The Southern Methodist University Alumni Giving and Relations teams up with the Hegi Family Career Development Center to offer undergraduates the opportunity to get a step closer to the career they want through the SMU Connection One Day Externship Program. Launched last year, the program enables students to spend a day with an SMU alumnus in their hometown over winter break, to learn more about what he or she does and to gain insight regarding what their own futures — after graduation —could look like. Applications for the SMU Connection Externship Program are due Friday, and can be accessed and submitted at http://www.smu.edu/StudentAffairs/Career/SMUConnections.
According to the official SMU Connections handbook, “Externship[s] allow [students] to explore a career field, determine [their] ‘fit’ to a particular field or concentration and help clarify [their] professional goals.” While externships fail to provide pay or academic credit, they do enable students to gain career experience through a welcoming environment with an alumnus or alumni host and help build the foundation for a successful job search.
“You can think of it as a great precursor to an internship. Students may have an interest in a field, but not know enough about what steps are necessary to enter the field,” said Alicia T. Love, Assistant Director of Employer Relations at the Hegi Family Career Development Center. “By participating in an externship, the student…has the chance to conduct an informational interview with their host, experience the culture of the workplace and figure out how it matches their perceptions and expectations.”
The SMU Connection One Day Externship Program has four basic requirements, including commitment, orientation, thanks and reflection. Prior to the externship itself, participants in the program must commit to a one-day visit, without canceling, and must attend a mandatory orientation session, which will address a series of questions and concerns regarding the program. Students are required to attend one of the two orientation sessions, which are scheduled to take place at the Hegi Career Center, HTSC Suite 200, on Tuesday Nov. 12 at 5:30 p.m. and on Nov. 20 at 3:00 p.m.
The externships will be conducted Dec. 9-20, and Jan. 2-13. Within one day of participating in their externship, students must write their alumni host a thank you note or email. In addition, within one week of their externship, students must compose a one page reflection on their experience and submit it via email to [email protected].
“Typically for any college student, opportunities to learn outside of the classroom are few and far between. Whether it’s a part-time job or even an internship, chances are you’re still not getting the exposure you need,” said Alex M. Goheen, a current SMU senior who participated in the externship last year.
“The externship program pairs you with an SMU [alumni], who by volunteering their own time, has taken a vested interest in that student and his or her future.”
While Goheen had the privilege of doing his externship with a local financial advisor, he urges all SMU students to seize the opportunity, regardless of their particular major or area of focus.
According to Goheen, “Students should be interested in the externship because the career center pairs you with a professional in the industry you hope to be in. Whether it is advertising, engineering, finance, etc. you have the opportunity to learn a great amount from an established professional – and if nothing else, they can be a contact throughout the rest of your career.”
To learn more about the SMU Connection One Day Externship Program, and to submit an application, visit http://www.smu.edu/StudentAffairs/Career/SMUConnections.
