Students have access to virtual, individualized career coaching and mock interviews, quick question drop-in hours through Zoom, and more.
As the University transitioned to remote learning last semester in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Dolan Career Development Center quickly responded by adapting its services to online formats to support students remotely while also creating online events. Students continued to pursue individualized career coaching opportunities with Center career coaches and professionals-in-residence through phone calls and Zoom. Mock Interviews took place online with alumni and local professionals and both virtual events had high attendance. Students also continue to use InterviewStream, software that can be accessed at any time giving students the flexibility to record practice interviews they can send to the Career Center for feedback; the software provides students access to a library of resources including 7,000 pre-recorded interview questions.
“Students remain motivated while working through new challenges to explore opportunities and to prepare for their career of interest,” said Dolan Career Development Center Director Sarah Bollinger, MEd. “Our office will continue to develop new and innovative ways to offer career support to our students in response to their needs.”
One such new opportunity Bollinger developed in April was the “Don’t Quarantine Your Marketing Career” online event in collaboration with the Dolan Marketing Club. Offered through Zoom, students heard from Marketing Professional-in-Residence Mary Kelly ’02 along with student presenters Elizabeth Benson ’22 and Olivia Gubb ’21. The goal of the event was to alleviate student concerns about how the pandemic could negatively affect their career interests and to provide ideas for how to continue to resume build.
With 15 years’ experience working in marketing agencies, on the client side, and now consulting, Kelly talked about her start in marketing. She shared how she was laid off during the height of the 2009 recession and delivered the message that students will come out stronger in the face of challenge. Kelly discussed that in the absence of a structured internship, students can create their own opportunities to use their skills, such as offering to support a local business with marketing strategies and ideas.
“I was able to grow my personal brand during quarantine through @fairfieldfoodie, an Instagram account I created where I post original recipes and write and share food-related articles,” said economics major and marketing minor Elizabeth Benson. On her Instagram, Benson posted recipes that students could make to donate to organizations supporting first responders and those in need during the pandemic. International business major and marketing minor Olivia Gubb talked about how she made and distributed hand sanitizer. The event concluded with Q&A from students.
Undergraduate and graduate students can continue to pursue the Dolan Professional Development Series (PDS) by substituting in-person events with LinkedIn Learning courses that explore similar topics such as networking and internship search strategies. The PDS Program continues to be a strong source of career support for students, and Dolan student career outcomes remain impressive and continue to exceed national averages: 92% of graduating seniors completed at least one internship and 99.67% of Dolan graduates have a job or are accepted to graduate or professional school within six months of graduation; 98% of Dolan graduate students have a job or are accepted to additional graduate/professional school within 90 days of graduation (class of 2019).
For more information about Dolan Career Development Center services and opportunities, please visit fairfield.edu/dolan-career.
“Students remain motivated while working through new challenges to explore opportunities and to prepare for their career of interest,” said Dolan Career Development Center Director Sarah Bollinger, MEd. “Our office will continue to develop new and innovative ways to offer career support to our students in response to their needs.”
One such new opportunity Bollinger developed in April was the “Don’t Quarantine Your Marketing Career” online event in collaboration with the Dolan Marketing Club. Offered through Zoom, students heard from Marketing Professional-in-Residence Mary Kelly ’02 along with student presenters Elizabeth Benson ’22 and Olivia Gubb ’21. The goal of the event was to alleviate student concerns about how the pandemic could negatively affect their career interests and to provide ideas for how to continue to resume build.
With 15 years’ experience working in marketing agencies, on the client side, and now consulting, Kelly talked about her start in marketing. She shared how she was laid off during the height of the 2009 recession and delivered the message that students will come out stronger in the face of challenge. Kelly discussed that in the absence of a structured internship, students can create their own opportunities to use their skills, such as offering to support a local business with marketing strategies and ideas.
“I was able to grow my personal brand during quarantine through @fairfieldfoodie, an Instagram account I created where I post original recipes and write and share food-related articles,” said economics major and marketing minor Elizabeth Benson. On her Instagram, Benson posted recipes that students could make to donate to organizations supporting first responders and those in need during the pandemic. International business major and marketing minor Olivia Gubb talked about how she made and distributed hand sanitizer. The event concluded with Q&A from students.
Undergraduate and graduate students can continue to pursue the Dolan Professional Development Series (PDS) by substituting in-person events with LinkedIn Learning courses that explore similar topics such as networking and internship search strategies. The PDS Program continues to be a strong source of career support for students, and Dolan student career outcomes remain impressive and continue to exceed national averages: 92% of graduating seniors completed at least one internship and 99.67% of Dolan graduates have a job or are accepted to graduate or professional school within six months of graduation; 98% of Dolan graduate students have a job or are accepted to additional graduate/professional school within 90 days of graduation (class of 2019).
For more information about Dolan Career Development Center services and opportunities, please visit fairfield.edu/dolan-career.
