Melanie Guertin will be graduating in November with an MA in Religion and Public Life.
She has already landed a job at Carleton as a Registrarial Assistant.
Guertin said that when she was job hunting, she devoted a great deal of time networking, researching different career paths, applying for jobs and attending interviews.
“Although the job search can be stressful and demanding, it was also something very exciting for me,” shares Guertin. “After working at the University, I had a pretty good idea of the type of position I was looking for and with help from HR, I had an interview with the Registrar’s Office fairly quickly. I finished my student position at the Library on August 30th and my interview with the Registrar’s office was in the first week of September (so I was quite lucky).”
For her MA research project, Guertin examined the importance of verbal expression in preserving Holocaust memory. “Basically, I wrote about how important is it to hear survivors speak while focusing on why they did not speak publically in the past because their stories were considered taboo. Canadians were not necessarily supportive directly after the War.”
Her research project helped her to gain transferable skills that are extremely important in the workplace. “I developed exceptional research and writing skills,” says Guertin. “I was able to strengthen my public speaking skills as well as gain wonderful interviewing experience. As the program lasts only one year, I was really able to develop key time management and prioritization skills. I also certainly feel the MA degree enhances my resumé.”
Grad students from the Religion and Public Life MA meet monthly and Guertin says that, recently, they have been discussing jobs. “People regularly assist others with finding opportunities. For example, one student in the program works on the Hill and he regularly sends us job descriptions/details for jobs posted.”
Career Services offers individual assistance to current students and alumni and workshops geared at grad students. Upcoming are:
Oct. 16 Resumé Writing for Grad Students
Oct. 29 Career Exploration Outside of Academia
Nov. 4 Networking Strategies for Grad Students
Nov. 27 Interview Skills for Grad Students
Nov. 29 One-day Career Certificate for Grad Students
You can find out the details by going to our Career Planning section of the Grad Navigate website.
If you will have completed your degree by December 31, 2014 , then, you might be eligible for this recruitment program in the federal civil service. More
Wednesday, October 9, 2013 in Convocation, News, Programs
Share: Twitter, Facebook
