rental property management software that allows residential property managers to more effectively market, manage and grow their business. They are located just a few miles from campus and have all kinds of full-time opportunities available. You will be pleasantly surprised by the diverse opportunities ranging from sales, payroll, and customer success to design and engineering. Here’s some more info: http://www.appfolio.com/jobs

Now, onto the good stuff! Their office is really cool and the environment is welcoming and friendly. If you don’t believe me, just check out the pictures and video below. Their employees can sit on large bouncy balls while at their desks and they get to wear jeans to work…..wahoo! They have a kitchen stocked with food and goodies so you literally don’t have to bring your lunch and they have a gym where you can work off all of those goodies. Probably the most impressive thing I saw was their “Wall of Happiness” where they post positive comments from their clients next to the picture of the person from the company who helped them!

Check out this video they just sent over to Career. It really gives you an insider look at AppFolio. 
http://vimeo.com/50713210