Halfway through my yearlong internship in Boston - Where did time go? ~ Week 25

Dear readers,

I am writing this blog entry with a lot of excitement as I am currently sitting in Boston Logan airport about to head home for Christmas. Those who know me, know that home is not only Scotland but also France. So I am heading to both countries for my favourite season of the year!

It is with a lot of thoughts in mind that I am writing this post, as I have just finished half of my internship. It is really hard to believe that a year ago I was just accepting a job offer to come and work at Northeastern University here in Boston!

The past six months have really been a life learning experience as well as a tremendous professional growth opportunity. I came to that realization in the past week as I have been taking part in the interviews for next year’s GCU intern coming to Boston. It was at that point that I realised how much I have grown as a professional, I recognised how much I have changed and how much this experience is shaping my future - and how much it will impact me, for the rest of my professional career.

Since the beginning of my internship I have been able to build stronger communication skills, both verbal and non-verbal; to achieve this I have been assisting and presenting to different student bodies, information sessions, facilitated employer calls and visits on campus. I have also been corresponding with various employers all around the globe on almost a day to day basis. The skills were further improved through the management of a large scale event - 400 students attending and participating – and with the administration of the front desk of the Career Services department, a highly visible position with a lot of traffic requiring vigilance and multitasking. This part of my role was challenging at first as I wasn't familiar nor had experience in business administration.

I would now feel comfortable if I was to work or assist in a business administration position. 

My role here in the Global Employer Relations department is allowing me to not only cultivate and expand my knowledge on a daily basis but also to strengthen my job development and outreach skills through the creation and establishment of employer/co-op leads in several regions of the world. This also helped me to understand my learning and working style.

I have also come to the conclusion that I can be really efficient and productive when I have a lot of work to do as sometimes the stress and variety of projects allow me to become more creative and therefore create a better and outside-the-box type of work as I am challenged by the diversity of my work.

My work over the past couple of months gave me a growth opportunity that I never expected to happen as no previous employment gave the opportunity to expand my understanding and abilities to deeply explore a business environment and its opportunities on a global scale as well as getting a deep and comprehensive knowledge of higher education in the USA. This will further help me to shape who I am as a professional as I will have experiences in different working cultures. The American working culture is really different than any European working culture I have previously experienced. This hierarchical system made me realise the opportunities of growth that are available in the USA and therefore making think about different opportunities that coming back to the USA after graduation might offer me.

My professional growth also includes at this halfway point the ability to receive, comprehend and execute tasks and projects to the level required by the team. Therefore this means that since my start about six months ago, the levels of responsibilities and projects I have been working on have really been able to challenge me but also make me accountable for the work I am doing.

Since my last three-month overview, I have been working on a different marketing project that has been allowing me to further expand my understanding of marketing material creation as well as discern the needs and demands that different student groups might have. These activities and projects give me the ability to create and think outside the box and to keep my work diverse and creative.

Over the past couple of months, I have also been further involved with the Global Experience Office, I have been assisting in the delivery of multiple Pre-Departure Orientation – focus on Health and Safety – presentations. As mentioned previously, these are a way for me to develop my communication skills but also my ability to speak in front of large group of individuals. The PDO events were really successful as my work was described to be the same as a fully experienced member of staff.

My final thoughts about the past six months are that I am having an amazing experience and that I have not only grown professionally but also learned about myself and I now have a clearer idea of what I want for myself.

 

My last words of 2016 to you amazing readers are

“I wish every single one of you and your family a wonderful Christmas and a really happy New Year!”

Thanks for reading,

Alexandra

Networking and holiday spirit ~ Week 23

Dear readers, 

It is on this cold winter morning that I am writing this Blog entry. Winter has definitely settled in New England even though some of you may think that it is still Fall but I think that temperature below 0° make it winter. Some of you might wonder what I visited with my godmother 2 weeks ago when she was visiting, and I have to say we visited Boston entirely, North End, Revere Beach, Downtown Boston, Faneuil Hall, Boston Harbour, Prudential Centre, etc.... Was really enjoyable to rediscover this amazing city at a different time of the year.  

The past two weeks have been challenging on a personal and professional level as it is the final stretch before heading back to Europe for the holidays and finishing all projects due before Christmas. (I am heading home in just a week, and not a weekend trip to New York!! 🙌 , and I have to admit that I am really excited about it!) However, before these exciting moments work is still a priority and full of opportunities. 

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been completing long-term projects but also starting new ones that brought me a step closer to home as I have been doing some economic/ industry exploration in France. This project was an opportunity for me to show my knowledge of a specific region and also give advice from past experiences. Those projects give me the opportunity to demonstrate deep and focused knowledge and understanding. This shows my ability to transfer information in an effective manner.

I have been taking some opportunities to meet with more faculty member to discuss my experience at Northeastern and what it meant for the future. This leading to further thoughts on doing a master upon graduation of my undergraduate, it is a lot of things to think about and a lot more than I first thought. I have also been meeting with a career null to discuss my CV and my future so I will be re-building my CV over the next few weeks.

This coming week is my last before heading home, so my workload is fairly important, so I will wrap up this entry now and I will speak to you next week as I will be waiting at the airport.

Have a lovely week and enjoy the snow.

Until next time! Alexandra

PS: Feel free to check my social media
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Employer meeting, leadership and networking opportunities ~ Week 21

Dear Readers,

It is with a lot of excitement that I am writing this post as my godmother is flying over from France tomorrow to spend Thanksgiving with me in cold Boston. the weather isn't going to stop us visiting and exploring Boston for the next 5 days!

But before this exciting time, I have had an extremely dynamic schedule, which gave me the opportunity to develop organization skills as well as understanding that sometimes prioritizing work is essential. Prioritizing work allowed me to work towards my deadlines without stressing too much about other projects. Another thing I have learned is that multitasking isn't healthy, so I have decided that I will only check my emails 4 times a day, to be able to focus on the tasks and project I am working on that day. I find to realize that was really beneficial and that with that system I have been less distracted by new task or questions throughout the day.

Furthermore, those past two weeks have also been challenging my public speaking skills as I have been presenting Health and Safety information sessions for students going abroad this coming semester as well as representing the university when an employer visited.
Those two events even though similar involved a different type of interaction and preparation. The Health and Safety presentations were challenging because of the number of attendees but the employer presentation because I was representing the university myself and wanted to build a successful relationship between the two institutions. This meeting was a challenge but a powerful learning experience as I realized that I knew about the university and our work well enough to be able to present without assistance. Was a really rewarding experience as the employer learned about the university and our program.

" Dear XXXX,  I would like to thank you once again for your visit this morning. It was mine and the team's pleasure to have you with us to learn more about your program and create a better relationship between our institutions.  Please keep in touch if you have any questions following this meeting. 

Sincerely, Alexandra 

Dear Alexandra, Very good to hear. Yes, we look forward to a great future

cooperation. Thanks for your efforts in making this happen. Greetings, XXXX" 

Leadership isn't just about leading others, it is leading others by influencing, providing purpose, direction, and motivation while operating to accomplish the mission and improve the organization. I have learned that the most important element of leadership is: Service, Trust, Influence, Integrity, Inspire, Vision, Motivate, Ownership,  Responsibility, Love, Decisiveness,Courage, Self- awareness, Empathy,  Ethics, Humility, etc. 


I have been attending a conference lead my Wes Bush and President Aoun on " Fostering Innovation: Leadership imperative". I attended this conference as leadership is a topic I really enjoy but also used it as an opportunity to network. President Aoun was there and I had the honor to meet him. This conference gave me the chance to learn more about the topic as well as seeing the students benefits: "It’s clear to me that North­eastern Uni­ver­sity stu­dents are receiving an out­standing edu­ca­tion. My hope is that you see inno­va­tion as a lead­er­ship imper­a­tive as you go for­ward. — Wes Bush, pres­i­dent, and CEO of Northrop Grumman"


Those past weeks have been really great opportunities, I am very thankful for. With this I hope that you are all doing well, I wish you all a happy Thanksgiving and I will speak to you really soon.

Until next time! 

Alexandra 

PS: Feel free to check my social media
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American election, leadership and festive season on the way ~ week 19

Dear readers,

It is on this mild Sunday morning that I am writing my first entry of November. In the past few weeks, I have been living through interesting times, as the 45th President of the United States was elected.

The coming weeks are at the same time going to be busy and enjoyable, as I am getting ready to host my godmother and be her guide to this city, which I am still new to. 

Over the last two weeks, I believe that I have been growing more professionally as I have been given the opportunity to attend a director interview. This interview wasn't the typical European interview where employers ask you questions; instead the candidate did a presentation entitled "High Impact Global Education: Moving Students Beyond the Borders". This interview/presentation gave me the opportunity to realise that I am a Global Citizen. I am getting the exposure to a global world by experiencing different cultures; I am inspired by my co-workers; I am informed about the opportunities that global exposure can give you; I am convinced that global opportunities will give me the chance to develop professionally and personally; I am always motivated to achieve my best potential through international exposure but keeping my values at heart. A global experience brings me support, connection and empowerment by making me stronger and more confident, especially in controlling my life and claiming my rights.

I believe that this experience will help me in the future as if I want to have a successful career I need to have goals, experiences, strong interests, values that I will never let get affected by my work, have a strong education, and have a wide range of skills.

Over the past couple of weeks, I have also been working on country/ employer research and outreach in various regions around the world. Therefore I am strengthening my communication and research skills, as well as developing my knowledge and understanding of the different countries. Being aware of the cultural differences enables me to make decisions in a timely and effective manner, makes it easier to find relevant information; I believe that it also give me the opportunity to stimulate my growth and innovation techniques.

Since my last entry I have also been exposed to a leadership theory entitled "Leading from the Middle". The theory is associated with the truth as leaders in the middle face series of challenges, most of which will generally focus on self- management issues. This theory identifies challenges that everyone can relate to depending on the organisation they are working in. Those challenges can be reduced by focusing your energy on the right projects. This can be done using a focus matrix that will divide the projects you are working on (1)Urgent/Important, (2) Not urgent/Important, (3) Not important/urgent and (4)Not important/not urgent. This matrix is also known as (1) Manage, (2) Focus, (3) Avoid, (4) Limit. This is also known as effective leadership, as the focus will be through the lens of importance rather than urgency, as well as protecting against the ever demanding urgent. The understanding of this theory will help me to prioritise my work even more as I will be able to decide whether it's urgent or not. This will make my work more effective and efficient on a daily basis.

As always, the first entry of the month includes my thoughts on my professional development. Well this month, our professional development training topic was "Building Business Relationships”. This training gave me the opportunity to understand and analyse the key elements to business relationships. To have those relationships you need to listen to people when you meet them, people need to be willing to learn about others, inspire others by being able to say something positive, seek opportunities, tell them what you are thinking, educate yourself on the best practices in this specific business environment, but also be able to notice when things are changing. Building business relationships also includes the one you are building with your manager, finding out their expectations, goals, needs will help you build a strong relationship with them. This training might at a first glance seem obvious but it was a great way to enhance my knowledge and understanding of standard practices in the US. This was also a good way to approach the topic of conflicts in teams that I have been able to observe. The leverage to success is trust, honesty, and reflection. I believe that over the last four months I have been able to understand and apply those practices and that over the last couple of weeks especially I have been able to put them in action even more. As you all know by now I have been working at the front desk of Career Development, and on November 1st, our new full-time staff member started work. I shared the duties of training him during the first week of November - it was a great and enriching experience! I have learned a lot about myself and my ability to transfer knowledge to someone else.

Here is how my training was described:

"The training you gave me was fabulous! You knew exactly where to direct me if you did not know the answer to my question... and I didn't stump you with a question so you knew it all. You didn't treat any of my millions of questions that I asked you as a stupid question. You were extremely welcoming and helpful. You helped me through my culture shock of leaving my sales job. You were organized and let me adopt my own style to the front desk while you watched over me. I really appreciated that!"

As I said before, despite being an unexpected responsibility and assignment, working at the front desk gave me the experience and exposure of a fast-paced work environment and was a really rewarding experience!

My latest vlogs are up 

Until next time! 

Alexandra 

PS: Feel free to check my social media

You can follow me on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and follow me on Snapchat to see more of my daily life  

Employers' visits, site visit preparation and leadership skills at trial ~ week 17

Dear Readers, 

It is on this cold last Sunday morning of October that I am writing this entry on my blog. In the past week, Boston has seen a severe and sudden decrease in temperatures - so wrapped up in blankets with a cuppa with me I am looking back at the past two weeks. 

When I last talked to you, my supervisor and I just decided of the new goals for the next coming months. Since then a lot has been happening, putting my public speaking, Information Technology, and reactiveness at the test. Over the first few months of my internship I did meet with employers, however, on October 17th, my supervisor and I received a delegation of 33 employers on campus. When such delegation comes on campus, it is our responsibility to make sure that they have the opportunity to meet the faculty/ staff members they will work with following their visit on campus. This delegation coming on campus was challenging as they did not all speak English fluently. This required being more open and more attentive to their questions. That third week of October I also met with other employers promoting their opportunities on campus with student groups. We facilitated two info sessions and each was attended by over a hundred students.
Both visits, even though similar were really different as they were for two different entities, one was focusing on Northeastern proving information to employers and the other employers sharing their job opportunities to students. 
Both events gave me the chance to strengthen my networking skills and ability to adapt to different types of the audience but also gave the opportunity to develop my knowledge on the different culture ethics and expectations. 

Furthermore, in the past week I helped my supervisor with her trip visit preparation - focusing on the presentation she will be giving to potential new employers for Northeastern co-op students in South Africa. In collaboration with another intern I have been creating a slide deck that she will be able to use with strong selling point and information. This was a task that gave the chance to analyze my knowledge and understanding of the university system. It was great to see that I was able to create those slides without major difficulties and also realized that once you know a topic, summarizing it in a couple of points isn't too difficult. 


As you know by now, I have been spending a couple of hours a month focusing on developing my leadership skills, thus to be able in the future to progress towards a leadership position in a timely manner. This week my leadership class was on being able to share information with an 'employee' that would potentially lead to conflict or difficult decision. I had the chance to do this role play with the professor. He decided to put my in difficult situations that he thought I will encounter later on in my career. This role play was a really good learning opportunity; even though fictional those scenarios were real life examples. It is said that gender and inequality in the workplace are being reduced, we should always keep in mind that not everybody will agree with it and that women in a leadership position will have to face the toughness of male 'superiority'.

As you all know, since the beginning of August I was covering the front desk for certain hours of the week, making my schedule really busy, with increased responsibilities  but also in some situations increasing the stress of meeting a deadline. I am really pleased to report that a new staff member is starting tomorrow! As a result, my time at the front desk is coming to an end after this week as I will be sharing the responsibilities of training him. Despite being an unexpected responsibility and assignment working at the front desk gave me the experience and exposure of a fast-paced in person work environment. 

Before finishing this blog, I would like to apologize for the lack of Vlogs this week, however, the past two weeks have been challenging on a personal level, and I wasn't seeing myself vlogging those private moments.  

See you soon

AlexandraPS: Feel free to check my social media

You can follow me on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and follow me on Snapchat to see more of my daily life  

Personality analysed, crazy career fair and more info sessions | Week 15

Dear Readers, 

Time is flying by and somehow it is already mid-October. October, a month where students are looking jobs, settling in their classes, deciding on doing a co-op either domestic or global. This past couple of weeks has also been for me the time to settle and adjust to my new goals and new responsibilities coming with the new quarter.

My new responsibilities include building presentations and facilitate workshop skills for large student groups, strengthen my job development and employer outreach skills by developing leads in assigned regions by co-workers and supervisors, develop and enhance research skills with site visit preparations and assist Director and Coordinators with upcoming trips by creating trip reports, develop marketing materials for Career Development and Global Employer Relations as well as enhancing my knowledge on the protocol for employers campus visits. 

I believe that those responsibilities will help me to further develop my leadership skills, enhance my knowledge on various topics and will also lead me to work better in a team and make sure that the consensus is fair and right for everyone.   


Within the past few weeks, I have undertaken several personality tests to help me understand the way I am working as well as well as enhancing my performance in group work. After undertaking the Myers-Briggs Test I have been able to determine that I have an ISFJ personality, meaning that my strengths are that I apply common sense and experience to solving problems for other people. I am responsible, loyal and traditional, I enjoy serving the needs of others and providing practical help. According to the Myers-Briggs analysis I possess the Feeling (F) trait, I have excellent analytical abilities; though I am Introverted (I), I have well-developed people skills and robust social relationships; and though I am a Judging (J) type, the ISFJs says that I am often receptive to change and new ideas.
I hope that this gives you a little more insights on myself and my work.

 I will be back soon with another blog!

In the meantime, you can check my weekly vlogs on my YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyuCGxEITB4FEPP23FaNclw   

Here is my last vlog

Thanks for reading! 

See you soon

Alexandra

PS: Feel free to check my social media

You can follow me on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and follow me on Snapchat to see more of my daily life  

WEEK 13 | Let's talk about the last three months!

Another month has gone by, that can only mean one thing, a fourth of my internship is done. All of this is still a little unreal as it sometimes feels like I just arrived in Boston, but no, I have been working towards achieving my first quarter goals all this time.

Over the past months I have been working towards gaining a full understanding of the three departments I am working in, Global Employer Relations, Global Experience Office and Career Services; having a full understanding of Northeastern Co-op model with specific knowledge about global co-op- to achieve this full understanding I have been participating in employers calls and toward the end leading call with employers as well as participating in on-campus employers visits. 

Throughout the past months, I have also been redesigning Global Co-op info session and became comfortable presenting to the large group of students. I have also been developing communication and research skills by compiling regional trip preparation reports for different regions around the world sometimes being challenged by language barriers or sometimes challenge by the lack of information available on websites. I have learned to overcome the challenges by using online translators as well as developing a new research strategy using companies affiliated to the American Chamber of Commerce in the specific country. 

Another one of my goals this quarter was to understand and learn about the logistics of organizing a large student event. To achieve this goal, I have talked to fellow co-workers to understand the processes of putting such an event into place. As a result of those interactions and being the coordinator and the 'event manager' of the Global Co-op Networking Fair, I have created a manual describing the steps that need to be undertaken in order to run a successful event. This manual will later be sent to other departments on campus as my office will no longer be in charge of this event in the Spring semester. Additionally,  I became familiar with the college co-op target for the next calendar year, to achieve this I have created a snapshot utilizing a student survey. I have also been familiarizing myself with one of the software that the university staff and students are using on a daily basis. I have also been attending training assigned by incoming exchange coordinator. 

As a result, I have been gaining communication skills both written and verbal; leadership and teamwork skills by learning to delegate; being an active listener in meetings, being organized and efficient; learning to brainstorm with the team; documenting my work to be able to refer to it more easily; learn to communicate with highers up and I have also learned to be more assertive in some situations. I have been networking with colleagues and people from various company departments. Over the past three months, I have also been taking advantages of conferences, lectures, and other learning opportunities. 


I hope that this give you a little more insights on my internship and I will be back really soon with another blog!

In the meantime, you can check my weekly vlogs on my YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyuCGxEITB4FEPP23FaNclw   

Here are my last two vlogs 

Thanks for reading! 

See you soon

Alexandra

PS: Feel free to check my social media

You can follow me on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and follow me on Snapchat to see more of my daily life (alex.wilcock)