How to plan for life beyond business school

TRANSCRIPT:

Everyone begins school with a different combination of clarity and experience.

We all celebrate graduation, but the real story is how you will get there—and how to plan for life beyond school.

We worked with the team at the Career Management Center at Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management to co-create these video profiles of three different student experiences.

Some students, like Susan, know exactly who they are and where they are going.

They have a focus and an agenda, but need a little help in putting a plan together.

And some students like Craig can feel a little clueless as to why exactly they started this adventure.

Let's face it, everyone begins school with a different combination of clarity and experience.

And the fact is: no one has it all figured out.

That's where the Vanderbilt University Owen School of Management Career Center can help.

Take Kahn, for example, she is intelligent, dedicated, and a hard worker who excels at her coursework and research projects.

Although she doesn't have work experience in the field, Kahn knows that she wants to focus on Finance.

And, as an international student who speaks English as a second language, Kahn knows that experience and cultural understanding are key to her success.

She wants to connect with other students and dig deep into the culture.

She seeks practical experience through internships and aims to contribute to the larger community, as well as lead projects alongside other students.

When it came time to refine her resume and prepare for job interviews, Kahn was well-prepared with real-world experience, as well as a firm grasp of both theory and practice.

In contrast, Carlos has lots of experience.

He has graduated from several schools with multiple degrees and several years of work history.

Although he is interested in so many subjects, Carlos is really seeking clarity and focus for his business school experience.

Carlos knows that he learns through experience vs. theory.

It turns out that Carlos truly excelled at the intellectual challenge of the Case Competitions.

Not only did he win the competition with his solution to a real-world business challenge, but he also came away with a compelling story for potential employers.

What is great news is that all students have access to career coaching and guidance through the Career Center.

Our job is to understand each person's unique combination of experience, ambitions, fears, and challenges to design a personalized strategy.

We begin working with you right from the start and continue with you, through graduation and your career beyond.

We look forward to meeting you in person and working with you to maximize your experience at Vanderbilt.

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