Main office:

Hekman Library 372

Resource center:

Hekman Library,

2nd floor

Hours:

Monday-Friday,

8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

Walk-in hours,

3:30-4:30 p.m.

Economics Grad Finding Success at GM

Connecting the career development office with faculty, administrators, students and parents

Entering her senior year at Calvin, economics

major Rebekah Kline ’13 knew that her focus

would be on securing full-time employment for

post-graduation. Therefore, she put a lot of time

and effort into attending job fairs (such as the

Calvin in Chicago Career Fair and Job Pursuit),

meeting with career counselors, filling out

countless online applications, writing cover

letters, and passing along her resume whenever

and wherever possible.

However, Rebekah found that the most effective

job searching came through networking. In

previous summers, she had interned with Federal

-Mogul Corporation, an automotive supplier in

Southfield, Michigan. These internships helped

connect her to the automotive industry, which

ultimately led to an interview with General

Motors.

“When it all came down to it, it was my

connections in the automotive industry that

placed my resume in the right hands, landing me

an interview with GM,” says Rebekah. “However,

this is not to say that all my hard work went to

waste. In fact, I believe the practice I gained

attending job fairs and speaking with employers

helped me to be more knowledgeable of the

interview process and confident when

attending my interview with GM.”

With her internship experiences and confidence

in the interview process, Rebekah was hired as a

Buyer at the General Motors Tech Center in

Warren, Michigan. As a Buyer, Rebekah is

responsible for sourcing and issuing contracts for

the exterior moldings that are built on General

Motors’ vehicles.

“The core values instilled in me by Calvin

faculty and staff have proved to be very

important in my role at GM,” Rebekah says.

“When interfacing with other buyers,

engineers and suppliers, I have found that

people respond positively to integrity and

kindness. Above all, living by your values and

morals will make you respected in the

workplace.”

Not only have core values helped Rebekah in

her position, but the skills she gained as a

Calvin student have also been beneficial.

“Although what you learn in college is

important, it is the ability to learn and adapt

quickly that will make you very marketable to

potential employers,” says Rebekah. “With this

in mind, focus more on developing skills (such

as those related to research, communication,

and analysis) rather

than accumulating

knowledge. Who

knows, you may

get your degree in

history and end up

working in

marketing.

Cultivate the core

set of skills that will

allow you to

succeed in

numerous

positions across

different fields.”

Inside this issue:

Economics

Grad Finding

Success at GM

1

Internship

Photos

2

Fall Semester in

Review

3

Upcoming

Events

3

In Their Own

Words:

Employer

Testimonials

4

CareerLink Interim/Spring 2014

Page 2

A Photo Gallery of Fall Interns

Colton was an intern with

Christian Reformed

World Missions.

270 Calvin students

reported having a fall

internship, giving them

the opportunity to

develop the professional

skills employers are

seeking in candidates.

(Students: report your

internship at

www.calvin.edu/career for

a chance to win a $15 gift

certificate to Calvin’s

campus store!)

Miles interned with the Better

Business Bureau.

Ashley gained video

production experience with

Deep End Films.

Additional internship photos are featured on Facebook:

www.facebook.com/calvin.career.development

In partnership with

students, graduates,

employers, and

faculty, we offer our

hearts and lives to

do God's work in

God's world.

Career

Development’s

Mission Statement

Page 3

Fall Semester in Review

The career development office offers several events

throughout the year as a way to help Calvin students

compete in today’s job market. The fall semester

proved to be busy, with the following events providing

networking opportunities for students and employers.

169 students and professionals engaged in “speed

networking” conversations during the annual

Business Careers Networking Reception. This

event also featured Dr. Phil Gardner, Director of the Collegiate Employment Research

Institute at Michigan State University, who spoke about the skills and competencies that

students need to prepare for the transition to the workplace.

The Fall Career Fair, hosted by GVSU in collaboration with Calvin and other area

colleges, included over 200 employers recruiting for internships and full-time positions.

64 Calvin students took advantage of this opportunity to connect with prospective

employers.

The 2nd annual Calvin in Chicago Career Fair was held on October 29, with 14

employers and 86 students participating. Photos from the event are included on the

cover of this newsletter.

The Michigan Colleges Foundation provides students from Calvin and other MCF

member schools the opportunity to network and apply for internships or full-time

positions with top-quality Michigan employers, through the MCF Corporate Concierge

program. This fall’s Corporate Concierge program included interview days or

networking receptions with Whirlpool, Spectrum Health, Gordon Food Service, and

Stryker.

Find more details about these upcoming events on our website:

www.calvin.edu/career/events-list.html

Upcoming Events

Michigan’s Global Future: Career

Conference for International Students

Feb. 1, 3:00-7:30 p.m.

GVSU’s downtown campus, Grand Rapids

Engineering and Computing Fair

Feb. 5, 2:00-5:00 p.m.

Prince Conference Center

Job Search Strategies for Nurses

Feb. 10, 5:00-6:00 p.m.

Meeter Center Lecture Hall

GVSU Winter Career Fair and Health

Careers Day

Feb. 11, 1:00-5:00 p.m.

DeVos Place Convention Center, Grand Rapids

Job Pursuit

Feb. 18, 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.

Crowne Plaza Lansing West Hotel, Lansing, MI

*Pre-registration required

Out-of-State Teacher Fair

March 3, 3:00-6:00 p.m.

GVSU Kirkhof Center, Allendale

*Follow-up interviews on March 4

Teacher Search

April 29, 12:00-4:00 p.m.

Prince Conference Center

Page 4

We offer a variety of services for

students and alumni:

Career counseling

Major selection

Career testing

Internships

Job search assistance

Job fairs

Practice interviews

Resume and cover letter critiques

Web-based job posting system

Career Development Staff

Glenn Triezenberg,

Director

Meredith Segur,

Career Counselor

Beth Cok,

Internship Program Manager

Laurie Lemmen, Internship Program Coordinator

Bonnie Speyers,

Career Counselor

Lydia Frens,

Career Counselor

Karen Brewer,

Department Assistant

Kristy Dykhouse,

Recruitment Coordinator

Questions or suggestions? Call or e-mail

Meredith Segur, (616) 526-7675 or msegur@calvin.edu.

Available online at www.calvin.edu/career

CAREER

DEVELOPMENT

Calvin College

1855 Knollcrest Circle

Grand Rapids, MI 49546

Phone: (616) 526-6485 Fax: (616) 526-6502

E-mail: career@calvin.edu www.calvin.edu/career

Find us on Facebook! Become a

fan of Calvin College career

development to stay up-to-date about upcoming job fairs and

events and lots of other helpful career resources!

www.facebook.com/calvin.career.development

In Their Own Words: Employer Testimonials

Scott Enserink '87, Northrop Grumman

"When my department at Northrop Grumman had a need for

engineers five years ago, I thought of my alma mater. I reached out

to Calvin, and through the help of career development and the

engineering department, I conducted on-campus interviews and

found two top-notch hires, both of whom still work with the

company today. These two have done very well, and we're hoping

to hire additional Calvin engineers this year."

Janice Koopman '89, Gordon Food Service

“As a recruiter for Gordon Food Service, I do a lot of hiring. I have

found many outstanding entry-level and intern candidates through

Calvin's career development office. They offer multiple ways of

connecting with students — through job postings, on-campus

presentations, job fairs and more."

Melanie Trowbridge, C2AE

"I have been to Calvin's campus twice to conduct mock interviews

with the engineering students and I find that Calvin has THE BEST

students I've seen in a very long time. They are so impressive,

smart, focused and just the kind of people I want to hire in our

firm. The students who I spoke to at the Engineering Fair were

equally as impressive and prepared. I wish I had openings for each

of the 40 students I met!"