Professional development workshops for students and alumni at Peirce Career Day

Earning a degree unlocks many doors along the path to a new career. But finding and excelling in a new job takes more than an education.

It also requires an investment in personal and professional development that transforms you from a new graduate into a commodity on the job market.

That's why Career Development Services organized its first Career Day event in April. Peirce students and alumni attended several training sessions including:

• Conflict management
• How to use LinkedIn to get a job
• Developing your brand
• Navigating non-traditional interviews
• Diversity and inclusion
• Professional networking
• Negotiating your salary and benefits package

Two keynote speakers addressed the group during the course of the day. We started with Jim Smith Jr., President and CEO of JIMPACT Enterprises. This best-selling author and international speaker kicked things off with a high-energy presentation where he discussed the ways students and alumni can develop their personal brand.

Later in the day, Andrea Agnew, Director of Diversity and Inclusion for Comcast Cable Communications, spoke about the business value of diversity in the workplace. She also helped participants understand the relevance of diversity and inclusion in everyone’s career path.

The Career Day workshops each targeted skill sets that are key to finding and keeping a job.

The business case scenario workshop divided students into break-out teams charged with developing a plan to tackle a specific business issue, then presenting their recommendations to the group.

During lively networking workshops, participants learned how to engage with professionals in a networking situation, techniques they later applied at a networking lunch with faculty, staff, alumni, and some employers.

Attendees also learned how to evaluate a job offer, negotiate salary, assess the value of their full package (including insurance), and accept or decline an offer. There was a popular session dedicated to social media’s role in the job search. And finally, participants were provided guidelines on how to manage and resolve conflict in the workplace.

Career Day was a lucky day for Peirce Student Winifred Clarkson-Wise. She was selected for a scholarship to participate in Jim Smith’s subsequent training bootcamp at Peirce College on April 26 and 27!

But truly, every student and alumni who attended walked away with tools that will be valuable during the job search process. If you missed the event and would like to know more about any of the workshops, please e-mail Career Development Services.